Malheur Refuge takeover trial 2 split decision

A federal jury Friday delivered a split verdict in the second Oregon standoff trial, finding two defendants guilty of conspiracy in the takeover of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge but acquitting two others of the same charge.

The jury found Jason Patrick, described by prosecutors as one of the organizers of the armed occupation, and Darryl Thorn, who worked on security details, guilty of conspiring to prevent federal workers from doing their jobs at the refuge through intimidation, threat or force. The other two men on trial, Duane Ehmer and Jake Ryan, were found not guilty.

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Patrick, who said it's turkey hunting season where he lives in Georgia, made turkey calls in the courtroom before the judge or jury entered, prompting a deputy U.S. marshal to tell him to cut it out. "So, who's getting Tased?'' blurted out Matthew Schindler, a defense lawyer from the first trial who sat in the back of the courtroom to hear the verdict, referencing the bizarre ending to last fall's trial when Ammon Bundy's lawyer was taken into custody and stunned with a Taser.

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