Michael W. Ryan: Difference between revisions

Ryan was the leader of a small, racist, anti-government group that occupied a compound near [[Rulo, Nebraska]] in the early 1980s. The group had loose ties to the [[Posse Comitatus (U.S. movement)|Posse Comitatus]], with links to the [[Christian Identity]] movement. Some of the main teachings within the group revolved around [[White supremacy|supremacy of the white race]], [[antisemitism]], [[homophobia]], the downfall and hatred of “"[[race traitors]]”", [[drug addiction|drug addicts]] and non-European-descended American citizens, and a general distrust of all established earthly authority, especially governments and law enforcement. One of the group’sgroup's core messages was, more or less, that the white race was “chosen”"chosen" by God and all other human beings are the children of Satan, via the so-called “[[serpent seed]]” theory. Many of the recruited followers were disillusioned farmers from the local area with seemingly nothing to lose, who were easily influenced after having had lost money or property due to economic strains at the time.

Ryan was tried to a jury in Omaha, Nebraska after a change of venue. The jury convicted him of [[first degree murder]] and the court [[capital punishment|sentenced Ryan to death]] on April 10, 1986, and October 16, 1986, respectively. He claimed to be in direct contact with [[God]] and vowed to spend his days in prison rewriting the [[Bible]], but he later recanted both statements. He died, age 66, of natural causes (brain cancer) at the [[Tecumseh State Correctional Institution]] on [[death row]] on May 24, 2015.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.omaha.com/news/nebraska/nebraska-death-row-inmate-michael-ryan-dies/article_f35c008c-02e4-11e5-a86b-b7ba1e438c2c.html|title=Cult leader Michael Ryan dies on Nebraska death row|work=Omaha.com|date=May 25, 2015 |accessdate=May 25, 2015}}</ref>