Attorney Says Suspect Has No Ties to Militia

The attorney for one of five Southern California men accused of belonging to “terrorist” militia cells said Monday that his client’s gun group is actually an informal club that trains on public shooting ranges in the Angeles National Forest--and has at times included Los Angeles police officers.

The Los Angeles Police Department on Friday arrested the men on weapons charges, and in a televised news conference, said the group was part of a larger militia and had planned unspecified acts of terrorism in Southern California.

Hours after the arrests, four of the five suspects were freed after posting no more than $15,000 bail each on weapons charges. Privately, some law enforcement officials have questioned whether the LAPD moved too quickly on the suspects.

Police bristled at the criticism, saying that the proactive response after a two-year investigation had the potential of saving many lives.

Attorney Chuck Michel, who represents suspect Glenn Yee of San Dimas, said Monday that his client belonged to an informal, legal training group that required members to sign a disclaimer stating that they were not involved in politics or violence.

Michel said he is baffled as to why Yee, an Irwindale reserve police officer, and his companions were arrested. “At this point, I have more questions than answers,” Michel said.

Although he is still gathering information on the case, Michel said the membership was fluid and occasionally included officers from the Irwindale and Los Angeles police departments.

Capt. Joseph Curreri, who heads the LAPD’s Anti-Terrorist Division, declined to comment on Michel’s assertion that LAPD officers belonged to the shooting group or on any other aspect of the investigation, which is continuing and is expected to result in more arrests.

Curreri, however, said that if Michel provided the names of any involved LAPD officers, an “investigation would be conducted forthwith.”

Michel said the group built its own training targets at a public range, with human dummies that would pop up, testing whether marksmen could swiftly determine whether they represented enemies or innocent people. The attorney said the complex resembled training courses at many police academies.

“After a while you get tired of shooting at [abandoned] refrigerators and cars and you set up something more challenging,” Michel said. “It’s not a terrorism thing.”

Michel complained that the LAPD’s news conference last week exaggerated the threat of what he described as a legal group of gun aficionados.

“It’s like it was run by a PR firm trying to whip everyone up,” he said.

Police said they confiscated more than 100 weapons and thousands of rounds of ammunition in raids on the suspects’ homes Friday.

Among the items seized were a grenade launcher, fully automatic assault rifles, night-vision goggles, camouflage suits, rappelling gear, laser scopes, flak jackets and ammunition for a .50-caliber machine gun, police said. A police spokesman described the men as “filled with hate.”

On Monday, authorities said the only suspect who remained in custody, Raymond Durand, 33, of Valencia, has been charged with one count of sale of a banned assault rifle.

Police said Durand belongs to a different militia cell and is unconnected to the other four suspects. Authorities said they will request $40,000 bail at his arraignment today.

Authorities said prosecutors will determine whether to file charges against the other four suspects after reviewing the evidence against them.

Times staff writer Greg Krikorian contributed to this story.