[truck engine revving]
-[blades whirring] -[radio chatter transmitting]
[radio chatter transmitting]
[baby crying, screaming]
[whirring]
Hey, there's a helicopter!
[dog barking]
[whirring]
Get all the women and children upstairs, right now.
[David] Go on.
-I gotta go find Judy. -[Rachel] Let's go.
-Go, Cyrus. -[barking continues]
All right, everybody, in your rooms!
Let's go.
In your room.
-What's going on? -Just get back in your room.
-[thumps] -[dogs barking]
[child screaming]
-[infant crying] -Sit down.
I need you to hold your brother.
Hold your brother and stay down, okay?
[rifle clicks]
Listen up. No one do anything stupid. I'm gonna go out there,
talk to them, work this out, all right? Go on.
[helicopter blades whirring]
[agents] Go, go, go, go!
[sighs] All right.
[barking continues]
Whoa, whoa, whoa. Calm down!
Please, stop!
Keep your hands in the air and get on the ground now!
There are women and children in here!
-Get on the ground, now! -[dogs snarling]
Look out!
-[dog whimpers] -Shots fired, shots fired!
[gunfire popping]
[grunts]
[grunts, moans]
[grunts]
[screaming]
-Jamie, get down! -[child screaming]
[gunfire rattling]
[both groaning]
David!
[gasping]
-Davey, come Wayne. -[yells] Dad!
[David gasps]
Come here, come here.
[woman screaming]
[David gasping] Call for help. Call for help.
-Lock the doors. -Go, go!
[gasping]
[grunts]
[gunfire popping]
[children crying]
-[operator] 911. What is your-- -There are 75 ATF agents
around our building and they're shooting at us!
-At Mt. Carmel! -Mt. Carmel?
-Tell them there's women-- -[gunfire rattling]
--there's women and children in here and to call it off!
-[gunshot echoes] -[woman screams]
[man grunts]
[banging]
Judy, help me. I can't get this mattress off!
[baby screaming]
[radio chatter transmitting]
[gunfire crackling]
[gunfire continues]
Commence the dynamic entry. Secure the gun room!
[lead agent] Go, go, go, go!
[helicopter blades whirring]
Sheriff. Sheriff! There's somebody on the phone
They're saying they're shooting at Mt. Carmel.
This is Sheriff Harwell.
[yelling] Sheriff, it's Wayne Martin!
-Wayne. -ATF are shooting at us!
[screaming] We got women and children in danger!
-Wayne! -Tell them to pull back!
Tell them to call it off!
Get the ATF on the line.
-[gunfire crackling] -Throw it in!
[pops, fizzes]
No.
I have ATF headquarters. They are saying that their agents on the ground
-did not bring communications. -What--?
-I'm gonna go check on Wayne. -[panting] Go.
-You okay? -Go.
-Okay. I'll be right back -[gasping]
[sighs]
[gunfire echoes]
[screaming echoes]
[panting] Did you tell them to stop firing?
Yeah, but they can't get through!
-You guys okay? Is everybody okay? -Yeah.
[baby crying]
[clatters]
[bangs]
[muffled screaming]
[baby screams]
[gunfire rattling]
[grunts]
-[yelling] -[gunshot whistles]
Hey, camera guy!
You got a phone?
In my van.
Go get help!
Me? You didn't bring a phone?
[yells] Just go call for help!
Oh, sh--
-[groans, screams] -[gunshot pops]
[groans]
[sighs]
Agh!
Go!
[panting]
David! Get down!
Get down!
Down, down!
[yelling] Sheriff!
[sighs]
Steve...
it's happening-- the Fifth Seal. It's opening.
Sheriff, I have someone from ATF
Gimme that.
This is Sheriff Harwell. I need you to stop shooting, right now.
No, no, no, no. You don't understand. I'm just a cameraman.
Listen, I don't give a cow's ball who you are.
You tell the ATF to stop shooting.
[panting, stammering] All right. Yeah. Okay. Cease fire!
[cameraman] Cease fire!
Cease fire! Cease fire!
Cease fire!
Wayne, I got the ATF on the other line. I told them to cease fire.
Cease fire! Cease--
Cease fire! We have a cease fire!
Cease fire!
[gunshot whistles]
[yells] Cease fire!
[groans]
-[Steve] Cease fire! -Dave...?
-[gasping, grunting] -[Steve] Cease fire!
-[Wayne] Dave? -[gasps]
[Steve] Cease fire!
[moans] No.
[Steve] Cease fire!
Hold your fire! Cease fire!
Hold your fire!
[agents murmuring]
[groaning]
[fellow agent] Medic!
-Give me that. -Hey, hold on, hey! Come on!
Careful, man!
Hey! You asked me to be here!
[horn honking]
How's he doing?
He's still got a pulse. Come on, help me. Let me put him on the hood.
-[agent] One, two, three-- -Yeah.
Come on. Come on, hurry.
[agent] Let's go. Come on.
[Jacob] Hang on.
[truck engine starts]
[beeps]
[rapid beeping]
[beeps]
[panting]
Sheila? Yours okay?
Is anyone hurt? [panting]
You guys okay? Everybody all right?
Catherine--?
You okay? Leona, where's your mommy?
-[Kathy] Okay. -Hey, you guys all right?
-Oh, my God, Mayanah! -She's all right.
-What--? -[gasps]
-What is--? Judy. -[groans] No.
You're shot!
[baby coughs]
How could they do this? Why would they do this?
David was right.
They'll do anything to keep the truth from getting out.
-[baby whines] -[sheriff] David...
what the hell happened?
They just started shooting at us.
-How bad is it? -I ain't gonna lie. It's not good.
[panting]
Do you know if any of them were killed? They didn't look too hot.
You boys did kill some.
This is their fault. We're not the bad guys here.
David, how many casualties have you got?
David? You there?
God is on His throne, looking down on us right now.
David, how many casualties do you--
When it says in Revelation 22...
"Behold, I come quickly. My reward is with Me..."
what reward did Christ receive in heaven from the Father?
-I don't know. -The Seven Seals, Jack.
David, we have all the time in the world to talk theology.
What I wanna talk about right now
is resolving this thing peacefully
and getting you the help you need.
That's what you don't understand.
We don't have all the time in the world.
It's begun.
What's begun?
-I gotta go. -No, David, hang on.
You wanna talk to me?
You go out there. You find someone who understands.
Understands what?
Understands what just happened.
[phone rings]
Hello?
Hi. No. No, I haven't seen it.
Okay, I'm gonna turn on the TV.
-Show you what it is that I have-- -[reporter] News in Waco, Texas.
At least four federal agents are dead and 14 are injured
in a shootout with members of a religious cult.
The standoff outside the religious group's headquarters continues...
-Oh, my God, Karen. -...law enforcement officials descended
on the cult's fortress-like compound today...
-My son is in that building. - ...with a search warrant
and an arrest warrant for the cult's leaders...
-[David] Who? -[Steve] Winston.
Peter Hipsman.
Jaydean.
[Steve] They're dead.
No one knows where Gent is.
Then there's you, Judy, Perry. You're all wounded really bad.
[David] I'll be just fine.
-[faint helicopter blades whirring] -What about the children?
[Steve] None of them are hurt.
Thank God.
We should figure out a way to get the three of you
-to a hospital as soon as possible -You think we can just leave?
-We shot and killed the law. -Yeah, but they shot first.
-That doesn't matter. -Well, then I'll call Harwell.
I'll tell him to send in paramedics. We know that he's on our side.
-No one's on our side! -Look, I'm with Dave on this.
Till we figure out what the heck is going on, we can't let anyone in here.
That's easy for you to say, Wayne. Your wife's not the one
with bullet holes in her.
David, Perry's in bad shape. We need you.
David, please. Let me call the paramedics.
-Have Harwell bring them in -[yells] Everyone just stop!
Stop!
I can't concentrate with all this talking.
Get out!
[groans] Ugh!
Get out!
You, too! Go!
-David, I have-- -Go!
[grunts, whines]
[grunts]
Damn it!
[touch tones beeping]
[line ringing]
[ringing]
[clicks]
[recording] Hey, it's Bonnie Sue. Leave a message.
[beeps]
[sniffles]
Mama? They shot me. I think I'm dying.
[sobbing]
[sniffles] Say hi to Grandma for me...
[sobs]
[sniffles] ...and I'll be back real soon.
Okay? [sniffles]
And... I'm sorry you didn't learn the Seven Seals.
But I will... show--
I will show you mercy... [sniffles]
and God will show you mercy, too, okay?
[sniffles]
And I'll see y'all up in the skies.
I love you.
[handset clicks]
Road's closed.
I gotta get through. My wife and kids are in there.
Can't let you in. Move along.
Move it along. Let's go.
-Yes, sir. -[radio chatter transmitting]
-[Perry wincing] -Hey, Daddy,
we have to keep a little pressure on here right now, okay?
[Perry grunting]
[gasping]
-How you doing? -Ain't gonna lie to ya. It--
it hurts real bad.
[grunts] I--
I don't know how much more I can take.
I have to figure a few things out.
-[gasping] -I want you to hang in there for us.
-Okay? -[gasps]
[Perry stammering]
-Okay? -[gasps] Okay. Okay. Okay.
[Thibodeau] Is that Mike?
Kathy!
Kathy! Kathy, Mike!
-What? -He's outside.
Hey, can somebody open the door?
Mike. Come on.
-[gunfire crackles] -No--!
[whimpering]
[Kathy sobbing]
[Kathy screaming] No!
No! [sobbing]
[Kathy] No! They shot him...
No.
-[Kathy sobbing] They shot him...! -No.
Tony Prince, SAC.
Mitch Decker, Tactical.
-Gary Noesner, Lead Negotiator. -Come on.
-You up to speed? -[Mitch] Pretty much.
Have we established contact?
There's been some preliminary talks between Koresh and the ATF,
but our guys are still setting up.
How should I coordinate Negotiations and Tactical?
All communications go through me.
I'd prefer if I spoke with Mitch directly.
That way, we're always on the same page.
-I find that-- -I don't care what you find.
You go through me.
-That's how we're doing it. -[Mitch] Copy that.
We're still in the process of securing a perimeter.
-We're just about to lock it down-- -We'll secure the perimeter.
Well, if you want, we could help you guys--
No, you've done enough already. We'll take it from here.
[man] No, that is not what I was saying.
If you just could put David back on the phone
we could get to the bottom of this--
Wait. No. No, that is not an emergency. This is an emergen--
Hello?
Operator just cut me off.
Saying they had an emergency phone call from "A Current Affair."
-Is that so? -Yeah.
Well, let's cut the outside lines and run our own.
-I want their undivided attention. -Okay.
We've met before, haven't we?
Yeah, we sure have. You trained me.
Walter Graves.
So, what's the deal with that Prince fella?
I didn't get the fuzziest feeling from him.
Yeah. He's not really a "fuzzy feeling" kinda guy.
He's out of San Antonio, like me, but prepare yourself.
He's a piece of work.
All right.
I told you. I told you the element of surprise was blown.
-I told you that. -That's not what I heard you say.
I told you, I said-- I said they knew you were coming.
-I told you to call it off, man. -You shoulda been more clear.
What? What's more clear than that?
You didn't tell me they were arming up!
They weren't, man. They weren't.
They weren't arming up.
Look, we've already been through a lot today.
Let's-- let's not go at each other right now.
-Let me just go back in, then. -No. I can't do that.
Come on. What do you mean, you can't do that?
Let me just talk to them. I know I can convince them to come out.
I told you, I can't do it. It's in the hands of the FBI.
Yeah. Right.
[door closes]
If we do surrender, what are we facing?
Manslaughter.
Murder. Depends on how hard they wanna go.
But they shot first. We were defending ourselves.
Good luck getting them to admit that.
Is there any chance we get a fair shake?
In my opinion, no.
-Can they take the children? -If we're arrested, yeah.
I feel like we gotta call 911, but...
who do you call when it's your own government attacking?
[man on radio] The thing I don't get,
this seemed to be a military operation
against US citizens-- which is completely illegal, by the way.
There's a law against that. It's called posse comitatus.
And your cousin Bubba might be like,
"Ron, why you gettin' so worked up?
Basically the same thing, ain't it?'
No. It's not the same thing.
Law enforcement and military force
are two very different functions.
Law enforcement is all about de-escalating conflict.
You aren't allowed to shoot unless shot at.
They strive toward a peaceful conclusion, you know?
Military force... on the other hand,
is about inflicting more pain on an enemy than he can inflict on you.
So I ask you, why is our government...
-using military force-- -[knocking]
...on civilians? Folks, you're never gonna believe this,
but I have David Koresh on the line right now.
Mr. Koresh? Mr. Koresh, are you there?
[David] Yes, I am. What's left of me, anyways.
Can you tell us what happened today?
What happened today was un-American.
-How are you guys holding up there? -[grunts] Not good.
There's a bunch of us shot dead. You know, we have kids in here.
Get the lines consolidated yet?
Almost. I asked HRT for help. They said they'd get on it.
Yeah, don't expect any favors from those guys.
Koresh is on the radio.
Why can he still call out? I don't want him committing suicide on live air.
Mitch!
-Mitch? -You got that secure?
Hey, didn't my guy ask you to cut the line?
Getting to it. Still securing the perimeter.
Cut it! What's the matter with you?
Cut the line! They're on the radio!
Somebody cut the line. Over. Cut the line!
[static crackles]
[David] And I never planned on using those weapons.
And the problem is, the people on the outside don't understand what we bel--
[Ron] David...? David, are you there?
-Line's cut. -All right. Re-establish a connection
Get me on the phone with Koresh.
They cut us off.
[softly] Humph.
[bangs]
-[David sighs] -[phone rings]
[rings]
[grunts]
Hello.
-Hello. Whom am I speaking with? -This is David... "The Notorious."
Hi, David. This is Gary, FBI.
Hey, Gary. How you doing?
Mm, you know, I suppose we've both had better days.
Yeah. You're telling me.
Yeah.
How do you say your name, David? Is it Kor-esh or Kor-esh?
You ever hear someone die before, Gary?
Unfortunately, yes. I have.
Then you say my name like the last breath of a dying man.
Like a death knell.
[hissing] Ko-resh-shh-hh.
[Gary] I got it. "Ko-resh-hh."
Well. as I said, I'm with the FBI, not the ATF.
We're in charge of this now.
Isn't that like getting in a fight with the neighbor boy
and he whips you,
and his big brother comes over to investigate?
[Gary] No, it's not like that at all.
Tell me, Gary...
you gonna come kill us all?
No.
I'm here to work this out with words, not bullets.
Well, why didn't you do that in the first place?
When I was out in town, or jogging?
Jacob Vasquez knew that.
David, I can't tell you the answer to that, because I wasn't involved.
[David] Put Jacob on the phone.
Well, I wish I could, but he's not here.
[grunts]
Now, David, I hear you're injured.
And I'd like to get you medical attention. We just need you to come out.
Come out? After what you did to us?
After you came in and shot us for no reason?
Well, like I said, we're FBI.
We had absolutely nothing to do with that.
[Gary] Although, it's my understanding that your people ambushed the ATF.
That is a lie!
This is all their fault. You don't believe me,
There was a guy right outside with a video camera.
You go watch that tape.
Fair enough.
[Gary] Well, let's try and get past this, okay?
Tell me what I need to do to get you out of there.
Hm. In Psalms 2,
it says David has a vision of the future--
of confrontation between man and man's law
and God and God's law.
-Okay. -And Revelation 13 tells
of a "lamb-like beast" who will rise up.
Tell me, Gary...
what empire is lamb-like, or Christian?
The United States of America.
[David] The leaders of the earth
will join in counsel together
against the Lord, against His anointed.
The message in Psalms 2 is clear, Gary.
Seems like you know the Bible back to front.
-I memorized every word of it. -And you know, it also seems
like you have a message.
Our purpose here, Gary,
-is that message. -Well, what if I could help you?
What if I can convince my commanders
to let you share your message with the world?
Would you come out then?
When you say, "world," do you mean national TV?
Sure.
You broadcast my message on national TV,
then yeah, I'll come out.
Okay. Let's be clear. If I make this happen,
you will peacefully surrender?
You're agreeing to that?
Yeah. You have yourself a deal.
[murmuring]
Can I have everybody's attention?
Please. Look, I know. I know. It's been a...
it's been a long, awful day.
But I do have some good news.
David has spoken to the FBI,
-and they've come to a deal. -What? What kinda deal?-
So David is-- is gonna make a recording of our message.
And after it airs on national television,
then we're all gonna come out.
We all going to jail?
Honestly, I-- I don't know, Kathy.
They can't make us leave here. This is our home.
[Steve] Nobody is saying that we can't come back here.
This is just the deal that David made
in order to bring this situation to a close.
You should all pack up whatever...
you know, belongings you wanna take with you
and be prepared to leave in the morning.
That's it.
How's he doing?
He's going in and out.
Do you need a break? I could sit with him for a while.
No, I'm not going anywhere.
Well, I could stay with you... if that's all right.
[faintly] Yeah. Yeah, I'd like that.
[door closes]
Mind if we have an "off-the-record"?
[sighs]
I hear you spent some time with those guys.
A little.
Well, the ATF says they were shot at first.
Koresh says the ATF fired first.
Any idea who's telling the truth?
I wasn't there.
Koresh mentioned you guys had someone filming the raid. That true?
Why are you asking me all these questions?
Both sides seem to trust ya.
Yep, there was a-- there was a camera guy there.
Now, you think I could see that tape?
I really need to have my facts straight before I talk to him.
-I heard it went missing. -Missing?
Yeah. As soon as the confusion started...
the tape just went missing.
[sighs]
[David] It's happening, Rachel.
The whole world is gonna hear my message.
And just imagine what's gonna happen when they do.
It's gonna be unlike anything they've ever known.
And then after that?
-What do you mean? -Mt. Carmel's in your name.
[sighs] Ah...
If you're arrested, they'll take it away. And then, where will we go?
-Why would they do that? -Why are they doing any of this?
This is all we have.
It's all we know.
God will deliver us to where we need to be.
You need to put your fate in His hands.
And I'll do whatever it takes to protect you and our children from the law.
[Rachel sniffling]
But I can't protect you from God's plan.
Ready?
-[Rachel sniffling] -Yeah.
-[sniffling] -You all right?
Yeah.
Let's do it.
Yeah. It looks like it's winding down.
We're just waiting for 'em to come out.
Well, hopefully tonight.
Hey, I gotta go, but I'll see you tomorrow.
I love you, too. Bye.
-Your wife? -Yeah.
Yeah.
Let me give you a little piece of advice, okay?
Never say you're coming home until you're on your way.
Underpromise, overdeliver. Everyone's happier that way.
[sips]
[chuckles]
When God says, "Hearken to Me,
you who seek after righteousness,
you who seek the Lord.
Look to the rock."
The Lord is that Rock and He is on his throne and He says--
[voices laughing]
-What's wrong? -[recorder clicks]
[voices overlapping]
[yells] What are you doing?
[talking stops]
[panting]
[yells] People died today!
They died protecting you!
Their bodies are in the next room over.
Go on, take a look at 'em!
Go!
Y'all should be mourning
and praying for the souls that we lost, not celebrating.
Y'all should be ashamed of yourselves.
David, it's Perry. We need you.
Okay. Okay.
[grunts]
[Perry] David...?
[gulping]
My time's done here.
[Perry gasping]
I need you to hang on a little longer, okay?
[gasping] I ain't-- I ain't gonna make it.
[gasping, panting]
Okay. Let's get you outta here.
I wanna die here... not out there.
I want the last faces I see
to be faces I love.
Not ones I hate. [coughing]
Davey...
take your sisters downstairs.
-Come on, darlin'. -No.
[whimpering]
[Rachel sobs]
-We love you, Daddy. -I love you, too.
Please... please...?
Please make it stop. [gasping]
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord, Jesus Christ.
The Father of mercies,
and God of all comfort...
[Perry panting]
...who comforts us in all our tribulations,
that we may be able to comfort those...
that are in any trouble.
Amen. Thank you.
I will see you again.
I know.
[gasps]
[gunshot echoes]
[faint sobbing]
[voices murmuring]
Excuse me.
[sighs]
-Well, you don't look like an ATF agent. -[woman chuckles]
-Goodness, no. -[sighs]
My son's in there.
Mine, too.
-Who's your son? -David Thibodeau.
Oh.
Well, he's a real nice boy.
-You know him? -Oh, yeah.
Yeah. He's real sweet with my grandkids.
Got 13 in there.
[sniffles]
Wait, are you... David Koresh's mother?
[softly] Don't say that too loud.
Excuse me, I'm gonna...
I'm gonna go and use the restroom. I'm gonna be back, okay?
Ahem.
-[camera shutter clicks] -[murmuring stops]
Earlier today...
the ATF was ambushed as we tried to serve a routine search warrant
for what we believed to be a dangerous cult...
who were illegally modifying weapons for an End-of-Days assault.
Known as the Branch Davidians...
these people believe their charismatic leader, David Koresh,
is the Messiah.
We had an undercover agent who had infiltrated their compound,
but unfortunately, he didn't warn us that the cult was planning an attack.
[camera shutter clicks]
We also now believe that he might have been compromised by the group.
The ATF will be investigating that matter further in the days to come.
Negotiations have since been turned over to the FBI.
Special Agent Tony Prince is here with me
to let you know where things currently stand.
Thank you. Good morning.
My team is now in charge of bringing this situation to an end
and we have hope that it will be over soon.
One of our negotiators was able to strike a deal with Mr. Koresh.
In exchange for his surrender, we have agreed to play
an audiotape from Koresh himself.
It's almost an hour long,
but per our end of the bargain, here it is.
[whispers] Go ahead.
[recording] I, David Koresh,
agree, upon the broadcasting of this tape, to come out, peacefully,
with all the people, immediately.
The first thing I'd like to introduce in our subject
is the reasons for the revelations of Jesus Christ.
-[camera shutter clicks] -In the Book of Revelation
commentary states that what John has written in Scripture
is nothing other than the revelation of Jesus Christ.
[recording echoes over PA] We see in Chapter Five that John begins to weep
until one of the others says, "Weep not."
[recording on TV] "'Behold, the Lion of the tribe Judah,
the Root of David.'
And John beheld the Lamb as it had been slain
in the midst of the throne of the four beasts
and the elders, with seven eyes and seven horns."
What's the meaning of these things?
What is the meaning?
The tape you ran, um, I think most of us heard,
was a rambling discourse that went on for what, 58 minutes, almost an hour.
Would you have run it if not urged to do so by the authorities?
-[man] I doubt it. -[clicks]
Howell thinks he's the Lamb of God,
when all he is is a cheap thug
who interprets the Bible through the barrel of a--
[reporter] ...released a rambling hour-long recording
outlining his views of the Book of Revelation,
and told authorities he would surrender if--
How do you prove to someone that he is not Jesus Christ incarnate?
Well, the FBI said today that is the challenge it faces
in dealing with cult leader David Koresh...
[whispers] David, you all right?
[man on TV] ...would like to prove that David is not Christ.
[TV reporter] Federal authorities have brought in reinforcements.
There are about 200 lawmen here now. Negotiations are continuing...
[David grunts]
Ts-ss.
[murmuring]
I did everything you asked me to...
-and you burned me. -You burned yourself.
[Jacob] That's bullshit. Come on, guys, you heard me call it off. Tell him.
Tell him!
Oh, so that's how it is? Fifteen years of loyalty?
Fifteen years of putting my life on the line, and then for what?
For what? Hey--! Hey, get your hands off me, man.
Get off me.
[birds chirping]
[phone ringing]
[ringing]
[ringing stops]
-This is David. -Hey, David. It's Gary.
Our buses are ready to come pick you up, but before they do,
there's a procedure I'd like to go over with you first.
-Now, it's important to remem-- -You ever see "The Lawnmower Man," Gary?
-No, David, I haven't. -Oh, it's a good movie.
You should see it.
It's about a simple man...
that grows an understanding that changes the world.
Nobody treats him good at first.
They make fun of him and call him names.
But in time...
they soon realize that he has a power that none of 'em understood.
You see, he taps into something.
Something that changes the fabric of reality.
And you know what they try to do to him when they realize that?
They try to get rid of him.
They burn it all down.
The telephones will ring, Gary.
The telephones will ring.
I don't understand.
God spoke to me.
We ain't coming out.
[handset bangs]