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The .50-caliber gun that FBI agents seized from Michael Emry's travel trailer in John Day in May after serving a search warrant at the location, according to federal court records. (Courtesy of FBI)

Michael R. Emry, who described himself as an "embedded journalist'' during the standoff at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge, is asking a judge to release him as he awaits trial on federal weapons charges in Oregon.

His attorney Mark Sabitt on Friday filed a motion to release Emry from custody, noting that Emry's wife has relocated their fifth-wheel trailer from Grant County to Cresent in Klamath County, at least 150 miles away from an informant who prosecutors say feels threatened by Emry.

"Clearly the court could impose conditions of release that prohibit travel to Grant County and contact with or concerning,'' the confidential witness, Sabitt wrote in his motion.

Emry, 54, has work in Crescent as a welder and fabricator for Scott DeCarlo and DeCarlo Inc., a business that works on heavy equipment and hydraulics, his attorney wrote.

Emry was arrested in John Day in early May after FBI agents found a machine gun - identified as a fully automatic .50-caliber Ma Deuce Browning M2 - in a travel trailer serving as his home, according to federal prosecutors and court papers.

Emry acknowledged that he stole it from a Boise dealer where he had worked and ground off the serial numbers, according to a federal prosecutor. An informant told authorities about Emry's plan to take the .50-caliber gun, which Assistant U.S. Attorney Nathan Lichvarcik has described as a "weapon of war,'' to the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge during its occupation this winter.

Emry faces charges of unlawful possession of a machine gun not registered to him, and unlawful possession of a firearm with an obliterated serial number in U.S. District Court in Eugene.

Emry's attorney said Emry has never been associated with any militia group. He described Emry as a self-styled journalist who has published an online media resource called The Voice of Idaho, and is helping to create a similar resource in Grant County called The Voice of Grant County.

Sabitt argued that both operate "legally and enjoy a First Amendment privilege'' to publish views about distrust of the federal government.

Prosecutors successfully urged the court in late May to keep Emry in custody pending trial, convincing the court that there's no conditions that will reasonably assure the safety of the community if he were to be released.

But Sabitt is urging the court to reconsider its ruling.

Prosecutors contend Emry made statements on a jail phone call that the "CW ain't going to escape this one,'' referring in shorthand to the confidential witness, according to court records.

Emry's attorney said the statement was simply a warning by Emry that the informant "is a known scoundrel with a criminal past who is not to be trusted,'' but not a threat of harm, according to his motion. It was a warning to Emry's coworkers at his alternative media website, Sabitt wrote.

Emry moved from Boise, Idaho to Grant County in March, and has generally worked as a mechanic and is highly regarded as a gunsmith, his attorney said. He has a single prior misdemeanor conviction for writing a bad check, his attorney argued.

"The attention generated by the occupation of the Malheur Wildlife Refuge, the death of LaVoy Finicum and the contentious political climate particularly in law enforcement in Grant County have impacted the Government's perceptions regarding Mr. Emry and his activities,'' Sabitt wrote. "He simply was not involved in the occupation of the Malheur refuge and he is not charged with having been involved.''

A status hearing in Emry's case is set for July 11 in federal court in Eugene.

-- Maxine Bernstein

mbernstein@oregonian.com

503-221-8212

@maxoregonian