Ammon Bundy

The acquittal of by federal jurors of seven leaders of the 41-day armed takeover of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in Oregon is hailed, alternately, as a verdict for liberty or an invitation to anarchy. "Most onlookers blamed prosecutorial over-reach — that the government stretched its case too far to fit the events at the refuge — or to stumbles in the presentation of evidence," said the New York Times.

Lawmakers from at least five states tried to negotiate on behalf of rancher Ammon Bundy and his followers, when they took over the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in Harney County, Oregon this January, says Oregon Public Broadcasting.

After more than three-weeks of national media attention, the occupation of Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in Oregon took a violent turn Tuesday afternoon when federal officials stopped several of the militia members on a state highway outside of Burns, Oregon, reports the New York Times.