Government Cleared in Siege Near Waco

A federal judge cleared the government in the deaths of some 80 Branch Davidians in the 1993 siege and fire near Waco, Texas, issuing a final verdict dismissing a lawsuit brought by survivors and relatives of the victims. U.S. District Judge Walter Smith, in Dallas, upheld the July findings of an advisory jury that federal agents were not responsible for a 51-day armed standoff at the Davidian compound or for a blaze that consumed the building after an FBI tank and tear-gas assault. The $675-million wrongful death lawsuit against the government for negligence was filed by about 100 Davidian relatives and survivors who alleged the government had caused the standoff and contributed to the fatal fire.