XIII. The Aftermath of the April 19 Fire
A. Introduction
Immediately following the April 19 fire the Texas Rangers, working with the FBI, arranged to take command of the remains of the compound for purposes of conducting a thorough crime scene search. In addition, an arson team consisting of experts from throughout the United States was assembled to determine the cause of the fire. The search lasted approximately three weeks. The arson report was completed on July 13, 1993. Autopsies were conducted on the bodies recovered from the scene.
Processing the scene was important for three primary reasons: (1) to locate the bodies of all those killed on April 19, so that autopsies could be performed; (2) to determine the cause of the fire; and (3) to search for evidence that could be used in prosecuting the surviving Davidians who were responsible for the deaths of the ATF agents on February 28.
B. Processing the Crime Scene
The Texas Rangers assumed primary responsibility for combing through the crime scene and recovering evidence. The FBI provided substantial assistance to the Rangers in performing this task. By Monday, May 3, 1993 the Rangers had recovered the remains of 75 bodies at the scene. When added to the nine persons who survived the fire, the 35 who had departed the compound during the standoff (between February 28 and March 23), and the five buried bodies of Davidians killed on or about February 28, this meant that approximately 124 persons were inside the compound at the time of the initial shootout,.leaving 84 remaining at the time of the fire on April 19. Details of the autopsies and causes of death of the Davidians who dies both in the initial ATF shootout and in the April 19 fire will be discussed below.
In addition, by May 3 the Texas Rangers had recovered 305 firearms from the compound, and approximately 1.9 million rounds of "cooked off" or spent ammunition. Among the firearms found were at least 20 fully automatic AK-47 assault rifles; at least 12 fully automatic AR-15 assault rifles; at least two .50 caliber semi-automatic rifles; and anti-tank armor-piercing ammunition.
The actual search of the remains of the compound was conducted systematically and methodically. The Rangers divided the physical area of the compound into sectors, rows and grids, then formed teams comprised of Rangers, FBI and other technicians, and other law enforcement agents. The teams combed through each sector, identifying each item they found and pinpointing its location by sector, row and grid number. Each item (or group of items found at a particular point) were assigned exhibit numbers and photographed. At the conclusion of each search a crime scene report was prepared listing all the items found in the search of that particular team's sector.
The search of the compound area turned up thousands of items, including hundreds of exploded shells, fired shells, and bullets; Kevlar helmets and vests; camouflage outfits; hand grenades; pistols; rifles; shotguns; rocket projectiles; gas masks; chemical warfare suits; military assault knives; and fuel cans. Perhaps the most important area searched was the bunker, where a large concentration of bodies, weapons and ammunition were found. The Texas Ranger's report of the search of the Bunker is jarring in its recounting of what the search team found. Following are excerpts from that report:
"1. . . . The interior of the concrete-bunker was used as storage for ammunition, weapons, explosive devices, and water.
2. The entire interior was approximately three feet deep in expended and non-expended rounds of various caliber ammunition. Due to the magnitude of the cook-off rounds, counting the individual rounds would be monumental and not feasible, therefore, the rounds were removed by grain scoops (shovels).
. . .
7. The live ammunition . . . is not included in this count. Several fully loaded thirty round clips were located.
8. The predominate caliber was .223, although several containers of .50 caliber shells were located.
9. In addition to the ammunition, a live grenade was located on the floor in the same area as the remains of several bodies.
10. Also located and submitted for analysis were several knives, bayonets and gas masks. . . .
11. As the ammunition was removed, the remains of human bodies which had been underneath the cooked off rounds was discovered. . . . A total of thirty-two bodies were removed from the bunker.
12. The remains were that of men, women and children. . . .
13. During the actual search, several firearms were located and submitted, which included rifles, shotguns, semi-automatic and revolver handguns.