David Koresh

David Koresh, born Vernon Wayne Howell (August 17, 1959 - April 19, 1993) was a self-proclaimed head of the Branch Davidians from 1988 until a raid by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (now BATFE) and subsequent siege by the Federal Bureau of Investigation ended with the burning of Branch Davidian ranch, the Mount Carmel Center.

Ascent to leadership of the Branch Davidians

Howell allegedly had an affair with Lois Roden, the alleged prophetess and leader of the sect who was then in her late sixties. This included a trip the two took to Israel. In 1983, Roden allowed Howell to begin teaching his own message which caused controversy in the group. When Roden died in 1986, a power struggle ensued between Howell and Roden's son, George, with the majority of the group uniting behind George Roden, who forced Howell and his group off the property.

Related Topics:
Lois Roden - Israel - 1983 - 1986

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Late in 1987, Howell returned to Mount Carmel in camouflage, with seven of his male followers, armed with five .223 caliber semiautomatic assault rifles, two .22 caliber rifles, two 12-gauge shotguns and nearly 400 rounds of ammunition. In the ensuing gunfight, George Roden was wounded in the chest and hands, and took cover behind a tree. As a result of the incident, Howell and his followers were charged with attempted murder. At the trial, Howell testified that he went to Mount Carmel to uncover evidence of corpse abuse by George Roden. Howell testified further that they had come armed because George Roden had expelled him from Mount Carmel at gunpoint, and claimed that his shots had been aimed at a tree. Howell's followers were acquitted, and in Howell's case a mistrial was declared. Roden was later committed to a mental institution in an unrelated murder conviction, leaving Howell free to assume leadership of the Branch Davidians at Mount Carmel.

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In 1990 Vernon Howell legally changed his name to David Koresh. In the documentation involved, Howell stated that the change was for "publicity and business purposes." The switch arose from his belief that he was now head of the biblical house of David, from which Judeo-Christian tradition maintains the Messiah will come. The name Koresh is a transliteration of the Hebrew name of Cyrus the Persian king who allowed the Jews who had been dispersed throughout Babylonia by Nebuchadnezzar to return to their homelands. Both David and Cyrus (Koresh) are referred to as Messiah (lit. annointed one) in the Hebrew Bible (David on several occasions, Cyrus in Isaiah 45:1), thus the names Vernon Howell chose evidenced his belief that he was the Messiah, a belief that stemmed from a vision he claimed to have received from God in 1985 during his trip to Israel.

Related Topics:
1990 - David - Cyrus - Persian king - Dispersed - Babylonia - Nebuchadnezzar - 1985

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Koresh openly advocated polygamy for himself and select others in the group, and asserted himself married to several female residents of the small community, and there were allegations of child abuse occurring at Mount Carmel.

Related Topics:
Polygamy - Child abuse

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Some former members of the cult accused (and still accuse) Koresh of declaring they owed him 140 wives, and felt he could claim any of the females in the compound as his. Evidently he fathered at least a dozen children by the harem. Some of these mothers were as young as 12 and 13 years old.

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Including one by Kiri Jewell.

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http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/waco/renoopeningst.html

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