Standoff: What Happened at Ruby Ridge?

In 1992, hundreds of armed federal agents surrounded a family of white separatists in a ramshackle mountaintop cabin. Eleven days later, three people were dead—and the story of Ruby Ridge was just beginning. Journalist Ruth Graham explores a tragedy that’s become a foundational myth for the modern right, and finds some frightening lessons about power and paranoia.

Randy and Vicki Weaver moved their family to a remote Idaho cabin. They feared their world would be destroyed in an apocalyptic confrontation with the federal government. They were right. In this first episode of our new narrative miniseries Standoff, host Ruth Graham explores the ideologies and influences that led to the deadly siege at Ruby Ridge in 1992. Get full access to Standoff: What Happened at Ruby Ridge with Slate Plus. Join to unlock the full season—plus ad-free listening on all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe from the Standoff show page on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, or visit slate.com/standoffplus for access wherever you listen. Episode Art: John Magaw (L), director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, shows weapons to US Sen. Arlen Specter, R-PA, during Senate hearings 08 September on Capitol Hill. The committee is investigating the actions of federal agencies involved in the raid in Ruby Ridge, Idaho. The weapons were those that white separatist Randy Weaver sold to an undercover ATF agent. Photo illustration by Slate. Photo by Mannie Garcia/AFP via Getty Images.

Ruth Graham breaks down what led to a shootout on the Weaver family property on Aug. 21, 1992, that left three people dead. Get full access to Standoff: What Happened at Ruby Ridge with Slate Plus. Join to unlock the full season—plus ad-free listening on all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe from the Standoff show page on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, or visit slate.com/standoffplus for access wherever you listen. Episode Art: Former FBI Director William Sessions holds up a copy of the "rules of engagement," that were used in the 1992 incident at Ruby Ridge, Idaho during Senate hearings on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC 22 September. Key witnesses have contradicted each other regarding the "could and should" shoot order given to snipers during the seige. AFP PHOTO. Photo illustration by Slate. Photo by Luke Frazza/AFP via Getty Images.

Host Ruth Graham describes what happens for the bulk of the 11-day siege on the Weaver family property. As the surviving Weavers stayed holed up inside their cabin, their story attracted droves of supporters and rabble-rousers to rural Idaho. Get full access to Standoff: What Happened at Ruby Ridge with Slate Plus. Join to unlock the full season—plus ad-free listening on all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe from the Standoff show page on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, or visit slate.com/standoffplus for access wherever you listen. Episode Art: Photo illustration by Slate. Photo by Dave Hunt/Wikipedia.

In the final episode of Standoff, our narrative miniseries on the story of Ruby Ridge, host Ruth Graham recaps the prosecution of Randy Weaver and Kevin Harris, and explores how the story of the standoff became legendary among the modern far right. Get full access to Standoff: What Happened at Ruby Ridge with Slate Plus. Join to unlock the full season—plus ad-free listening on all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe from the Standoff show page on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, or visit slate.com/standoffplus for access wherever you listen. Episode Art: Photo illustration by Slate. Photo by Govt/Wikipedia.