A Nevada jury just deadlocked on all counts for six Bundy defendants brought in the wake of the Bunkerville standoff in 2014.
The sniper pictured above, Eric Parker, was one of the defendants jurors deadlocked on. Apparently a photo of him aiming a rifle from a sniper position was not enough evidence to convict him on any charges. That, to me, is infuriating and can only be viewed as jury nullification.
They did reach a verdict on two defendants, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reports:
Gregory Burleson, an active member of Arizona militia groups who used to be a paid FBI informant, and Todd Engel, an Idaho resident, both were convicted of obstruction of justice and interstate travel in aid of extortion. Burleson also was found guilty of assault on a federal officer, threatening a federal law enforcement officer, interference with interstate commerce by extortion, and multiple firearms charges.
Somehow they couldn't manage to agree on conspiracy charges for those two, or the other four defendants, however.
The first six men on trial faced charges of conspiracy, threats, extortion and related counts. Prosecutors say they used force to bully federal agents into abandoning roughly 400 cows that were in the lawful possession of the U.S. government.
Defense attorneys argued that their clients were peaceful protesters exercising their First and Second Amendment rights against a militant law enforcement presence.
"Peaceful protesters" don't aim rifles at federal law enforcement agents. And yes, it was a damned conspiracy. You bet it was. Just go back and look at the reports we had in the early hours of their "protest," where they were mobilizing their boys to come up and take back the land...with their guns.
I guarantee you if those Bundy Gang boys had been people of color, the jury would have wrapped up their deliberations in an hour. Instead, they get a new trial, and the actual Bundys get a little bit of a postponement until it's done. Their trial was set to start on June 26th, but will now be postponed.
Good times in Bunkerville.
