Mistrial bolsters Bundy’s claim of federal persecution, gives prosecutors black eye

washingtontimes.com

Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy has long maintained that the federal government is persecuting him, and Wednesday’s mistrial over prosecutorial misconduct did nothing to dispel that notion.

Chief U.S. District Court Judge Gloria Navarro declared a mistrial and dismissed the jury after admonishing federal prosecutors for willfully withholding “potentially exculpatory” evidence from the defense related to the 2014 armed standoff with the Bureau of Land Management.

The Justice Department released a statement late Wednesday saying that the attorney general “takes this issue very seriously and has personally directed that an expert in the Department’s discovery be deployed to examine the case and advise as to next steps.” 

Judge Navarro tentatively set a new trial date for Feb. 26 but also scheduled a hearing for Jan. 8, which is expected to feature defense arguments to dismiss the charges against co-defendants Cliven Bundy, his sons Ammon and Ryan Bundy, and Ryan Payne for leading the armed standoff.

“It’s a step in the right direction,” Ryan Bundy told reporters outside the Las Vegas courthouse. “So now we’ve got to go through a few more steps and get this properly dismissed. There’s a lot more to do, but we’re glad to have this step done.”