PA Bill Number: HR541
Title: Recognizing the month of October 2024 as "Domestic Violence Awareness Month" in Pennsylvania.
Description: A Resolution recognizing the month of October 2024 as "Domestic Violence Awareness Month" in Pennsylvania.
Last Action: Reported as committed
Last Action Date: Oct 1, 2024
Federal Whistleblower Drops The Hammer On Bundy Ranch Investigation :: 12/19/2017
A Bureau of Land Management agent is alleging the agency’s handling of the 2014 Bundy Ranch standoff and subsequent investigation was rife with misconduct, which some are arguing should lead to the dismissal of the case against Cliven Bundy.
Special agent Larry Wooten, who worked on the investigation (until being removed in February), wrote in a lengthy memo to the Attorney General’s office in November, “I routinely observed, and the investigation revealed a widespread pattern of bad judgment, lack of discipline, incredible bias, unprofessionalism and misconduct, as well as likely policy, ethical, and legal violations among senior and supervisory staff.”
He added their actions, “adversely affected our agency’s mission and likely the trial regarding Cliven Bundy and his alleged co-conspirators and ignored the letter and the intent of the law.”
The Associated Press reported, “Bundy and sons Ammon and Ryan Bundy and Ryan Payne are accused of conspiring to block federal agents from enforcing court orders to confiscate family cattle on public land.”
“Cliven Bundy had failed to pay grazing fees and fines for years. The men are also charged with firearms crimes, threatening a federal law enforcement officer, obstruction of justice and extortion in a trial that began (on Nov. 14) in U.S. District Court in Las Vegas,” according to the AP.
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Bundy contended the federal government lacks the constitutional authority to own vast tracks of western lands, stating it instead belongs to the states and the people.
Wooten chronicled in his memo that those overseeing the investigation showed clear prejudice against the Bundys, their supporters and the Mormon faith, which the ranchers profess.
BLM agents prominently displayed booking photos with “X’s” drawn over the faces of the Bundys, according to Wooten.
The agent recounted that when he reported what he was seeing to the agent-in-charge of the investigation, Dan Love, he came to realize the supervisor was “aware of the issues, participated in, or instigated the misconduct himself.”
Wooten accused Love, who was in charge of the cattle roundup at the Bundy ranch in April 2014, of intentionally ignoring direction from the U.S. Attorney’s Office and his superiors “in order to command the most intrusive, oppressive, large scale and militaristic trespass cattle impound possible.”
According to Wooten, Love’s instructions to his agents were to, “Go out there and kick Cliven Bundy in the mouth (or teeth) and take his cattle,” and “I need you to get the troops fired up to go get those cows and not take any crap from anyone.”
He added agents bragged about roughing up Cliven Bundy’s son, Dave Bundy, “grinding his face into the ground … having little bits of gravel stuck in his face.”
Wooten also wrote, contrary to what was represented at Bundy’s trial, the BLM did have snipers on site targeting the ranchers.
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Washington state Rep. Matt Shea, spoke out forcefully to the media last week after seeing Wooten’s memo, stating in an interview with Redoubt News, “a sniper rifle is not due process.”
“The government in the trial was saying, or at least implying that there were no snipers on site, and then this document details that there were in fact snipers on site,” Shea told The Western Journal. “These were being pointed at Americans who were protesting lawfully.”
The representative has been a longtime advocate for significant portions of federal lands held in the west being turned over to the states.
Shea said the clear bias shown by the investigators is exculpatory and can be used to impeach the government witnesses at the Bundy trial.
“If the defense hasn’t filed this memo with the court, I suspect that it will soon,” he said.
The representative stated, based on the allegations in the memo, a congressional investigation is warranted.
He also plans to submit a letter to Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke, who ultimately oversees the BLM.
According to The Oregonian, U.S. District Judge Gloria M. Navarro has dismissed the jury until Wednesday, citing “at least seven to eight concerns about evidence or material that the government didn’t share with defense lawyers in a timely manner.”
Reuters reported that Navarro “read a lengthy list of documents previously undisclosed by prosecutors that could be used to impeach government witnesses or otherwise bolster defense attorneys’ arguments that their clients felt surrounded by government snipers prior to the standoff.”
The judge said she will be considering remedies ranging from striking testimony, delaying the trial or declaring a mistrial.
Cliven Bundy’s lawyer, Bret O. Whipple, declined to comment on the memo to the Oregonian, but described the new information received as “quite a development,” and one he hadn’t seen in his 20-plus years of legal work.
“In my mind, I think the case should be dismissed by next Tuesday,” Whipple said. “I think I can get my client home for Christmas.”
Based on what he has seen, Shea does not believe even a mistrial is an adequate remedy.
He said, “This looks like enough for this case to be dismissed, not a mistrial, but dismissed.”
