English Period 6 4/5/04 Extra Credit On April 19th 1995, in Okalahoma City, a large yellow Ryder truck pulled into the parking lot of the Alfred P.
Murrah building. The driver casually stepped out and walked away from the truck at about 8:58. At around 9:02 the 4,000 pound cargo blew up the Alfred P. Murrah building to shreds. Thus, the worst act of terrorism the U.S had seen before the September 11th hijackings.
The sirens blasted as the Alfred P. Murrah building came crumbling down. Yet the twenty-seven year old responsible for the bombing never actually heard the sirens because he had earplugs on to protect him from the blast that lifted pedestrians off of the street. Traffic signs and parking meters flew through the air.
Shattered glass flew like bullets. Inside the building, survival depended on where you were located. Some lucky people had left their usual posts, like to fetch coffee or to run errands. While they were away their fellow workers were blown away. The explosion caused a chain-reaction.
The bottom floor, which was a daycare center, was crushed when the top floors collapsed, killing all of the children in the process. Rescue searchers frantically searched for survivors. Sound devices helped rescue workers find Dana Bradley, a woman who was buried alive. Her leg was trapped under a large piece of concrete. The only way to free her was to amputate her leg. Since giving her anesthetic could send her into a coma, they had to amputate her leg while she was conscious.
Her leg wasn’t the only thing she lost that day; she lost her mother and her two young children. Hundreds of acts of heroism would arrive through out the day. Homegrown terrorism had arrived with a vengeance, and the terrorist was the kid next door. And he was cruising away from the carnage down interstate 35.
Okalahoma Patrol Trooper Charles Hanger had received orders to head down to the Alfred P. Murrah building. After two minutes pass, he receives instructions to stay where he is. Hanger spots a beat up 1977 Mercury Grand Marquis without a license plate. He pulled over the car. Timothy Mcveigh was questioned by the trooper about his license plate.
Mcveigh said that he just purchased the car and he was waiting for the right forms and papers to be mailed. The officer then noticed a bulge in Timothy Mcveigh’s jacket. Mcveigh told the officer that it was a gun. The officer took his gun from his holster and confiscated Mcveigh’s gun. Mcveigh was handcuffed and placed in the officer’s car while he ran a computer check on his license and the 9mm glock.
Mcveigh’s license was not valid in Okalahoma and he was arrested. At the jail Mcveigh was booked for four misdemeanors, unlawfully carrying a weapon, transporting a loaded firearm in a motor vehicle, failing to provide a license plate and failing to provide proof of insurance. The rear bumper of the Ryder truck was discovered and the license plate was traced to the rental place that rented it. Robert Cling was the person who rented the truck from the place. Robert Cling was an alias that Mcveigh used to rent the Ryder truck. The FBI called the number that was on the rental agreement.
Ms. McGowan told the FBI that Mcveigh rented the truck and parked it in the parking lot of the Alfred P. Murrah building earlier that day. The license plate and the Police Charge Sheet matched Mcveigh to the scene of the crime. The FBI had their man and time was running out for Timothy Mcveigh. The excitement intensified at the Oklahoma City command center.
Cheers of relief went up as the news that “We got him!” spread. Immediately, agents were in choppers heading for the Noble County jail. Mcveigh was waiting in the lobby for his turn to see the judge. Officers disconnected the phones because they knew Mcveigh would try to contact a lawyer. Officers then escorted McVeigh back to his cell.
They told him the judge was not ready for his case. Back in his cell, an inmate asked him if he was the bomber. McVeigh ignored the question. All of the helicopters around the jail house told citizens that a suspect was in custody for the bombings. A large group of people began to gather outside of the jail house. McVeigh was led to a room where FBI agent Floyd Zimms waited.
Zimms told McVeigh that he knew he had information about the bombings and he read him his rights. McVeigh requested a bulletproof vest when he was to be brought outside. He also requested a helicopter exit. Both were denied. Officers led McVeigh outside.
“Murderer! Baby Killer! Scumbag! was shouted by the group of people outside of the jail house. A similar scene was taking place in Herington, Kansas. Terry Nichols was driving to the police station to be interviewed about the bombings. The news about someone being involved spread around town. People gathered outside of the Herington jail house.
Suddenly, the realization dawned upon the U.S. Two ordinary looking men committed this heinous act against humanity. Even worse, homegrown terrorism was now a chilling reality. Timothy McVeigh was sentenced to death for the bombing of the Alfred P.
Murrah building on April 19, 1995. His accomplish Terry Nichols was charged 12 years in a federal prison for not alerting authorities about the bombing. McVeigh was sent to a special confinement cell for six years awaiting his execution. On May 16th, 2001, Timothy McVeigh was executed by lethal injection for his crime. McVeigh’s father was present for the execution along with family members of the victims McVeigh killed. Timothy McVeigh bombed the Alfred P.
Murrah building because of the unconstitutional acts by the government when dealing with the Davidian Siege. Every person died in that siege. The building was laid to waste. Outraged, McVeigh and, former army buddy, Terry Nichols devised a plan to bomb the building where the government agents who worked on the Davidians case resided. Hundreds were killed that day including dozens of children in the daycare center that was right under the yellow Ryder truck that tore through the seven story building.
The Alfred P. Murrah building was torn down and replaced with a field of chairs representing each and every person that perished on April 19, 1995. Ironically, McVeigh’s request for his execution to be broadcasted publicly around the world was denied. The government officials told Timothy McVeigh that his request was unconstitutional.
