Cliven Bundy to Walk Free as Federal Judge Dismisses Bundy Ranch Standoff Case

By Robert Anglen, The Arizona Republic

09 January 18

evada rancher Cliven Bundy, his two sons and a militia member will not face a retrial on charges that they led an armed rebellion against federal agents in 2014. 

A federal judge Monday said the federal prosecutors' conduct was "outrageous" and "violated due process rights" of the defendants.  

U.S. District Judge Gloria Navarro said a new trial would not be sufficient to address the problems in the case and would provide the prosecution with an unfair advantage going forward. She dismissed the charges against the four men "with prejudice," meaning they cannot face trial again.  

As the courtroom doors opened after Navarro's ruling, a huge cheer went up from the crowd of spectators gathered outside. 

Navarro's decision comes less than a month after she declared a mistrial in case and found that federal prosecutors willfully withheld critical and "potentially exculpatory" evidence from the defense.

Cliven Bundy, his sons Ammon and Ryan Bundy, and militia member Ryan Payne were all in court. Cliven Bundy had remained in jail until the hearing. The judge ordered his immediate release.

On Dec. 20, Navarro cited six pieces of evidence the Nevada U.S. Attorney's Office failed to disclose that were favorable to the defense and could have changed the outcome of the trial.

The evidence she cited:

• Records about surveillance at the Bundy ranch
• Maps about government surveillance
• Records about the presence of government snipers
• FBI logs about activity at the ranch in the days leading up to standoff
• Law-enforcement assessments dating to 2012 that found the Bundys posed no threat
• Internal affairs reports about misconduct by Bureau of Land Management agents

"Failure to turn over such evidence violates due process," Navarro said last month. "A fair trial at this point is impossible."