Second? Deletion Challenge edit

While I dispute the deletion proposal, the proposer is correct in that significant sourcing must be done on the article. Also, now that the blog has been deleted, content that can only cite the blog as reference must be removed. The only way around this would be if the blog has been archived publicly somewhere; but I don't believe that is the case. So everything in the "blog" section which can't be sourced to something else, will probably have to go. Everything else in the blog can be easily sourced to the Seattle Times or NPR's coverage. I'll begin setting up citations for those this weekend; however I'm curious whether anyone can source the part that said, "Sommer contends however that the US has an alterior motive in promoting the organized crime element of their story, claiming that the accusations may be a attempt to illicit interest in him by the Hells Angels. He also believes tying him to organized crime is an attempt to place the onus on him to prove why he should be released on bail, according to Canadian law." If that case was made in the blog, and no where else, we can't really have that in here because without the blog to refer to it's just hearsay.--Cheesesteak the Impaler 05:36, 30 January 2007 (UTC) The comment about his Hells angels feelings were in the NPR interviews and in the Radio Interview he did with kiro out of seattle.Reply

Old Matter edit

Not a WP:BIO violation. Definition states that a person achieving notoriety (news worthy event, such as being assassinated) is acceptable. This clown robbed a bank at gunpoint, is involved with one of the biggest arms dealing networks on the planet and is actively talking to the media about it. He qualifies. Douche bag or not. 24.71.204.118 19:53, 10 January 2007 (UTC)Reply

Well, his "media blitz" was a flash in the pan. If you track the content of news providers, there was buzz about the initial robbery arrests; and then there was a brief flurry of stories when he "went public" with his "political" extradition fight; and there hasn't been much since and probably won't be till his extradition hearings this spring/summer.

I also got a feeling Sommer himself may be responsible for the initial entry. That said, the crime did have some notoriety because it did involve U.S. army rangers who were active duty at the time, involved assault rifles smuggled back from Iraq, and his effort to frame his charges in this "if I did it, it was political" extradition fight. The entry needs some cleaning up, but warrants an entry.--Cheesesteak the Impaler 13:05, 13 January 2007 (UTC)Reply

Five to Three Rangers? edit

At this time three (former?) army rangers are charged with the robbery. During the investigation, according to the entry, and my memory, five rangers were arrested. Anyone know what happened to the other two? I think there were guilty pleas to aiding/abetting charges in exchange for turning witness, but I'm not sure.--Cheesesteak the Impaler 14:23, 14 January 2007 (UTC)Reply

Citizenship edit

Anyone have anything on Sommer's citizenship? Is he a dual U.S./Canadian citizen, or a Canadian who served in the U.S. Army?--Cheesesteak the Impaler 14:46, 20 January 2007 (UTC)Reply


Answers edit

Seven people have been arrested in connection to the Tacoma robbery, five of whom have been charged with taking part in the robbery itself. Here's a brief synopsis of who is who:

Elliott Sommer, Army Ranger (Spc. 4), alleged ringleader of the robbery, currently under house arrest in Peachland, B.C. awaiting an extradition hearing. Tigra Robertson, Canadian citizen, alleged robbery participant, currently on bail in B.C., awaiting a January 29 trial appearance in Seattle. Nathan Dunmall, Canadian citizen, alleged robbery particpant, currently on bail in B.C., awaiting an extradition hearing. Alex Blum, Army Ranger (Pvt.), alleged robbery particpant, currently in the SeaTac federal detention centre awaiting a January 29 trial appearance. Chad Palmer, Army Ranger (Pvt.), alleged robber participant, has pled guilty to his role, currently in the SeaTac federal detention centre awaiting sentencing.

The above are five alleged robbers.

Richard Olinger, Army Ranger, allegedly stored weapons on behalf of Sommer in a rental storage unit in Parkland, Wash, unknown current status. Scott Byrne, Army Ranger, allegedly assisted in the planning of the robbery unknown current status.

As for the question about Sommer's citizenship, he has dual Canadian/U.S. citizenship. He grew up in Peachland, B.C. and apparently enlisted in the U.S. Army on his 17th birthday. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by Writerdave (talkcontribs) 03:01, 21 January 2007 (UTC).Reply

Thanks. Now for the specific language of the entry, should Sommer, Blum, and Palmer be described as Rangers or "former Rangers"? I mean does the army consider a soldier active duty if he's in a federal detention facility? I know some military units have a "once a ____ always a ____" outlook, but does anything actually happen to their enlistment status when indicted, or pending conviction in Palmer's case?--Cheesesteak the Impaler 03:06, 22 January 2007 (UTC)Reply


They are ALL still on the active 2/75 roster. Call and see

Vandalism? edit

It seems there's a lot of vandalism on this page. I'm not exactly clear on what constituted vandalism or how to remove it properly, so I thought I'd just ask if what I did was correct. I assume removing unsubstantiated bias and unreferenced bias without a discussion is OK? Calling people "nixon nazis" and "bushies" is also removable without incident? —Preceding unsigned comment added by Elian664 (talkcontribs) 20:33, 16 October 2009 (UTC)Reply

Yeah, there seems to be a whole lot of IP activity on here, a lot of it claiming unreferenced and unsourced information. If people can place links and claims to their entries, please do so. --Doriftu (talk) 05:50, 31 January 2011 (UTC)Reply

External links modified edit

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Elliott's story was used against his father, Luke, in a political smear campaign. edit

I'm not fully convinced that this should be included in the article. Elliott's father, Luke, lives in Hayden, Idaho, and is/was running for Mayor there in November 2023. A local news outlet ran a story about Elliott's claims to get sympathy for his reduced sentence. It was a political smear campaign. Maybe if Luke wins the election it will make more sense for this tidbit to be in the article, since being only a candidate doesn't justify a separate article. The election is next Tuesday. 76.178.169.118 (talk) 20:41, 1 November 2023 (UTC)Reply

Luke didn't win the election, so the topic is moot. 76.178.169.118 (talk) 23:35, 20 December 2023 (UTC)Reply