Long Standoff Ends for Tax-Protesting Couple

They include Cirino Gonzalez, 30, of Alice, Tex., who fell out with Ed Brown some months ago; the couple's blogger, Daniel Riley, 40, from Cohoes, N.Y.; and a friend, Robert Wolffe, 50, from Randolph, Vt.

The fourth, Jason Gerhard, 22, a recent Army recruit from Brookhaven, N.Y., who was arrested at his basic-training camp in Missouri, faces the most charges -- if found guilty of all felony counts, he could be sentenced to a maximum of 125 years.

The Browns dismissed the charges against their associates as "lies." But unsealed court documents hinted at preparations for battle that Ed Brown has long boasted about. Along with groceries and fishing line, they state, some of the defendants sneaked Tannerite, an explosive, onto the property, as well as fire extinguishers and a firearm powerful enough to pierce body armor.

Recently, as they waited for authorities to make a move, Ed Brown attended to plants in the yard, while Elaine baked a pie and arranged surgical tools for the ad hoc dental practice she has set up in her living room. In between, they would forcefully state why they refuse to pay taxes.

"Show me the law and I'll pay the tax," said Ed Brown. "Don't show me the law and I'm not going to give you a dime. What part of that don't you understand?"

Cut off from the rest of the world, the Browns turned to their long-held beliefs in conspiracy theories for help. The couple's ordeal would likely be over by spring, according to Ed Brown, when he said a "warrior class" will rise up against the "Zionist Freemasons" who he thinks have infiltrated the echelons of power and control the world.

During his conspiratorial soliloquies, Brown would occasionally lose his temper and raise the specter of all-out war. He warned that if he and his wife were killed, retribution would be enacted against journalists, judges and law enforcement officials on a secret "list." Monier said that by making such threats the couple have "turned this into more than just a tax case."

Increasingly alone and with their supply chain drying up, in quieter moments the Browns were candid about their frustrating predicament. "They should have let us slip into oblivion," said Ed Brown. "I guess they didn't believe our resolve." Turning to his wife, the resolve seemed to dissipate. "What can I do?" he asked. "I'm trapped. I got my back against the wall."