APco 05/09 1540 Richard Butler


   SPOKANE, Wash.  (AP)  -- The Rev.  Richard Butler, head of the
white supremacist Aryan  Nations,  was  reported  in  stable  and
improving condition today at Sacred Heart Medical Center after an
operation  to  clear  blockage  in  his left carotid artery, said
Sacred Heart spokeswoman Janice Kaley.

   The two-hour operation, performed Thursday, was the second  in
less than a week for Butler.  He underwent quadruple bypass heart
surgery last week.

   The carotid arteries supply blood to the head and neck.

   Butler,  69,  was  stricken  with  heart pains April 28 at the
Kootenai County Jail in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, where he  was  held
after  being  indicted  by  a federal grand jury in Arkansas on a
sedition charge.

   Butler was indicted with other white  supremacists,  who  were
charged   with  a  variety  of  counts,  including  sedition,  or
attempting to overthrow the U.S. government.

   Butler is head of the Church of Jesus Christ Christian  (Aryan
Nations), based near Hayden Lake, Idaho.

   
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