Tucson Couple Arrested As "Freemen"

News 13 - KOLD TV/November 7, 2002

Tucson -- A Tucson couple, who operate under their own courts and laws, is in trouble for taking things too far.

Whitney Starr and her husband, David Vigil, are part of a local group calling themselves "Freemen ." They've been arrested for filing several false leins against officials in Oro Valley. It's not clear whether they're related to a group in Montana. This latest incident started when a relative got a ticket last year for driving without a license and registration. The group fought back by going after the officials' property.

John Evans, of the Arizona Attorney General's Office, says, "That ended up with these people assisting and filing enormous leins against police officers, most of the Oro Valley City Council (and) the Mayor, alleging that they owed the Starr's millions of dollars."

The liens were eventually dismissed. Authorities searched a home on the west side Monday and seized some evidence. The couple has been released on their own recognizance. However, police are looking for several other members of the group.