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a start; there's so much more to say
On the morning of April 19, 1995, the [[Arthur P. Murrah Federal Building]] in [[Oklahoma City]] was bombed. By official figures, 168 people died<ref>There's an open question about a possible 169th victim. See ''Others Unknown''.</ref>Until the [[September 11th attacks]] in 2001, this was the deadlist terrorist incident in the [[United States]]. [[Timothy McVeigh]] and [[Terry Nichols]] were convicted for their parts in the bombing, and [[Michael Fortier]] pled guilty after cooperating with the prosecution.
== The Bombing itself ==
On the days leading up to April 19th, McVeigh and Nichols filled a rented Ryder truck with approximately 5000 pounds of a fuel oil and fertilizer mixture. On the morning of April 19th, Timothy McVeigh drove the truck into downtown Oklahoma City, parking it directly in front of the Murrah Federal Building. At 9:02 am, the bomb detonated, collapsing the front facade of the federal building and severly damaging several surrounding buildings. The explosion could be heard and felt several miles away.
As emergency teams responded, it was not immediately clear whether the explosion was accidental or deliberate. As the day went on, there was conflicting evidence pointing at both domestic and international terrorism. On one hand, it was the anniversary of the burning of the [[Branch Davidian]] compound in [[Waco, Texas]] as well as the scheduled execution date for a convicted [[White Separatist]]. On the other hand, the first [[be on the lookout]] announcement was for a brown pickup truck driven by an Arab-looking male.
As the day progressed, the brown pickup truck was apparently found and cleared, and an additional set of sketches were released, of Johns Doe #1 and #2. These sketches were apparently based on witness reports from the Ryder shop where the truck was rented; the truck had been identified by its [[VIN]] found on an axle.
== Arrests ==
Ninety minutes after the explosion, Timothy McVeigh was pulled over by an [[Oklahoma Highway Patrol]] officer for driving a car without a license plate. During the stop, a weapon was discovered, and McVeigh was booked into jail on a weapons charge. Before he was released, he was identified as John Doe #1 in the sketches and was taken into federal custody. Terry Nichols, a known friend of McVeigh's, turned himself in soon afterwards.
== Charges, Trials, Convictions, and Punishment ==
McVeigh was charged in Federal court with 8 counts of murder of federal officers, conspiracy to use a weapon of mass destruction, use of a weapon of mass destruction, and destroying government property via explosive<ref>http://www.oscn.net/applications/oscn/DeliverDocument.asp?CiteID=151372</ref>. To avoid a contaminated jury pool, the trial was held in Denver. On June 3, 1997, McVeigh was convicted of all charges.<ref>http://www.rickross.com/reference/mcveigh/mcveigh14.html</ref> He was sentenced to death and the sentence was carried out on June 11, 2001<ref>http://www.newsok.com/article/701218/</ref>.
Terry Nichols was convicted of Federal charges of conspiring to use a weapon of mass destruction and 8 counts of involuntary manslaughter of federal officers. He was sentended to life without the possibility of patrol. In 2004, he was found guilty on state charges of 161 counts of first degree murder, but the jury deadlocked on sentencing. The judge imposed 161 a sentence of 161 consecutive terms of life without the possibility of patrol.
Michal Fortier testified against McVeigh in exchange for a light charge and sentence; he pled guilty to a single charge of failing to warn authorities about the attack and was sentenced to 12 years in prison and fined $200,000. In January 2006 he was released into the Witness Protection program.
Others Unknown: Timothy McVeigh and the Oklahoma City Bombing Conspiracy by Stephen Jones and Peter Israel
John Doe 2 has never been officiailly identified; the current FBI theory appears to be that he was an unrelated person who happened to be at the Ryder office about the same time McVeigh was.
== Memorial ==
The site of the Murrah building was converted into a memorial for those who had died. Its most striking feature is 168 chairs, one for each of the deceased.
== Sources and additional reading ==
[http://www.newsok.com/bombing/intro/ The Daily Oklahoman's archive of their coverage]
[http://www.oscn.net/applications/oscn/DeliverDocument.asp?CiteID=151372 The decision in McVeigh's appeal]
[http://www.oklahomacitynationalmemorial.org/ The memorial]
== The Bombing itself ==
On the days leading up to April 19th, McVeigh and Nichols filled a rented Ryder truck with approximately 5000 pounds of a fuel oil and fertilizer mixture. On the morning of April 19th, Timothy McVeigh drove the truck into downtown Oklahoma City, parking it directly in front of the Murrah Federal Building. At 9:02 am, the bomb detonated, collapsing the front facade of the federal building and severly damaging several surrounding buildings. The explosion could be heard and felt several miles away.
As emergency teams responded, it was not immediately clear whether the explosion was accidental or deliberate. As the day went on, there was conflicting evidence pointing at both domestic and international terrorism. On one hand, it was the anniversary of the burning of the [[Branch Davidian]] compound in [[Waco, Texas]] as well as the scheduled execution date for a convicted [[White Separatist]]. On the other hand, the first [[be on the lookout]] announcement was for a brown pickup truck driven by an Arab-looking male.
As the day progressed, the brown pickup truck was apparently found and cleared, and an additional set of sketches were released, of Johns Doe #1 and #2. These sketches were apparently based on witness reports from the Ryder shop where the truck was rented; the truck had been identified by its [[VIN]] found on an axle.
== Arrests ==
Ninety minutes after the explosion, Timothy McVeigh was pulled over by an [[Oklahoma Highway Patrol]] officer for driving a car without a license plate. During the stop, a weapon was discovered, and McVeigh was booked into jail on a weapons charge. Before he was released, he was identified as John Doe #1 in the sketches and was taken into federal custody. Terry Nichols, a known friend of McVeigh's, turned himself in soon afterwards.
== Charges, Trials, Convictions, and Punishment ==
McVeigh was charged in Federal court with 8 counts of murder of federal officers, conspiracy to use a weapon of mass destruction, use of a weapon of mass destruction, and destroying government property via explosive<ref>http://www.oscn.net/applications/oscn/DeliverDocument.asp?CiteID=151372</ref>. To avoid a contaminated jury pool, the trial was held in Denver. On June 3, 1997, McVeigh was convicted of all charges.<ref>http://www.rickross.com/reference/mcveigh/mcveigh14.html</ref> He was sentenced to death and the sentence was carried out on June 11, 2001<ref>http://www.newsok.com/article/701218/</ref>.
Terry Nichols was convicted of Federal charges of conspiring to use a weapon of mass destruction and 8 counts of involuntary manslaughter of federal officers. He was sentended to life without the possibility of patrol. In 2004, he was found guilty on state charges of 161 counts of first degree murder, but the jury deadlocked on sentencing. The judge imposed 161 a sentence of 161 consecutive terms of life without the possibility of patrol.
Michal Fortier testified against McVeigh in exchange for a light charge and sentence; he pled guilty to a single charge of failing to warn authorities about the attack and was sentenced to 12 years in prison and fined $200,000. In January 2006 he was released into the Witness Protection program.
Others Unknown: Timothy McVeigh and the Oklahoma City Bombing Conspiracy by Stephen Jones and Peter Israel
John Doe 2 has never been officiailly identified; the current FBI theory appears to be that he was an unrelated person who happened to be at the Ryder office about the same time McVeigh was.
== Memorial ==
The site of the Murrah building was converted into a memorial for those who had died. Its most striking feature is 168 chairs, one for each of the deceased.
== Sources and additional reading ==
[http://www.newsok.com/bombing/intro/ The Daily Oklahoman's archive of their coverage]
[http://www.oscn.net/applications/oscn/DeliverDocument.asp?CiteID=151372 The decision in McVeigh's appeal]
[http://www.oklahomacitynationalmemorial.org/ The memorial]