Branch Davidians Mark Anniversary

Four years after their compound burned to the ground, members of the Branch Davidian sect and some supporters returned to the site Saturday.

The actions of the federal government in the 51-day standoff with the sect led by David Koresh have become a rallying cry for anti-government activists.

Prosecutors have said that the fiery deaths inspired Timothy McVeigh to bomb the Oklahoma City federal building.

Saturday’s ceremony, on a concrete slab that once was the compound’s gym, attracted about 100 onlookers with a multitude of grievances and agendas.

Billy Leighty, a 20-year-old dishwasher from Tulsa, Okla., complained that “secret spy planes” were following him for using drugs.

David Buffington, a 31-year-old mechanic, said he had driven four hours from Brazoria County to stand up for gun owners’ rights.

“It’s every man’s God-given right to defend his family,” he said.