Armed Protesters take over Oregon Federal Wildlife Refuge Part 2

[Howl]

Spent some time with the google. 

In the August jury trial with four defendants, two defendants were cleared of all ten charges.  Parker and Drexler were cleared of some charges but the jury could not reach a consensus on charges of assault and threatening a federal officer, and a weapons charge (Parker) and assault and a weapons charge for Drexler.

I'm guessing the plea deal was offered because of a good possibility that the jury would deadlock or find them not guilty of these remaining charges. 

I can't figure out if the Feds can't make their damned point or if the jury in this part of the country will just not convict. 

[47of74]

Cloven Hoof Bundy's trial is going to get underway

Quote

Three-and-a-half years after he and his supporters stood down federal agents, 71-year-old Nevada rancher Cliven D. Bundy today heads for another showdown with the U.S. Government — this one in a Las Vegas courtroom.

In the new faceoff, prosecutors will attempt to convince a jury beyond a “reasonable doubt” that Bundy, along with his sons, Ammon and Ryan Bundy, Ryan Payne and others, were part of a “massive armed assault” conspiracy targeting federal agents in a landmark case that’s become known as Bunkerville.

The trial was scheduled to begin October 3 in U.S. District Court in Las Vegas, but was delayed four weeks because two days earlier a gunman, firing from a high-rise hotel in the city, shot and killed 58 concertgoers and injured 546 others.

U.S. District Judge Gloria Navarro, who ordered the postponement over the objection of Cliven Bundy, said it would be difficult to find jurors who could “concentrate and focus” on the Bunkerville conspiracy case in the wake of the deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. history.

 

[WhatWouldJohnCrichtonDo?]

Guess I'd better cross my fingers that some of the charges stick this time.  (This, too.  )

[Howl]

7 hours ago, WhatWouldJohnCrichtonDo? said:

Guess I'd better cross my fingers that some of the charges stick this time.  (This, too.  )

Me too!  Nothing could equal the shock of every body walking at the Malheur trial, though.  I'm still gobsmacked over that.  Plus, the courtroom melee when Ryan Bundy couldn't go home and had to, instead, head back to jail.  Good times. 

[Howl]

Jurors are ready for the Bundy; opening remarks are scheduled for Tuesday, Nov. 7. 

The jury for key Bundy trial in Las Vegas has been selected

[AmazonGrace]

Not sure what's been going on lately but it looks dire: 

 

[Howl]

Love me some Bundy Court Sketches! 

Southern Poverty Law Center is posting live updates on the trial.  Ryan Bundy is representing himself. 

Linky: Live updates, Bundy Ranch Trial

In his opening statement, Ryan claims “My family has been on this land for 141 years,” he said, and has filed claims with the “sovereign state” of Nevada for water rights on public lands where their cattle graze. “The issue about rights is what brought us here today.”

For clarity on this statement: “My family has been on this land for 141 years” here's an article from LasVegasNow.com titled An abbreviated look at rancher Cliven Bundy's family history. The article seems well researched and for Ryan "been on this land" has a very broad meaning. 

[DaisyD]

There's a whole town that belonged to my 6th great-grandfather. It was his payment for service in the Revolution. You don't see me laying claim to anything other than his grave (and that's just as my ancestor, not ownership). Just saying...

[Howl]

9 hours ago, DaisyD said:

There's a whole town that belonged to my 6th great-grandfather. It was his payment for service in the Revolution. You don't see me laying claim to anything other than his grave (and that's just as my ancestor, not ownership). Just saying...

Well you could most certainly and legitimately allow your cattle, goats and sheep to graze on the town green for free........according to Ryan B. 

[WhatWouldJohnCrichtonDo?]

Ammon Bundy was released from jail to house arrest today. 

https://www.reviewjournal.com/news/bundy-blm/supporters-greet-ammon-bundy-in-las-vegas-after-his-release/

His brother Ryan is apparently already out (I guess house arrest, with permission to see his brother, but I found it unclear), but their dad Cliven chose to stay in jail.

Quote

A crowd of about 50 supporters and family members, including Ammon Bundy’s wife and six children, cheered and hugged him as he walked out of the Lloyd George U.S. Courthouse in downtown Las Vegas.

His brother, Ryan, another defendant facing a jury on charges connected with the 2014 armed standoff in Bunkerville, was among those in the crowd. The two hugged briefly before Ammon Bundy spoke with reporters.

 

Quote

A day earlier, U.S. District Judge Gloria Navarro ordered Ammon Bundy released to house arrest from federal detention, where he had been held without bail for nearly two years. The judge also granted Cliven Bundy’s release, but he rejected the conditions.

There's an article about Cliven, but I only had time to skim it.

https://www.reviewjournal.com/news/bundy-blm/nevada-rancher-cliven-bundy-rejects-release-opportunity/

The first article mentions some of the conditions of Ammon's release:

Quote

While Ammon Bundy is under house arrest, he must not have contact with his co-defendants outside the presence of lawyers, and he must stay away from any “dangerous” weapons, the judge ruled.

I wonder what Ammon Bundy would consider a "dangerous" weapon. Somehow, I could see him trying to make a case for a gun being a useful tool and not a dangerous weapon. 

[WhatWouldJohnCrichtonDo?]

10 hours ago, WhatWouldJohnCrichtonDo? said:

His brother Ryan is apparently already out (I guess house arrest, with permission to see his brother, but I found it unclear)...

I found the answer to my own question over Ryan's status in the second article I posted a link to yesterday. (The article that I only had time to skim.)

Quote

Just before the start of testimony earlier this month, another of the rancher’s sons, Ryan, was released to a halfway house. He is representing himself and appeared in court Wednesday wearing a white shirt, black vest, bluejeans, boots and a white cowboy hat, which he kept on while questioning a witness.

It also says that Cliven was offered house arrest at a friend's house, but he refused to leave jail with any conditions attached. 

[AmazonGrace]

 

[WhatWouldJohnCrichtonDo?]

I got a notification from one of my news aps about this while I was shopping. I managed to keep it classy and only whisper "oh, fuck!" This is just the cherry to top off this weird and wacky sundae of sovereign citizen hooey. 

Edited December 20, 2017 by WhatWouldJohnCrichtonDo?
riffle

[Howl]

OK, I'ma just gonna slam my head repeatedly into my desk.  Seriously, the government did not turn over all materials during discovery?  I can't tell you the extent to which this will embolden militia types. 

[church_of_dog]

WTF?  I just don't get it...  (Seems I've been saying that a lot lately)

http://www.sfgate.com/news/crime/article/Dismissal-ruling-due-in-Las-Vegas-in-ranching-12481557.php

LAS VEGAS (AP) — The Nevada rancher accused of leading an armed standoff that stopped federal agents from rounding up his cattle in 2014 walked out of a courthouse in Las Vegas a free and defiant man Monday, declaring that his fight against U.S. authority is not over.

Cliven Bundy emerged to supporters' cheers, while environmental and conservation advocates worried that the dismissal of his charges would bolster "violent and racist anti-government" followers who aim to erode established parks, wildlife refuges and other public lands controlled by U.S. officials.

[WhatWouldJohnCrichtonDo?]

Damn. Damn. Damn. It sounds like both the prosecutor's office and the FBI screwed up.

Quote

The judge ended the latest case by ripping government prosecutors, led by First Assistant U.S. Attorney Steven Myhre, for "intentional abdication of ... responsibility," ''flagrant misconduct" and "substantial prejudice."

Navarro found "deliberate attempts to mislead and distort the truth" and blamed FBI agents for "reckless disregard" of requirements to turn over evidence relating to government snipers and cameras that monitored the Bundy homestead.

The defense also should have been given records of government threat assessments that concluded the Bundys would probably protest but not become violent if agents enforcing court orders began rounding up their cattle, the judge said.

When the FBI tries to cover their asses by lying and withholding information, all they're doing is fueling the paranoia and persecution complexes these folks have. They need to stop pretending to be infallible. The FBI agent who fired his gun in LaVoy Finicum's final confrontation and then denied firing his weapon comes to mind. Just tell the truth and stop lying to CYA!!

I wonder if this means that Ammon is going to live in Emmett. He's reported to own a house there, but the local news never confirmed he actually lived there before the Wildlife Refuge takeover. I know my state has its share of wackos; I just hate knowing one more will probably be living here soon. 

[Howl]

Just read this in the morning paper.  Damn, damn and double damn.  How could the Feds screw up this bad?  Really, this is truly awful in every way. The Bundys are walking, every one of them.  The only people doing time are chumps who took plea deals.  That said, the Bundys did spend quite a bit of time in lock up while awaiting trials.  

Gold Butte, where Cliven Bundy grazed his cows for free 20 years, was decreed a Nation Monument by Obama.   From the Las Vegas Sun online, Dec. 5 2017: 

Quote

Zinke recommends shrinking Gold Butte National Monument

Designated for government protection less than a year ago, Gold Butte National Monument could shrink in size significantly at the recommendation of Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke.

In a report issued Tuesday, Zinke recommends downsizing the nearly 300,000-acre monument “to ensure that the monument reservation is limited to the smallest area compatible with the protection of the objects identified and protect historic water rights.”  

Full text here. 

 

Edited January 9, 2018 by Howl

[WhatWouldJohnCrichtonDo?]

Ammon gave an interview to a local news station. The headline makes me too angry to read it closely, but from a quick skim of the interview, it looks like he's just saying more of the same things he and his family have been saying all along.

http://www.ktvb.com/mobile/article/news/local/ammon-bundy-speaks-out-they-basically-came-to-kill-our-family/277-507670015

[Howl]

Bundy owes about $1 million to the feds, but no lien has been placed on his ranch.  

I think the cattle were rounded up without incident at some point, but I will not be surprised if they start this crap of grazing cattle without permits yet again. 

As noted upthread, the area where he grazed his cattle is now a National Monument, and I suspect that grazing illegally in that context may have stiffer penalties. 

I would be so intrigued to know if his fellow Mormons in Bunkerville share his beliefs or if they are more mainline, law-abiding Mormons. 

Edited January 14, 2018 by Howl

[WhatWouldJohnCrichtonDo?]

Well, one of the Bundy's allies got a prison sentence. Ryan Payne got off on the charges in Nevada for the Bunkerville standoff, but he was just sentenced to 3 years for the Malheur Wildlife Refuge takeover. 

http://www.oregonlive.com/oregon-standoff/2018/02/federal_judge_sentences_oregon.html

He apparently hand wrote a 3 page apology to the court. There's a link to it in the article, but it's a PDF photo of the actual document, and I don't know if I care enough to read it. (His handwriting isn't terrible, but I just don't know how much I care at this point.)

It would be interesting to see a summary of the end results for all the participants in this terrorist action. Ringleaders got off, a few terrorists got a few years in prison, a few terrorists got probation, and the good folks of Harney County were left with the physical, psychological, and social aftermath. 

[Howl]

Pete Santilli, noxious self-appointed youtube and internet "journalist" got some jail time, I think. He looked like he couldn't decide whether he was on the scene of an occupation or going on safari.

Jon Ritzheimer got a year and then probation.  I think (not sure, though) the three last holdouts -- David Fry and the Andersons -- were all acquitted. 

Quote

Authorities had charged 26 occupiers with conspiracy. Eleven pleaded guilty, and another had the charge dropped. Seven defendants chose not to be tried at this time. Their trial is scheduled to begin Feb. 14.  

The Feb. 14 trial ended in an acquittal by the judge, IIRC or was that the Bundy trial?  I'm getting them mixed  up. 

I honestly have to say -- I hope that some of the Feds lost their jobs over this.  It's not a simple mistake to not turn over all evidence to defendant's lawyers -- it's a deliberate, massive fuck up. Grrrrrrrr.

Edited March 1, 2018 by Howl

[DaisyD]

Is that why so many got acquittals? 

[Howl]

This is the trial related to the Bundy standoff, rather than the Malheur occupation.  According to the LA Times, "[Judge Gloria] Navarro rebuked federal prosecutors — using the words "flagrant" and "reckless" to describe how they withheld evidence from the defense — before saying "that the universal sense of justice has been violated" and dismissing the charges."

I still can't figure out what was going on with the first Malheur trial when everyone was acquitted by the jury.  The Feds couldn't seem to make their case for conspiracy and it's possible that the jury didn't think those were the right charges for the situation. In addition, there would have been a hung jury, but one juror got the juror who would have disagreed with acquittal  thrown out. 

 

[Howl]

Who knew this would still be popping up?  Trump has just pardoned the Hammonds, the father and son who own a ranch adjacent to Malheur Wildlife Refuge.  Their return to prison to serve out the rest of their federally mandated prison sentence sparked the occupation of the Malheur Wildlife Refuge. 

Trump Pardons Ranchers Whose Arson Case Sparked Refuge Occupation

The 2015 re-sentencing of Dwight Lincoln Hammond Jr. and Steven Hammond led to their supporters occupying the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in Oregon.

This is a bone thrown to those on the furthest far right extremist fringe, especially in the West and Southwest US. 

[DaisyD]

Of course he did.