Having to traverse nearly sixteen hundred miles to get to their retreat was a less than ideal situation for the members of the Group. Under the circumstances, however, it was the best that they could do. All that they could do was hope for the best, and watch the newspapers very carefully.
CHAPTER 6
Lawyers, Guns, and Money
“The evils of tyranny are rarely seen but by him who resists it.”
—John Hay, Castilian Days II, 1872
Matt and Chase Keane made their way back to eastern Washington shortly after the dollar collapsed. Unlike most other Americans, the Crunch was a relief to them. The anarchy spreading across the nation was their chance to go home with little fear of arrest. Four years earlier, the Keanes had a shoot-out with a North Carolina state trooper and a Randolph County sheriff’s deputy, and only minutes after, another one with an Asheboro police officer. Those events would irreparably change their lives.
• • •
Before the shoot-outs, the Keanes had made their living as traveling gun show dealers and day laborers. They were both intelligent and hard-working young men. They could have made good salaries in Spokane Valley industry, but they refused to apply for Social Security numbers. This limited them to self-employment or occasional short-term jobs where they could work for cash.
Between gun shows they built stock fences, cut and hauled firewood, worked at a brickyard, ran combines at harvest time, and bucked hay.
Matt and Chase were dyed-in-the-wool conservatives. Like many other conservatives, they felt that the Waco and Ruby Ridge incidents were nothing short of government massacres of law-abiding Christians who just wanted to be left alone. They thought that the Brady Law requiring a waiting period on handguns was a farce. They considered the Omnibus Crime Bill of 1994—which banned the manufacture of so-called “assault rifles” and magazines over ten-round capacity—absolutely unconstitutional. They were relieved when the law “sunsetted” in 2004, but were then horrified by the election of Barack Obama, and the threat of the onerous law being reinstated.
The Keanes derided the unconstitutional policies and legislation that came out of Washington, D.C. They referred to D.C. as “the District of Criminals” or “the District of Chaldeans.” The Keanes hated Washington, D.C. career politicians. They also hated the BATFE and the FBI. They had grown up admiring the FBI, but eventually despised it. The agency had been totally politicized, corrupted, and purged of any agents not loyal to the D.C. careerists.
Even its world-famous crime lab was caught fabricating evidence, as in the Lockerbie bombing case. They were convinced that the Oklahoma City bombing was a government setup. There was too much evidence pointing to two bomb blasts in rapid succession, one of which must have been inside the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building. There was also strong evidence that the ATF had prior knowledge that the explosions were going to occur.
The Keanes concluded that the OKC bombing was a government sting operation, much like the previous World Trade Center bombing. In that incident, an undercover agent gave the terrorists detailed instructions on how to construct the bomb, helped supply materials, and even gave driving lessons to the recently immigrated terrorists, so that they could get the truck to its target.
The Keanes were convinced that in the Oklahoma City case, FBI undercover agents were again co-conspirators. For some reason, just as in the World Trade Center case, they did not make their arrests until after the bombing. The Keanes concluded that the FBI had become so politicized and so ruthless that it was willing to sacrifice the lives of hundreds of citizens for the political “big score.” They considered Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols “little fish” and patsies. They knew that the Federal government had intentionally avoided tracking down and convicting “John Does” number two through seven, and had quickly ordered the demolition of what was left of the Murrah building to destroy evidence of bomb blasts inside the building. At least one of those John Does, they concluded, was on the Federal payroll.
The brothers had a number of minor scrapes with the law, mainly over traffic citations. Matt rarely carried a driver’s license, and more often than not, he owned cars that had not been re-registered with the state of Washington into his name. As far as he was concerned, a valid bill of sale was all that he needed to prove that the car was his property under common law. He once told his friend Dave, “If you read the state vehicle code, it doesn’t say a word about privately owned automobiles. It only pertains to commercial vehicles, operating in commerce. People are tricked by the authorities into thinking that all these laws pertain to them, but they don’t. A ‘motor vehicle’ is used for commerce, using the privilege to drive on the highway. That means carrying commercial goods under a bill of lading, or paying passengers. If it is just you and your guests—not ‘passengers’ mind you— traveling, then you are exercising your right of locomotion on the right of way rather than using the privilege to drive. That’s an important distinction that most people don’t grasp, and that these statutory jurisdiction kangaroo courts rarely recognize.”
Both of the Keanes and their younger sister had been homeschooled. Once they had mastered the “three Rs,” their parents let them do independent study.
The youngest, Eileen, wanted to be a veterinarian. She worked part-time as an assistant at a local vet clinic. Chase was interested in music. He took guitar, violin, and piano classes. Matt was fascinated by the legal system, so he spent nearly two full years commuting with his father to downtown Spokane. Each day his father dropped him off with a sack lunch at the county law library, and picked him up each evening. This began when he was sixteen years old. Seeing that Matt was genuinely interested, one of the librarians immediately took Matt under her wing. She started him off with a copy of Legal Research by Stephen Elias, and Black’s Law Dictionary. Most of the lawyers that saw Matt using the library assumed that he was a law clerk or a paralegal researcher. Matt dug into his law research with gusto. He was gifted with a photographic memory. Within a few weeks he was reciting the names and key points of cases verbatim. He had been doing the same with Bible verses since he was a child.
Matt and Chase were accused of selling firearms without a Federal Firearms License (FFL) three different times: twice by other dealers, and once by a gun show promoter. It was true that neither of them had a license, but they didn’t see the need for one. Matt had researched the Federal gun laws in detail. In 2007, the promoter of an Oregon show came by the Keanes’ tables and asked Matt casually, “Are you selling a private collection, or do you have an FFL?”
The term “private collection” was the standard gun show euphemism for a table rented by someone who sold modern guns without a license. Matt replied frankly, “Sir, I am indeed a full-time gun seller, but I don’t have an FFL.”
The promoter replied huffily, “Well, if you’re ‘engaged in the business,’ then you are required by law to get an FFL.” When the promoter quoted the
“engaged in the business” phrase from the Federal law, it was enough to get Matt going. For the next five minutes, the promoter sat in stunned silence as the young man lectured him about the inapplicability of Federal gun laws to state Citizens. Matt began, “Now sir, I’m going to explain some terms and applicability of laws, as I understand them, and please hear me out.
“Now this is what I’ve learned: Both the National Firearms Act of 1934—the NFA—and the Gun Control Act of 1968—the GCA—are deliberately deceptive, making millions of Sovereign Citizens unwittingly and needlessly subject to a false jurisdiction. Both laws indicate that they are applicable ‘within the United States,’ for ‘interstate or foreign commerce’ unless otherwise excluded by law. Further, these laws define the ‘United States’ to include the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and possessions of the United States. This corresponds to the ‘exclusive jurisdiction’ as defined in Article 1, Section 8, clauses 17 and 18 of the Constitution.
“If you refer to Public Law 99-308, Chapter 44, section 921(
a) (2) which reads: ‘The term interstate or foreign commerce includes commerce between any place in a State and any place outside of that State, or within any possession of the United States (not including the Canal Zone) or the District of Columbia, but such term does not include commerce between places within that same State but through any place outside that State. The term State includes the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and the possessions of the United States (not including the Canal Zone.)’”
A small crowd of curious onlookers began to gradually gather around Matt’s tables when they heard him rattle off the legal citations in a loud voice.
“Based upon my research, it is my understanding that the term includes restricts rather than expands a definition. This was clearly established in a large body of State and Federal cases, such as Montello Salt Co. v. Utah, 221 U.S., 452 at 466, and in Treasury Decision Number 3980 Volume 29, of 1927. That one said that ‘includes’ means to ‘comprise as a member,’ ‘to confine,’ and ‘to comprise as the whole part.’ If ‘includes’ meant an incomplete list of examples, such as in the common vernacular use of the term, then Congress would have certainly used the phrase ‘including but not limited to…’ or something similar.
“In the strict Federal legal definition—the so-called ‘black letter law’—of the word, as opposed to common interpretation, if something is not ‘included,’ then it is excluded!
“Since the term includes is one of strict definition, when lawmakers wish to temporarily supersede that definition for the purposes of an individual section or paragraph, they often use the word means. To illustrate this, I quote Internal Revenue Code section 6103(b)(5)(a) in which Congress temporally expanded ( ‘for the purposes of this section’) the term State to encompass the fifty States:‘The term ‘State’ means any of the 50 States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the [U.S.] Virgin Islands, the Canal Zone, Guam, American Samoa….’
“Now by ‘possessions’ I assume that NFA and GCA both refer to the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, and American Samoa, as well as certain Federal enclaves within the fifty Sovereign States, such as Federal military forts, dockyards, et cetera. Clearly, the fifty Sovereign States are not ‘possessions’ of the Federal United States. The nature of the possessions of the Federal United States is described in Art. 1, Sect. 8, clauses 17 and 18 of the Constitution. So the bottom line is that Federal jurisdiction in no way extends to individual Citizens of the fifty Sovereign States and Commonwealths!
“Now sir, I fully understand that the definitions included in a number of Federal regulations concerning firearms (such as Title 27) amplify the terms includes and including to ‘not exclude other things not enumerated which are in the same general class or are otherwise within the scope thereof.’ However, the fifty Sovereign Union States are not by any stretch of the imagination in the same class as Federal ‘States’ such as the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico or other federal possessions. They are not the possessions of the U.S. Federal government, but rather have their own distinct sovereignty, and their respective systems of laws and legal jurisdictions.”
The promoter scratched his head and opened his mouth, but Matt went on before the man had a chance to comment. Keane added, “Now if you have any doubt about my reasoning, I should point out that the Territories of Hawaii and Alaska were both originally listed as territories included in the Federal United States, but they were removed in the new versions of the U.S. Code that were published after they became Sovereign Union States.”
The crowd around the table was growing larger. Matt paused, waiting for his words to sink in. The promoter said nothing, so he went on. “Anyone who is not a citizen or legal resident of the Federal United States should be exempt from any requirement to obtain a Federal Firearms License to conduct intra-state commerce or commerce between any other of the fifty Sovereign States. The only exception would be if someone were to do business with, say, for example, an individual or Federally licensed dealer in Puerto Rico or the District of Columbia or some other Federal ‘State’ as defined in the NFA and GCA.
“Now here’s the kicker. It’s not just the Federal gun laws that are written this way. Nearly all the Federal laws apply only in the ‘District of Criminals’ and the Federal Territories. Only a few laws regarding the Postal Service, the Patent Office, and espionage apply in the fifty states. Except for those few laws, the Federal laws don’t apply to state Citizens or carry true force of law within the states. So when you see these ninja-suited Federal alphabet soup agency boys running around the fifty states, collecting taxes, arresting people, levying fines, burning down churches, and shooting nursing mothers in the head; guess what? They’re outside their jurisdiction.
“Now here are some other cases you might want to ponder: ‘It is a well established principle of law that all federal legislation applies only within the territorial jurisdiction of the United States unless a contrary intent appears.’ That’s from Foley Brothers Inc. v. Filardo, 336 U.S. 281.
“‘The laws of Congress in respect to those matters’— that is those outside of those Constitutionally delegated powers—‘do not extend into the territorial limits of the states, but have force only in the District of Columbia, and other places that are within the exclusive jurisdiction of the national government.’ That’s from Caha v. U.S., 152 U.S. 211.
“‘Since in common usage, the term person does not include the sovereign, statutes not employing the phrase are ordinarily construed to exclude it.’ That’s from U.S. v. Fox, 94 U.S. 315.”
The show promoter began nodding his head repeatedly. Matt carried on.
“‘Because of what appears to be a lawful command on the surface, many Citizens, because of respect for the law, are cunningly coerced into waiving their rights, due to ignorance.’ That’s from U.S. v. Minker, 350 U.S. 179 187.
“‘Waivers of Constitutional rights not only must be voluntary, they must be knowingly intelligent acts, done with sufficient awareness of the relevant circumstances and consequences.’ That’s from Brady v. U.S., 397 U.S. 742 at 748.
“‘The words ‘People of the United States’ and ‘citizens’ are synonymous terms, and mean the same thing. They both describe the political body who, according to our republican institutions, form the sovereignty… They are what we familiarly call the ‘sovereign people,’ and every citizen is one of this people, and a constituent member of the sovereignty.’ That’s from Wong Kim Ark, quoting the Dred Scott v. Sanford decision .
“‘Under our form of government, the legislature is not supreme. It is only one of the organs of that absolute sovereignty which resides in the whole body of the People; like other bodies of the government, it can only exercise such powers as have been delegated to it, and when it steps beyond that boundary, its acts are utterly void.’ That’s from Billings v. Hall.
“And last but not least: ‘All laws which are repugnant to the Constitution are null and void.’ That’s from Marbury v. Madison, 5 U.S. 137, 176.”With that, Matt sat down on the edge of one of his rented tables and folded his hands.
The crowd that had gathered applauded. The promoter walked away speechless and red-faced.
One of the men from the crowd stepped up to shake Matt’s hand and said, “I wish I had that one on tape. What are you, an attorney?”
“No sir. I’m just a private Citizen that spends far too much time in law libraries.”
• • •
Four years before the Crunch, Matt was twenty-four years old. His brother had just turned twenty. On a chilly February evening, Matt and Chase were on their way back from the Charlotte, North Carolina, gun show in Matt’s light blue 1987 Ford van. The Keanes had had a good show. They had sold seven guns, and bought two. They also nearly sold out of their small remaining inventory of magazines, knowing that magazine prices would collapse following the sunset of the 1994 Federal law. So instead of selling magazines to supplement their gun sales, the Keanes switched to selling web gear, gas masks, first-aid gear, b
ulletproof vests, police and military memorabilia, and ammunition. They had the majority of their gun show inventory in the back of the van. The rest of it was in Chase’s aging Dodge Executive motor home.
They had left the gun show promptly at five on Saturday, as was their habit.
Unlike most dealers, they did not operate their tables on Sunday. The Keanes refused to buy or sell on the Lord’s Day. This often angered the gun show organizers, who didn’t like seeing bare tables on Sunday. But they stood firm.
They just quoted the scripture, “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Exodus 20, verse 8.”
On Friday morning, they had left Chase’s motor home at the campground where Chase was working temporarily, near Greensboro. Chase had worked out a barter deal where he could have a free space for his motor home and free laundry room privileges in exchange for picking up trash, cleaning the laundry room, spreading sand on icy mornings, and helping travelers use the septic dump station. The latter was the campground owner’s least favorite job. He was happy to find someone willing to do it and not ask for wages in return.
On their way back from the gun show, Matt was driving. He was wearing his trademark black BDU cap—the one that Chase jokingly referred to as “that Sarah Conner cap.” Just before they reached the city of Asheboro, sixty miles southeast of Greensboro, Matt noticed that they were being followed by a North Carolina state trooper. The car paced them for several minutes. This made Matt nervous. “They probably don’t like the look of our Washington plates.”
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