Given the pending case, authorities refused to release Ammon in Oregon. “It was a very powerful thing for individuals with nothing,” he added, to “fight the federal government”.Īfter the verdict, Ammon Bundy’s lawyer, Marcus Mumford, reportedly got into a confrontation with the judge, Anna Brown, when he requested his client’s immediate release.Ī separate trial, involving Ammon, Ryan, Cliven and two other Bundy men, is planned for next year in Nevada on charges stemming from the 2014 standoff. “Their way of life is going away, and unless all of us here in the cities care about that, that’s exactly what’s going to happen,” he said outside of the courthouse. Matthew Schindler, lawyer for defendant Kenneth Medenbach, the first protester arrested in January, said the case brought attention to grievances in parts of America that are often overlooked.
#Acquittal vs not guilty free#
Now a free man, Fry said he might do some traveling, adding, “there are more federal buildings to occupy.” “They need to stay strong and not let the federal government push them around.” “They need to take a look at this and realize battles can be won,” Fry said. Late on Thursday night, David Fry, another acquitted occupier and the last holdout at the refuge, was released from jail and greeted by a crowd of supporters and a Domino’s pizza.Īsked about the Standing Rock protesters in North Dakota, he said that others should be encouraged by the court victory.
Neil Wampler, one of the acquitted defendants, appeared joyful outside of court, telling reporters: “This is a stunning victory for rural America and an extremely humiliating defeat for a corrupt and predatory agency.” Prosecutors also revealed during the court proceedings that US authorities relied on more than a dozen confidential informants during the occupation, and defendants’ lawyers have raised concerns about how the government has used that information and how those individuals shaped the actions at the refuge. This is a stunning victory for rural America Neil Wampler, acquitted defendant The court proceedings drew packed crowds of rightwing supporters, who see the Bundy family as a symbol of the American west and the fight against government overreach, as well liberal environmentalists, who have called for harsh prison sentences to send a message that the government will protect public lands and promote conservation.ĭuring the trial, federal prosecutors argued that the protesters organized a “dangerous” invasion and conspired to stop refuge workers from doing their job.Īmmon’s attorney and other defense lawyers argued that the defendants were leading a peaceful demonstration and were lawfully speaking out against federal actions and policies. The defendants were acquitted on the conspiracy and firearm charges, though the jury could not come to an agreement on a property theft offense that faces Ryan. Reaction after Bundy brothers found not guilty in Oregon militia standoff Guardian
#Acquittal vs not guilty trial#
Some of the defendants signed plea deals in hopes of getting shorter prison sentences, and a total of seven defendants have been on trial since September. Prosecutors charged the Bundy brothers and 24 other defendants with conspiracy to impede officers through use of force, intimidation or threats, and some also faced additional charges of firearm possession and theft of public property. The tense standoff dragged on for 41 days, and police eventually carried out mass arrests and killed one of the leaders, LaVoy Finicum, in a roadside confrontation.
In response to the imprisonment of two Harney County ranchers, who were prosecuted for arson, Ammon and Ryan led a group of activists in an occupation of the Malheur national wildlife refuge, an obscure sanctuary for birds.Īmmon declared that he and other protesters, some who openly carried firearms and took over government buildings and equipment, would stay until the ranchers were freed and the refuge land was given to locals to control. The dispute and lack of prosecution galvanized ultra-conservative activists and militia groups across the west, and the Bundys launched a second fight with the BLM in January 2016 – in a remote part of eastern Oregon. For decades, Cliven claimed that the US Bureau of Land Management (BLM) had no authority to restrict his use of public lands by his property. The Bundy family’s public fight with the government began in 2014 when the patriarch Cliven, now 70, led an armed standoff with hundreds of supporters against law enforcement officials at his desert ranch in Nevada, over his refusal to pay grazing taxes.
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