PART II: Tensions rise as white supremacists across US gather at CSA, multiple officers killed

Editor’s note: This is the second installment of a series detailing the Covenant, Sword and Arm of the Lord, a religious commune located south of Pontiac in the 1970s and 1980s. The anti-government, paramilitary and white supremacist group of more than 100 people lived together on a 224-acre peninsula, just across the state line in Arkansas. See last week’s edition or search www.ozarkcountytimes.com for Covenant, Sword and Arm of the Lord to read the first part of this series.

Well into the 1980s, the Covenant, Sword and Arm of the Lord compound continued to grow, and its leader, James Ellison, and second-in-command, Kerry Noble, continued to invite reporters to the compound for interviews, leading to the two men and the group they represented to be featured in dozens of news articles at publications across the United States. 

1981-82: Reaching out to community

Despite the widespread coverage, the Ozark County Times had very little mention of the group until September 1981, when the Times published a letter to the editor from “the Cedar Boys” of the CSA, referencing the group’s men, who often cut cedar for area residents and a nearby lumber mill. Many of the men were reportedly friendly when encountering locals, and some even joined the Pontiac/Price Place Volunteer Fire Department to give back to the greater community. 

The letter was written in response to an article that was printed in “the daily paper,” the month prior. The men said they wanted to set the record straight that Noble was misquoted in that article as saying many in the group received food stamps in order to take the government down. Instead, they clarified that he’d said some members of the community were on food stamps in order to help them out. 

The letter also says the group realized that some local residents were suspicious of the CSA, wondering if their Christian beliefs and the fact that they openly carried guns everywhere they went was contradictory. They said in the letter that they hoped to explain that juxtaposition, explaining that they believed a “catastrophe” would someday occur, as prophesied in the Bible. “We are basically a defensive-minded group set here to defend God’s people from outside harm and to resist outside takeover of the United States.”

The group wrote that they loved the Pontiac/Oakland area and its neighbors and apologized if they had given the wrong impression or if anyone had bad feelings toward the group. They said they wanted their neighbors to know they did not wish ill will on the local community. In the letter, they invited all local residents out to see the farm, attend church services at the compound and tour the place. 

That note of community spirit was also reflected in the next Times reference of the CSA in the summer of 1982, when Pontiac and Price Place columnist Mrs. Helen Zenda wrote that members of the church held a public meeting at the Pontiac Ladies Club that summer to give local residents an overview of their church, beliefs and purpose. They had a display of various news articles that had been written about them, and they offered a question and answer session afterward. 

‘Together, we can make the Holocaust a reality’

But despite their open-arm prose in the letter to the editor and spoken to area groups, there was a dark side to the group that many local residents feared. 

The CSA was not shy about sharing their dislike of people of different races and ethnicity groups. The following statement was taken from the CSA Journal #7:

“The Satanic Jews which control so much of our world are determined to exterminate the White Race - either by death or by mongrelization!

“Together, the White, the Negro, and the Oriental need to join together to wipe out the Jews, and to them live in and submit to the order of God for each race! Like their father the devil, the Jews ‘lie, murder, have no truth in them, and abide not in their truth’ John 8:44. Together, we can make the Holocaust a reality and not a Jewish fable!”

Noble told The Baxter Bulletin that the doctrine of the CSA held that Jews, especially radicalized Jews, were the “sons of Satan” through the line of Cain. Noble clarified that CSA members did not hold as strong of hate for other groups, but they did believe that white people were better than all others. 

“The white race spiritually, historically, scientifically is the superior race on earth,” Noble said. “They are God’s chosen people. The white race is the Israel race and the Jews are not.

“Noble said they believe that other races have their place in the world: that blacks, for example, make good workers, ‘when you can get them to work.’ He has said the white race is the creative race, that others simply do what has been started by whites. No other race has developed a civilization as the whites have...” The Baxter Bulletin article said, summarizing Noble’s explanation of the CSA beliefs.

1982: CSA holds national gathering

By the fall of 1982, the CSA organized a “national convocation” for similar-minded white supremacy, paramilitary groups and individuals from across the nation. A flyer for the event that later surfaced said that “only white, patriotic serious Christians need apply” to register for the secret conclave.

Among the speakers at the gathering was a grand dragon of the Ku Klux Klan. Other noted speakers included an Illinois “brigadier general” of the Christian Patriots Defense League and a self-proclaimed “tax resistor-patriot.”

Several white supremacist groups including the Aryan Brotherhood and the spin off group, The Order, which included many former CSA members, were in attendance at the meeting at the CSA camp. Topics advertised on the flyer included weaponry, shooting weapons, “Betrayal of America,” food shortage, “Christian Army,” home birth, personal home defense, “The Jews,” nuclear survival, “Radical Truths” and wilderness survival. 

A 1982 article in the St. Louis Jewish Light said that the CSA conducted “seminars” where they demonstrated weapons, disassembled riot guns and gun accessories that they offered for sale, often to other radicalized, white supremacy groups.

The FBI later told reporters that after the gathering in Pontiac, they noticed the surge in acidity from many of the radicalized groups that the CSA associated with and wondered if the gathering may have served as the root flare for the many extreme actions.

1982: A civil lawsuit filed

In November 1982, Noble filed a lawsuit on behalf of the CSA in civil court against six defendants including then Ozark County Sheriff Herman Pierce regarding a news station’s attempted reporting of the secret “national convocation.” Others named in the suit were the St. Louis TV station KMOX TV, the owner of that station, Columbia Broadcasting, KYTV in Springfield and Prolift Air. 

The CSA members alleged in court documents that those involved with the news station went to the CSA compound and church on Oct. 9, 1982, even though it did have permission to do so. The documents say the reporters left “after much argument and resistance,” in which a Marion County deputy reportedly forced their departure. 

The CSA said the news station employees then worked together in a “conspiratorial manner” to violate the CSA members’ rights two days later when a helicopter flew over the camp, making low level passes that disrupted services and terrified as many as 150 members, who were in “fear for their safety.” The group charged that Sheriff Pierce was an occupant in the helicopter as it flew over and gave permission for the flight. CBS and KMOX later told The Baxter Bulletin that the alleged actions were part of its attempt to report on the national convocation being held there. 

1982-83: CSA group splits into two

Noble later told the Arkansas Democrat that in late 1982 and early 1983, the CSA group split into two different groups - some more extreme and some less extreme. 

“the group divided...between members wanting increased paramilitary activity and those wanting to emphasize the religious aspects of the survivalist group,” the article said. “‘Each group believed this is what God wanted them to do,’ Noble said. ‘The ones who had the extreme paramilitary outlook left. Once that happened, all the paramilitary stuff came to a screeching halt.’

“Since the split, CSA members rarely go out on maneuvers or practice their marksmanship skills, Noble said. “Noble denied reports that CSA members make bombs or plant land mines to protect their camp...”

Despite the claim that the group in Pontiac was reorganized and focused on faith rather than firearms, there was plenty of paramilitary preparation that caused law enforcement officers to take note. 

1983: CSA members tell of plan to kill Bartlett

Steve Bartlett, a local officer with the Missouri State Highway Patrol told the Times in a 2005 interview that he was assigned to Ozark County in 1974, and it was that same year when he wrote his first intelligence report on the CSA. He continued to feed information about the CSA to the Federal Bureau of Investigations for the next 10 years. 

Bartlett said that in 1983, officers with the Missouri State Highway Patrol arrested three CSA members in Kansas City in connection with thefts from a construction site there. 

An article in the Times included Bartlett’s description of the plot: “During the interrogation, it came out that they were planning to kill me. They even told how they planned to do it. They were going to call in and report an accident and when I went out to it, they were going to kill me. And if that didn’t work, they planned to just come to my house and kill me,” he said. “The patrol came and informed me of the plot. They wanted to move me away from here, but I refused to move... So they provided guard dogs and took special precautions to protect me.

“We finally decided the best way to protect me was to let the CSA leaders know we knew of the plot and advise them that if anything happened, that would be the first place we’d come looking.”

June 1983: Man who killed sheriff was CSA associate

On June 3, 1983, Lawrence County (Arkansas) Sheriff Harold Gene Matthews and federal fugitive and known CSA associate Gordon Kahl were both killed in a shooting that occurred as law enforcement officers attempted to arrest Kahl, who was the subject of a nationwide manhunt.

Kahl was on the run after another shooting in Medina, North Dakota, that occurred on Feb. 13, 1983. During that incident federal agents along with local law enforcement attempted to arrest Kahl for violating his probation. Agents set up a roadblock and stopped two vehicles carrying Kahl and others. A shoot out broke out, and US Marshals Kenneth Muir and Robert Cheshire died in the gunfight. Several others were injured.

Kahl was a self proclaimed “Posse Comitatus” and served prison time for not paying his taxes. Kahl attempted to remove himself from the Social Security system in the late 1960s and was known to authorities for conducting meetings with other like-minded individuals including members of the CSA organization. He was wanted by authorities for violating a condition of his parole which included paying his taxes.

Kahl fled the shoot out in Medina and eventually went to Arthur Russell’s home in Mountain Home, Arkansas, a short distance from the CSA camp. Kahl then moved on to Leonard and Norma Ginter’s house near Smithville, Arkansas. Officers caught up with Kahl there. After the Ginters were detained inside the home, Sheriff Gene Matthews and two other officers entered the residence. The official report says that the sheriff and Kahl simultaneously shot and killed one another, but there are many conspiracies surrounding what happened that day. 

July 1983: CSA believes FBI plans to raid

Although Kahl was never listed as a CSA member, he was known to have visited the CSA camp several times as part of the Posse Comitatus. The link between him and the group caused law enforcement to look toward the CSA.

The link was solidified when members of the CSA, along with members of the Ku Klux Klan, Posse Comitatus and Aryan Brotherhood, were in attendance as spectators at the trial of those charged with harboring Kahl as a fugitive.

After that, the CSA was convinced that the FBI was planning to raid the compound in the summer of 1983.

“Kerry Noble... told The Bulletin Thursday morning they received word from ‘a fairly reliable source’ that federal authorities plan to raid their compound of 55 men, women and children within a week and they would be ‘coming to shoot.’ Noble said he hoped the report was false...Another CSA member said the information came from a man who had lived with the CSA for two months and who was picked up by federal officers in another state for questioning,” the article said. 

When contacted, the FBI said they officially had no comment but did not know of any plans to visit the camp. Other federal authorities denied that there were any indictments issued for CSA members, but explained members might have though indictments had been issued for some of them regarding Kahl and the Ginters. 

Despite the denial from law enforcement, Noble and the others weren’t sure. “According to Noble, the government allegedly is trying to indict members on weapons and explosives charges as well as on some ‘minor technicalities. If you try hard enough, you can get somebody on anything,” said Noble, adding that members of the CSA have ‘never broken any major laws... never committed acts of terrorism.’” the article said. 

1984: CSA member/associate kills Arkansas trooper

On June 30, 1984, another CSA associate, Richard Wayne Snell, 54, was stopped by Arkansas State Trooper Louis Bryant, 37, for a routine traffic stop in DeQueen, Arkansas. The officer was unaware, but Snell had illegal weapons, silencers and explosives inside the vehicle. 

Snell shot and killed the Tpr. Bryant, then fled the scene. An alert was issued for the van, and Snell was spotted driving it near Broken Bow, Oklahoma, a few hours later. 

Three officers forced the van off the highway and onto a residential street. Snell jumped out of the vehicle and began firing at the officers with an automatic rifle. Hill said the officers returned the fire, striking the suspect several times. He collapsed in the street and was quickly arrested. Inside the van, officers found multiple guns, silencers and several grenades.

Noble reached out to the media afterward and said that although Snell had been at the CSA compound five or six times in the past few years and had sold the group Army surplus equipment, Snell was not a member of the CSA. 

Although Noble seemed to brush Snell off as a casual acquaintance, he later filed a lawsuit against Sebastian County (Oklahoma) Sheriff Bill Cauthron after he attempted to visit Snell in jail and was denied access because he was not a registered minister in Arkansas and because the sheriff believed Noble could be a security threat. It was later reported that Snell was in fact a member of the CSA.

April 1985: Another officer killed, another CSA link

On April 15, 1985, Missouri State Highway Patrol Trooper Jimmie Linegar and his partner were working a standard driver’s license checkpoint about 10 miles south of Branson, when David Tate came through the checkpoint. 

Neither Linegar nor his partner were aware that the man they had stopped had just been indicted by a federal grand jury for involvement in a Neo-Nazi group, The Order, in Seattle for a series of commando-style armored car robberies used to finance white supremacist activities. 

Linegar radioed in a computer check and was advised that the driver was wanted for illegal possession of a weapon in another state. As Linegar approached the van, Tate exited the vehicle and used an automatic weapon to open fire. Four shots struck Linegar. 

Tate then swung around and shot Tpr. Allen Hines, who was standing behind the van. Hines dove under the van and fired at the suspect from under the vehicle. Tate fled on foot. Linegar later died as a result of the gunshot wounds at Skaggs Hospital in Branson.

Although no one officially said the search for Tate would focus on the CSA compound, officers told reporters shortly after the incident that the search for Tate centered around an area of Bull Shoals Lake along the Missouri-Arkansas border. Tate, like the others charged with killing officers, was a known associate of CSA and visited several times. 

1983-85: CSA gains FBI and ATF attention

The continued violence linked to the CSA and groups it was associated with didn’t escape law enforcement’s attention. Details of the ongoing investigation of the CSA by the FBI and ATF were detailed in court documents relating to later prosecutions.“The agents began investigating CSA in 1983 and intensified their investigation in 1984, interviewing former CSA members who had lived on the compound. Through these informants, the agents learned that CSA was stockpiling military-type guns, fabricating silencers and grenades, converting semi-automatic weapons to automatic weapons, engaging in paramilitary training and burying land mines around the compound perimeter. The agents also learned that CSA was involved in such activities as arson (burning Ellison’s sister’s house so she could collect the insurance proceeds, partially burning a Springfield, Missouri church, the congregation of which allegedly consisted of homosexuals, and partially burning a Jewish community center in Indiana), attempting to blow-up a natural gas pipeline and theft. These activities were intended to produce operating funds, to plunder the property of certain ‘unacceptable’ groups and to hasten the collapse of the government.”

The long investigation cumulated into an application for search warrant for the CSA property in April 1985. The search warrant was granted. Officers began to make a plan.

Continued next week...