Note to my readers: this story was the body of an on-line friend who said he was forwarding it to me as a "precautionary tale of what might come to be." Take it for what its worth.
FROM: The Standard-Journal On-Line – April 1, 2015
FEDS INVADE COUNTY: Hundreds Under Arrest – Judges and States Attorney Freed—Fired Finally Quelled -- By Jeremy Wilson, Special to the Standard-Journal
Over five hundred FBI and Alcohol, Tobacco and Fire Arms (ATF) agents, along with U.S. Marshals and the Illinois State Police broke through a corridor of several hundred members of the Stevenson County Sheriff’s “special posse” just before dawn this morning. According to a statement issued by the FBI’s Special Agent in Charge a brief gun battle was halted when U.S. Army armored personnel carriers supported from helicopter gunships joined in the assault.
"Seeing the firepower provided by the Army broke the will of the insurgents,” said Charles McMurtrie, the FBI agent who coordinated the attack which broke a thirty-five day stalemate between the Stevenson County sheriff’s “special posse” and a host of federal and state agencies intent on serving warrants and writs to officials in the county.
A potential second fire fight between the assaulting agents and sheriff’s posse members who had built fortifications around the Stevenson County jail was averted when the helicopter gunships began circling the compound. The total number of those rounded up by federal and state authorizes exceeded five hundred-fifty, although an exact count will not be known until all of those detained in the massive sweep have been processed.
Johnson Balter, Stevenson County State’s Attorney, along with Chief Circuit Judge Angela Rudy and Associate Circuit Judge Vincent Cashen were freed from the county jail where they had been held for over forty days after Stevenson County Sheriff Jimmy Pigeon refused to submit to arrest on nineteen contempt of court citations. When the Illinois State Police attempted to serve writs of habeas corpus to free Balter, Rudy and Cashen, Sheriff Pigeon deputized over six hundred "special deputies" to shut off all roads into the county.
The initial contempt of court citations stemmed from the refusal of Sheriff Pigeon and his cousin Timmy Pigeon, Stevenson County Board Chairman, to complete economic interest statements required by law. In addition, both the Pigeons and the majority of the Stevenson County Board have refused to complete W-2 forms needed to process their salaries, travel expenses and meeting reimbursements.
In a statement issued soon after he was elected, Sheriff Pigeon stated, “I will not provide anyone with information that links me in any way to the socialist national government, the unconstitutional income tax and the one-world government advocated by the Tri-Lateral Commission and its puppet the United Nations.” Since March of 2014 Stevenson County has been paying its employees without deducting state and federal taxes, as well as Social Security and Medicare. In addition the county ceased making payments to the Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund (IMRF) on behalf of its employees. All moves order by the County Board as a protest against federal and state laws regulating local units of government.
When a group of county employees sought an injunction in circuit court to force the county to resume the IMRF payments, they were barred from the courtroom by sheriff’s personnel acting on orders of Sheriff Pigeon. Injunctions and writs issued by the Illinois Supreme Court and the federal magistrate in Rocktown proved fruitless of the same reasons.
Many county residents expressed relief that the situation seems to have been resolved. The virtual isolation of the county left store shelves bare, gasoline supplies dwindling and those employed outside the county unable to work. According to statements issued by Sheriff Pigeon, “the purpose of the blockade is to stop anyone not recognized by the Sheriff’s Office from entering the county and will in no way inhibit the movement of law abiding people or legal goods into or out of the county. I am the top law enforcement officer in the County,” the statement continued,” I cannot and will not recognize anyone from state or federal courts as having jurisdiction here.”
Fearing confrontations, most residents did not attempt to pass through the road blocks despite the sheriff’s assurances. Companies making deliveries to stores, businesses and gas stations in the county also refused to enter the county. Unconfirmed reports state that the Wisconsin State Police and a large contingent of the Wisconsin National Guard had assembled where Illinois routes 2 and 7crossed into that state. The Standard-Journal has been unable to determine whether or not those units participated in the relief expedition that began this morning.
The presence of the additional law enforcement personnel today provided the needed manpower to quell the riot and looting that had gone on in the downtown of Keysport. Four square blocks of the city have been consumed by fires started by rioters, but firefighters were prevented from reaching the fires due to absence of police personnel. In creating the “special posse” to guard the county, Sheriff Pigeon jailed any law enforcement officer in the county who refused to submit to his orders. Keysport as well as all the other towns in the county were left without police protection. Traffic accidents, including one involving a drunk driver that took the lives of four children on a school bus, went without investigation because of the stand-off with federal and state law enforcement.
States Attorney Balter stated that he believed that the county judicial and law enforcement systems will be back to normal in a few days. Illinois State Police District 29 commander will serve as the county's sheriff-pro tem until a special election can be held, according to a statement released by the Chief Justice of the Illinois Supreme Court.
Editor’s Note: Much of the information reported in this article will either be news to our readers or confirm rumors that have circulated in the community. Since Sheriff Pigeon began his standoff with state and federal authorizes the Standard-Journal offices have been occupied by members of the “special posse” and all our editions have been subjected to heavy censorship. We regret that we were prevented from upholding our journalistic obligations when our community needed us the most.
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