One of the more frustrating aspects to the Waco “Twin Peaks” biker shooting story is the lack of photographic references to aid in a full understanding of the proximity of all the characters, suspects and witnesses involved.
However, after reviewing hundreds of media articles showing bits and pieces of the event we finally have some optical references for a story as it is told.
But before going to that aspect another controversial point should be expressed.
No-one here is saying the police, in totality, did anything wrong.  Conversely, it would be unfair to think EVERYONE, who were rounded up as 170 ‘conspiracy suspects’ and who were detained in the aftermath, is guilty of murder.

There are many concerning aspects which need sunlight regarding the immediate police response to whatever caused the spark of violence.  Similarly, there are concerning aspects about the wholesale arrest of ‘bikers’, or unaffiliated motorcycle riders, purely due to their proximity to a violent event they did not participate in.
Hopefully, anyone vested in the interests of lawful due process (ie. everyone) would be concerned with ‘wholesale roundups’.
Think about the following analogy. (more…)

Below is the “fill in the blank” PCA (Probable Cause Affidavit) used by Waco PD in their arrest of 170 Motorcycle Club members following the Waco “Twin Peaks” shooting:
[scribd id=266492020 key=key-6MJtyg3ZrUTv3nbNw7Qj mode=scroll]
All 170 people arrested are held on $1,000,000.00 bond.  More on Jo’P Walter Pete Peterson HERE – Note he is not a judge, nor does he have any law degree.  He is a retired former member of the Texas Dept. Of Public Safety (30 years).
(more…)

The Washington Post has published an extensive outline gathered from one anonymous witness who was present and provides an inside account to the Waco “Twin Peaks” biker shooting.
The article provides a perspective, albeit all hat and no cattle, from one witness along with a backstory to the shooting from the perspective of an ongoing dispute between the Cossacks and the Bandidos Motorcycle Club.

However, the outline, while the first to make sense of the origin, should be taken with a note of caution as some details contradict other known elements, such as MC affiliations widely accepted as factual.
The story relies on a single anonymous source, and some of the construct is hearsay related from a third party the Post was unable to reach.  That said, it is cogent, plausible and -for the most part- the most complete account so far of what actually happened in the immediate moments when the violence first began.

WASHINGTON POST […]  The Cossack, president of a North Texas chapter of the motorcycle gang, asked not to be identified because he is now in hiding and said he fears for his life. He is a rare eyewitness speaking publicly about the Waco massacre, one of the worst eruptions of biker-gang violence in U.S. history. (more…)

Alternate Headline = Waco Police Now Claim They Are Being Attacked By Clint Eastwood and an Orangutan Named Clyde. (ie. Waco PD Leak Security Bulletin To CNN)

♦ Waco Research Thread 1 – The initial Shooting As Reported
♦ Waco Research Thread 2 – LEO Affidavits Inconsistent With Spokesperson Claims
♦ Waco Research Thread 3 – The Waco Police Narrative Continues To Evolve
♦ Waco Research Thread 4 – CCTV Video Refutes Original 3 Days of Police Claims
♦ Waco Research Thread 5 – Listen to the Waco PD Radio Traffic
♦ Waco Research Thread 6 – 14 Officers Were Shooting – Report: “Thousands of rounds”
NEW – To fully understand the following discussion about threats to law enforcement you must first travel back to February 20th of this year to understand the backdrop.
Previously CNN’s Evan Perez reported on an explosive story about a report leaked to him via the Department of Homeland Security, and Perez reported on the content saying DHS claims right-wing terror groups known as Sovereign Citizens were a bigger risk to national security than ISIS.

[…]”from sovereign citizen groups as equal to — and in some cases greater than — the threat from foreign Islamic terror groups, such as ISIS”.  (link)

What CNN was proclaiming -as content within the DHS report- was transparently helpful to an administration surrounded by increasing focus on ISIS terrorism, and ongoing ISIS brutality viewed on TV screens throughout the preceding several months.
The Perez claim seemed targeted to change the discussion and point the defining finger toward domestic white terrorism as a greater threat.  Actually, that’s exactly what he said. (more…)

IRONY – The death toll from the “Twin Peaks” shootout was greater than the total number of homicides Waco police investigated in all of 2014 – And all of the “Twin Peaks” dead were shot by police.

Previously Waco Police Spokesman W. Patrick Swanton stated 22 members of law enforcement were present prior to the outbreak of the shooting.  Including 10 members of the Waco SWAT unit, 2 sergeants, 1 rookie, the Asst. Police Chief and 4 state troopers.
Newly released information today includes the Waco Police stating 14 Waco PD officers were involved in firing shots which killed 9 bike club members and wounded 18 more.

The 14 officers involved in the gun battle are all now on administrative leave, which is standard protocol in officer-involved shootings, Swanton said. (link)

In addition Sgt Swanton previously stated that all of the 170 arrested bikers were known “criminal gang members”.  However, a review by the Associated Press of court records finds at least 115 of the 170 had no police records: (more…)

♦ Waco Research Thread 1 – The initial Shooting As Reported
♦ Waco Research Thread 2 – LEO Affidavits Inconsistent With Spokesperson Claims
♦ Waco Research Thread 3 – The Waco Police Narrative Continues To Evolve
♦ Waco Research Thread 4 – CCTV Video Refutes Original 3 Days of Police Claims
NEW – Below is the audio file from the Police Radio Traffic WACO “Twin Peaks” Shooting


NO CRIMINAL HISTORY – Police have said that all of the arrested bikers were members of “criminal bike gangs”.  However, a review of court data bases by Associated Press finds more than 115 of the 170 people arrested in the aftermath of a motorcycle gang shootout outside a Central Texas restaurant have not been convicted of a crime in Texas. (link)

The Unusual Suspects

Latest UPDATE – Report: 14 Waco Police fired “thousands of rounds” – LINK HERE

We knew there would be CCTV video of both the inside and patio of Twin Peaks.
Because the local Police, who immediately reviewed the footage yet continued to mislead the public about the impetus of the confrontation and gunfire, the owner/operator of the Twin Peaks franchise shared video with reporters from the Associated Press.

WACO, Texas (Associated Press) — As gunfire broke out in the parking lot of a Texas restaurant, dozens of motorcycle riders ran inside seeking cover and tried to guide others to safety, security video reviewed exclusively by The Associated Press showed Wednesday.
The video suggests that Sunday’s deadly gunfight began outside the Twin Peaks restaurant, except for one round fired by a biker on the patio who then ran inside.
On the patio, bikers ducked under tables and tried to get inside. At least three people were holding handguns. One biker was seen running with blood on his face, hands and torso.
Before the shooting, the inside of the restaurant appears to be mostly empty. Bikers and other patrons can be seen walking to the windows facing the parking lot where most of the shooting happened.
When gunfire begins at 12:24 p.m., most bikers, other patrons and staff immediately run away from the windows and into the restaurant’s interior. At least three people can be seen holding handguns. (more…)

More details begin to emerge about the shooting at Waco’s Twin Peaks restaurant.  Remember:

…The Truth Has No Agenda – Nor does It Care For The Feelings, Position, or Emotion of Those Made Uncomfortable By It…

It would be obtuse not to accept that as witnesses and family members of the dead begin to share their story/version of events publicly, the responding police would have a vested interest in countering any adverse aspect to the previous outline they presented.
Hence the shock headline:

BREAKING: Waco police now say they've found as many as 1000 weapons at Twin Peaks, including an AK-47. Many were hidden in toilets, food.

— KWTX News 10 (@kwtx) May 20, 2015

Waco police sergeant W. Patrick Swanton told KWTX today that the weapons included both pocket and “assault-style” knives, and lots and lots of guns, all “evidently abandoned by bikers as they attempted to flee.” One weapon was stashed in a bag of chips. (link)

It is commonplace with officer-involved shootings to pull in another agency to conduct the investigation, but Waco PD spokesperson Patrick Swanton said that won’t happen with Sunday’s case. (more…)

Update –  The Dead (All Texans):

• Jesus Delgado Rodriguez, 65, died of gunshot wounds of the head and trunk.
• Jacob Lee Rhyne, 39, died of gunshot wounds to the neck.
• Richard Vincent Kirshner, Jr., 47, died of gunshot wounds but the report did not specify where he was shot.
• Richard Matthew Jordan, III, 31, died of gunshot wounds to the head.
• Wayne Lee Campbell, 43, died of gunshot wounds to the head and trunk.
• Daniel Raymond Boyett, 44, died of gunshot wounds to the head.
• Matthew Mark Smith, 27, died of gunshot wounds to the trunk
• Manuel Issac Rodriguez, 40, died of gunshot wounds but the report did not specify where he was shot.
• And Charles Wayne Russell, 46, died of gunshot wounds to the chest.

Reporting now indicating that all deceased were killed by police gunfire.  Reporting now indicating 27 people shot by police, 8 still in hospital.   Reporting lowers weapons confiscated to less than 50, mostly pocket knives, chains (attached to wallets?), nail clippers, one padlock and firearms (CCP fired or unfired?).
From the outset the police description of events at the Twin Peaks (Waco) Gang Shooting seemed oddly self-serving, super efficient/fast, and unusually specific for a mass casualty event outlined in under 3 hours.  It was *as if* they wanted to get out ahead of something.
(more…)

Nine dead, at least 18 wounded.  Perhaps 20+ people shot; but by who??

(Via LA Times) […] On Monday, police worked the scene, collecting evidence and diagramming the site. Every bullet casing and every blood spot will be mapped and examined. More than 100 motorcycles and 50 to 75 other vehicles were expected to be inspected and held as evidence in the far-reaching investigation that will probably take time to sort out. Swanton and others who saw the inside of the restaurant said it is littered with shell casings and pools of blood.

Among the unanswered questions is who fired the fatal shots that killed nine. Along with the bikers, police fired shots when the melee erupted inside the Twin Peaks restaurant and spilled onto an outdoor patio and then the parking lot.
The first shots were fired in the restaurant, Swanton said. “We had wounded inside, we had people stabbed and we had people beaten,” he told reporters. (more…)