October 28, 2016

Oregon Occupiers Acquitted

The Bundys are vindicated, but still face trial in Nevada.

In January, we reported that a group of armed activists took over the closed and unoccupied headquarters building at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in southeast Oregon, part of an escalating conflict over land use out West. They stayed for 41 days. The only casualty was the occupiers’ spokesman, Robert LaVoy Finicum, who was killed by law enforcement in what the district attorney ruled a justified shooting. The occupiers vigorously dispute that characterization. Rancher Ammon Bundy led the group, and if his name sounds familiar it’s because he’s the son of Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy, who had a similar standoff with the feds in 2014. Essentially, this Oregon dispute arose from two things: First, the truly unjust treatment and sentencing of Dwight Hammond and his son Steven, ranchers punished for arson after they managed controlled burns on their property a decade ago; second, the use of the federal land at the wildlife refuge — Bundy and the other ranchers claim the feds have unlawfully taken it, and the ranchers should be able to continue using it. There’s no question the federal government possesses far too much land in the West, and undue restrictions are abundant.

On Thursday, a federal jury in Portland, Oregon, acquitted all seven defendants of conspiracy to impede federal officers through intimidation, threats or force. Four of the men were also found not guilty of firearms charges. Ammon and Ryan Bundy remain in custody, however, to face trial in Nevada next year along with their father. The Wall Street Journal reports, “Eleven other defendants in the case have pleaded guilty, while seven are set to stand trial in February.”

The trial didn’t proceed or end without incident, either. One juror was dismissed after another juror wrote to the judge asking, “Can a juror, a former employee of the Bureau of Land Management, who opens their remarks in deliberations by stating ‘I am very biased’ be considered an impartial judge in this case?” And Ammon Bundy’s attorney, Marcus Mumford, was tackled, tased and taken into custody by U.S. marshals after he began shouting that his client go free despite his impending Nevada trial. We’ll say one thing for the Bundys and Co.: They don’t go down without a fight.

Who We Are

The Patriot Post is a highly acclaimed weekday digest of news analysis, policy and opinion written from the heartland — as opposed to the MSM’s ubiquitous Beltway echo chambers — for grassroots leaders nationwide. More

What We Offer

On the Web

We provide solid conservative perspective on the most important issues, including analysis, opinion columns, headline summaries, memes, cartoons and much more.

Via Email

Choose our full-length Digest or our quick-reading Snapshot for a summary of important news. We also offer Cartoons & Memes on Monday and Alexander’s column on Wednesday.

Our Mission

The Patriot Post is steadfast in our mission to extend the endowment of Liberty to the next generation by advocating for individual rights and responsibilities, supporting the restoration of constitutional limits on government and the judiciary, and promoting free enterprise, national defense and traditional American values. We are a rock-solid conservative touchstone for the expanding ranks of grassroots Americans Patriots from all walks of life. Our mission and operation budgets are not financed by any political or special interest groups, and to protect our editorial integrity, we accept no advertising. We are sustained solely by you. Please support The Patriot Fund today!


The Patriot Post and Patriot Foundation Trust, in keeping with our Military Mission of Service to our uniformed service members and veterans, are proud to support and promote the National Medal of Honor Heritage Center, the Congressional Medal of Honor Society, both the Honoring the Sacrifice and Warrior Freedom Service Dogs aiding wounded veterans, the National Veterans Entrepreneurship Program, the Folds of Honor outreach, and Officer Christian Fellowship, the Air University Foundation, and Naval War College Foundation, and the Naval Aviation Museum Foundation. "Greater love has no one than this, to lay down one's life for his friends." (John 15:13)

★ PUBLIUS ★

“Our cause is noble; it is the cause of mankind!” —George Washington

Please join us in prayer for our nation — that righteous leaders would rise and prevail and we would be united as Americans. Pray also for the protection of our Military Patriots, Veterans, First Responders, and their families. Please lift up your Patriot team and our mission to support and defend our Republic's Founding Principle of Liberty, that the fires of freedom would be ignited in the hearts and minds of our countrymen.

The Patriot Post is protected speech, as enumerated in the First Amendment and enforced by the Second Amendment of the Constitution of the United States of America, in accordance with the endowed and unalienable Rights of All Mankind.

Copyright © 2024 The Patriot Post. All Rights Reserved.

The Patriot Post does not support Internet Explorer. We recommend installing the latest version of Microsoft Edge, Mozilla Firefox, or Google Chrome.