150 Militia Take Over Makhuer National Wildlife Preserve Headquarters

My guess as to why the Mormon church doesn't get involved with the Bundys fight is because the church is involved in a big way with land ownership and ranching all over the country. I'm thinking they don't want to piss the BLM off because a lot of money is at stake.

John Lamb with the morning updade on Malhuer Protest trial #2

http://youtu.be/AYjJ_mAtL_g

https://youtu.be/AYjJ_mAtL_g

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Originally Posted by Tumbleweed

My guess as to why the Mormon church doesn't get involved with the Bundys fight is because the church is involved in a big way with land ownership and ranching all over the country. I'm thinking they don't want to piss the BLM off because a lot of money is at stake.

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Indeed, the Moron church is all about money. A collection of massive corporations. Hence, they avoid confrontation with the US government and have done so for over a century. Including abandoning the supposedly sacred teachings of Joseph Smith and Brigham Young on polygamy and Niggers.

FBI authorized informants to commit crimes

https://www.itmattershowyoustand.com...ndoff-verdict/


Feds authorized some FBI informants to engage in unlawful activity at refuge

Posted on February 22, 2017 by Doug Knowles

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FBI Special Agent in Charge Greg Bretzing speaks at a Jan. 27, 2016 press conference at the Harney County Community Center in Burns, after the arrests of Ammon Bundy and other leaders of the occupation of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge. ( Thomas Boyd/Oregonian)

Defense asks retired FBI agent his reaction to first Oregon standoff verdict

By Maxine Bernstein | The Oregonian/OregonLive on February 22, 2017 at 1:00 PM

updated

Over the objection of a prosecutor, a defense lawyer Wednesday asked Oregon’s recently retired top FBI agent about his reaction to the jury verdict from the first trial in the occupation of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge.
“You do not believe the participants that went to trial in the fall of 2016 were held accountable, that’s correct?” asked Michele Kohler, representing defendant Duane Ehmer.

After some hesitation and direction from the judge to answer the question, retired FBI Special Agent in Charge Greg Bretzing replied, “That’s correct.”

Kohler pointed out that Bretzing didn’t testify during last year’s trial of the occupation leaders but is a government witness for this second Oregon standoff trial.

And she noted that the verdict last fall likely didn’t correspond to the last of three goals that shaped Bretzing’s response to the 41-day occupation: to hold those involved accountable.

“So that verdict thwarted the third purpose of your federal response?” Kohler continued.
“No,” Bretzing replied.

“Sir, it’s your desire to hold someone accountable for what happened in 2016?” Kohler asked.
“I can’t answer that yes or no,” Bretzing said.

As Kohler asked her question about the earlier verdict, U.S. Attorney Ethan Knight stood to object. “The court has ruled on it,” Knight told U.S. District Judge Anna J. Brown.

Kohler countered that she asked her question to discern potential bias.

The judge overruled the objection and allowed the question.

But moments later, when the jury was permitted to take a brief break, Knight told the judge that he was concerned the defense had violated an agreement not to ask Bretzing about his reaction to the verdict.
There was no mention of what the verdict was, but jurors could easily figure it out from the line of questioning. Occupation leader Ammon Bundy and six co-defendants were acquitted in October of conspiracy and weapons charges after a five-week trial.

“We bring that to the court’s attention,” Knight said. “This is something the government is very concerned about in front of this jury in this trial.”

Brown said she was unaware of any agreement reached between lawyers involved in the case but told them: “We need to be able to count on each others’ representations.”

After court, Andrew Kohlmetz, standby attorney for defendant Jason Patrick, said he had told Knight ahead of time that he wouldn’t cross-examine Bretzing about the first trial’s verdict. Kohler said she was unaware of any agreement made.

Other testimony Wednesday:

— Refuge neighbor and longtime rancher Andy Dunbar testified that he saw a caravan of cars headed to the refuge as he and his wife ate lunch at The Narrows RV park on Jan. 2, 2016. Days later, while feeding his cows, he said he spotted men in the refuge watchtower, one pointing a rifle at him. Another time, he saw a man looking through a rifle scope at him. He said armed men worked eight-hour shifts in the watchtower and swapped out “like clockwork.”

Dunbar acknowledged the FBI paid $2,000 each to him and his son after they let agents use their property on Jan. 29 and Jan. 30, 2016, as agents tried to persuade people remaining at the refuge to leave after the Jan. 26 arrests of the occupation leaders.

Dunbar said he gave defendant Jason Patrick a ride out of the refuge to an FBI checkpoint on Jan. 27, 2016.
In mid-January, Dunbar testified that he heard “hundreds and hundreds of shots” coming from the boat launch during the refuge occupation, estimating it occurred over six days.

— Refuge manager Chad Karges said he told the 16 employees not to return to work on Jan. 2, 2016, after hearing armed men had taken over the wildlife sanctuary.

“I told them not to report to work until they heard back from me,” Karges said.

Asked if anyone ever reached out to him or invited his staff back to the refuge during the occupation, Karges said no.

The matter arose during Bretzing’s second day on the witness stand. Four remaining defendants are charged with conspiring to impede federal employees from carrying out their work at the federal wildlife refuge through intimidation, threats or fear.

Defense lawyers, during cross-examination, elicited testimony from Bretzing that there were “maybe a couple of hundred” FBI agents in Harney County during the course of the refuge takeover, plus dozens of state and local law enforcement officers.

While Bretzing was questioned further about the FBI’s use of informants or if he gave any approval for them to engage in unlawful activity while at the refuge, he said he didn’t have direct knowledge.

Bretzing said he would have been “briefed on the activities of informants,” but wasn’t familiar with them by name, other than that of informant Mark McConnell. He said he couldn’t say whether or not an FBI informant had participated in guard duty or fortifying the refuge.

“I’m not familiar with each place the confidential human source may have been at,” Bretzing said.
In contrast, FBI Special Agent Ronnie Walker, who was called by the government as a witness later in the day, was very clear. He testified that some informants were authorized to engage in “otherwise unlawful activity” during the occupation.

Prosecutors have said there were nine informants sent into the refuge during the occupation.
Walker said the range of stays at the refuge ran from two hours to 23 days.

Informant Fabio Minoggio, who was outed by the defense in the first Oregon standoff trial, was the last informant to leave the refuge on the night of Jan. 26, 2016, after the fatal police shooting of occupation spokesman Robert “LaVoy” Finicum on U.S. 395 between Burns and John Day.

Some informants, including Minoggio, were allowed to carry guns when they went to the refuge, Walker testified.
If one was asked by occupier Ryan Payne to do guard duty at the refuge, “I would encourage the informant to do so, simply to maintain credibility,” Walker told jurors.

Under cross-examination by defense lawyer Jesse Merrithew, Walker confirmed that Payne asked an informant to lead one of the security teams of occupiers.

Walker said he didn’t know if the informant directed others to do guard duty or take other security measures, but said it would be “fair to infer” that the informant would delegate responsibilities to others.

Asked if he knew Minoggio was training those protesting at the refuge in hand-to-hand combat, Walker responded, “Oh yes, of course.”

Merrithew continued, asking Walker if he knew Minoggio trained people at the refuge in the use of weapons. “That’s one way of putting it,” Walker said.

During redirect, Assistant U.S. Attorney Geoffrey Barrow asked the FBI agent if any informant participated in the initial occupation of the federal refuge. Walker said no.

“Did any informant initiate the idea of security teams” at the refuge, Barrow asked.

“No,” Walker answered.

Why was informant Minoggio allowed to train people, Barrow asked.

Walker said it was done “to make the place safer.”

Minoggio heard shooting by the boat launch and went to check it out, Walker said.

“He saw firearms behavior that was unsafe,” Walker said, so Minoggio “interjected himself and asked them to stop.”

Walker said none of the informants left their firearms behind at the refuge when they left.

— Maxine Bernstein
mbernstein@oregonian.com
503-221-8212
@maxoregonian

source

Darryl Thorn planned on sneaking back into the refuge

https://www.itmattershowyoustand.com...ge-agent-says/

Oregon standoff defendant Darryl Thorn planned to sneak back onto refuge, agent says

Posted on February 23, 2017 by Doug Knowles

By Maxine Bernstein | The Oregonian/OregonLive on

An FBI agent on Thursday showed jurors a slew of photos and messages that he found on defendant Darryl Thorn’s Facebook page, including Thorn’s stated plan of “sneaking back ” onto the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge a year ago.

Thorn, a member of Washington’s 3 percent militia, proclaimed in a Feb. 4, 2016, private Facebook message: “I won’t let my brothers and sisters die by themselves.”

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He talked of his plan to go back to the refuge, saying, “I have a good lay out of the land.”

He said he’d been leading a “handful of boots” and referred to rallying points, including the Super 8 Motel in Redmond as a place to gather. It was at the hotel that FBI agents arrested Thorn in the continental breakfast bar on Feb. 11, 2016 — the same day the last four holdouts at the occupied refuge surrendered to the FBI.

“I’m not afraid of death – liberty and freedom replaces fear,” Thorn wrote in another message that day.

Thorn’s Facebook posts between Jan. 3, 2016, and mid-February last year included one of him posing with co-defendant Eric Lee Flores in the refuge watchtower, each holding assault rifles and Thorn flashing a three-finger symbol of his militia membership, FBI Agent Matthew Yeager testified. Flores has pleaded guilty to a conspiracy charge in the case.

Thorn’s Facebook posts were among the evidence shown to jurors during the third day of the trial against Thorn and three co-defendants, Jason Patrick, Duane Ehmer and Jake Ryan. All are accused of conspiring to impede federal employees from carrying out their work at the federal refuge last winter.

Thorn’s defense lawyer, Marc Friedman, suggested that his 32-year-old client “perhaps wanted to play himself up as being more than he was.” He asked Yeager if he had any knowledge that Thorn physically tried to get back on the refuge, and the agent just pointed back to Thorn’s social media posts.

In one photo, Thorn smirked, balancing a cigarette in his mouth, as he stood dressed in black, armed with a handgun in the watchtower, a walkie talkie balanced on his chest and the 3 percent insignia on a jacket sleeve.
“I love this picture of me and my girl on watch,” Thorn wrote in another Facebook message posted on Jan. 19, 2016, with a photo of him kissing his girlfriend beside a scope set up in the watchtower.

In a private message sent to co-defendant Jason Blomgren, Thorn posed with a Guy Fawkes mask concealing his face, a cowboy hat on his head with a gun pointed at the camera. Blomgren sent Thorn a photo back, holding a pistol to his own head.

“The Lord has a plan for me, but I’m not sure about you,” Thorn responded to Blomgren’s photo. Blomgren has pleaded guilty to conspiracy in the case.

Prosecutors also showed jurors Facebook posts from occupation leader Ammon Bundy, including one in which he wrote that the Jan. 2 rally in Burns to support two Harney County ranchers was “much more than a protest.”
On Jan. 3, 2016, defendant Jason Patrick posted, “Malheur Refuge headquarters liberated for and by the people.”

A U.S. Bureau of Land Management special agent and several refuge employees testified earlier in the day about how the occupation hindered their work.

In an obvious effort to leave little open to interpretation, prosecutors pointedly asked several refuge employees if the armed occupation “impeded” their jobs – whether it was refuge biologist Linda Beck’s efforts to control carp on the wildlife sanctuary, habitat ecologist Jess Wenich’s plan to conduct bird surveys or refuge fire management officer Shane Theall’s prep for a prescribed burn in nearby Diamond.

“I wasn’t able to perform my duties because I didn’t have access,” Beck testified. “There were people occupying the refuge with guns, and I couldn’t go to work.”

Defense lawyers countered by questioning each U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service employee about whether any of the four defendants on trial ever objected to their work or duties or sent them threatening emails. The employees said they didn’t know, but never received any correspondence from the defendants.

Beck, who said she’s proud of her “Carp Lady” nickname, identified photos taken during the occupation that showed Ammon Bundy sitting at her desk, his brother Ryan Bundy leaning on her desk and guns in her office.
“The Patriot Bible is not mine,” she said, pointing to a book among the debris found in her office by FBI evidence teams.

Beck no longer works at the refuge, but is an aquatic and invasive species officer in a U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service field office, she said.

As prosecutors showed jurors photos of Patrick cutting a barbed-wire fence on the perimeter of the refuge, habitat ecologist Jess Wenick told jurors that the fence was important to keep cattle off the property to protect exposed burial sites belonging to the Burns Paiute Tribe and nesting marsh birds.

Defense lawyers tried to point out that it was the refuge manager Chad Karges who ordered his refuge staff not to come back to work during the occupation.

But Assistant U.S. Attorney Geoffrey Barrow asked Wenick, for example, if he would have come back to work had his boss not ordered him to stay away.

“I would not have, no,” Wenick testified. “Seeing automatic rifles in our watchtower and our gates … it certainly was not an inviting atmosphere to go to work at.”

He said he was also influenced by statements occupiers made to the media that they weren’t going to allow federal ownership of the refuge.

Wenick, as he did in the first Oregon standoff trial, said the office of co-worker and wildlife biologist Faith Healy looked like a “technological sweatshop” after the occupation.

He said it had “an incredible stench that didn’t go away until new carpet and paint” were added. He testified that it appeared as if historical government documents were being scanned in Healy’s office during the occupation.
“I spent all summer trying to get my file system in order — it was total chaos,” Wenick said.

Government witness Marilyn Miller, an avid birder who has her own forestry and wildlife consulting business, testified that she encountered Ryan Payne and four other men at the Malheur Field Station on Jan. 24, 2016. Payne told her they thought it was a “safe place” for target shooting, and she told them to leave, she said.

As she drove up to the station and to check on the manager’s personal residence, she said she and her husband heard gunfire and then five armed men blocking their path.

She said the field station is part of the refuge, but the facilities on it are privately owned, about four miles west of the refuge headquarters.

“To be surrounded by men who were armed was very intimidating,” she said.

— Maxine Bernstein
mbernstein@oregonian.com
503-221-8212
@maxoregonian

source

John Lamb and Kelli Stewart Malheur Protest trial #2 Friaday Feb 24

http://youtu.be/jlYFDN_KhIQ

https://youtu.be/jlYFDN_KhIQ

More Kelli Stewart Feb. 24 Malhuer Protest trial # 2

http://youtu.be/ysY_W76gjOs

https://youtu.be/ysY_W76gjOs

Court observer Becky Wald's notes Feb. 24 Malheur Protest trial

http://youtu.be/L0f2dkRFRBA

https://youtu.be/L0f2dkRFRBA

Second Week Of Malheur Protest II Trial Wrap-Up



Malheur II – Wrapping up the Week


DON'T FORGET THE BENCH TRIAL COMING UP...

February 25, 2017 Constitution, FBI, Featured, News, Oregon

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Example of a 'Meme' found on Facebook

Malheur II – Wrapping up the Week

by Shari Dovale

The prosecution has presented the majority of their case in the second Malheur Protest Trial. This case is considerably shorter than the previous trial.

Witnesses included refuge manager Chad Karges, who testified that he was the one that directed the employees not to go to work. He made this decision a full two days before the rally that began the protest.

It was made clear that none of the protesters, or current defendants, had any contact with the employees of the refuge, therefore, there was no chance of threatening them. However, the prosecution is basing their case on implied and circumstantial evidence. Linda Beck indicated that she was willing to go to the refuge to retrieve a laptop computer but was ordered not to do so by Chad Karges.

The prosecution did their ‘Really Big Gun Show” again. Letting the jury see all of these scary weapons, and ammo to go with it, is very important to the prosecution’s case. If they cannot win on the facts, maybe they can win on emotion and scare tactics?

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Judge Anna Brown
The big story of the week is the subpoena of John Sepulvado. The prosecution wanted to place into evidence a recorded interview that the former OPB reporter made with Ryan Bundy. Judge Anna Brown, in an unusual move, cited the First Amendment and quashed the subpoena

It does not make sense that she would support the US Constitution in this case, when she has already fought against it in the Gary Hunt case. She has ordered Hunt to appear in her court and shows every indication of trampling on the first amendment. You can read about that case here.

Judge Brown has repeatedly had issues with the US Constitution. Making multiple, and forceful, comments that the law in her courtroom is only as she dictates it to be and not the Constitution. She made an exception in this case, so she is picking winners and losers. I, personally, would like to see her stop cherry-picking this document and using it only if she sees an advantage.

We did have further testimony this week confirming Mark McConnell was a paid informant at the Refuge. Discussions of informants have been a big part of this trial, with the defense making the points that paid informants were possibly part of the security team. If that is true, this would indicate that the FBI set up the defendants to break the law.

It has already been established that Fabio Minoggio, also known as John Killman, was in charge of weapons training at the Refuge, yet the defendants are having to defend themselves against these gun charges, seemingly initiated by this Confidential Human Source (CHS) or paid informant.

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Duane Ehmer
Facebook posts and Memes are another part of the prosecutions case. The government went all out to cherry-pick select posts, yet are fighting having any other posts admitted into evidence. A classic example is Duane Ehmer, who has been described as a fierce Facebook-er. Duane has been known to post, share, and comment on hundreds of Facebook posts each day. Memes are a favorite, as well as comments that agree and disagree with other posters. Ehmer has never been afraid to share his thoughts. So, out of the hundreds of postings, the government decided on five posts/memes to represent Ehmer. His attorney, Michelle Kohler, rightfully argued to have the postings just before and just after included in the record, to put them into context.

The FBI witnesses, beginning with former Special Agent in Charge Greg Bretzing, all had the same theme. ~If the defense asks any questions, we do not remember.~ For a man that was in charge of the entire state of Oregon, and the complete operation of the Malheur Refuge, one would think he was more intelligent than that. He spent nearly the entire month at the refuge, but remembers very little about it.

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Example of a ‘Meme’ found on Facebook

Other agents commented the same way. They said they needed to refer to their reports, but the reports were not there. Really? I have seen subpoenas that included bringing documents and supporting information with them. I guess the prosecution forgot that part when they issued them to the FBI?

Again, the prosecution is not putting on their best case. The defense is easily combating the evidence. One wonders why the government does not seem to be worried about this case.

…Don’t forget the Bench Trial coming up…

Monday is expected to be the final day of the prosecution case. Blaine Cooper is expected to testify against the defendants, as well as a few more government witnesses before the prosecution rests.

The defense is expected to begin on Tuesday, February 28^th, with Ammon Bundy testifying first. Ryan Payne is expected to testify right behind Ammon. The defense does not expect their case to go longer than a week.

This case could be wrapped up much earlier than first anticipated.

Judge Anna J. Brown defends OPB reporter's First Amendment right


Malheur II – Judge Stops Reporter From Testifying


JUDGE ANNA BROWN GRANTED THE MOTION TO QUASH THE SUBPOENA.

February 25, 2017 BLM, Constitution, Featured, Freedom of the Press, Oregon

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Ryan Bundy sharing the US Constitution. (photo: you tube)

Malheur II – Judge Stops Reporter From Testifying

by Shari Dovale

In January 2016, former OPB reporter John Sepulvado, now with KQED in California, interviewed protest leader Ryan Bundy about the “hard stand” taken at the Malheur Wildlife Refuge.

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Prosecutors wanted to call Sepulvado to the stand to authenticate the interview and have it admitted into evidence. Attorney Duane A. Bosworth, representing Oregon Public Broadcasting and Sepulvado, argued against the subpoena citing First Amendment protections, saying that forced testimony would “chill future sources, even nonconfidential ones”.

Judge Anna Brown was surprised at the government’s stance that no journalistic privilege exists to protect a reporter from having to testify in a federal criminal case. “I’m starting with the premise that there is a journalist’s privilege under federal law,” Judge Brown said.

But she has not taken that same stance in regard to journalist Gary Hunt. She has ordered Hunt to appear in her court as she intends to dictate what he is allowed to publish, and what he is not allowed to publish. It is also unclear as to whether she will attempt to force him to reveal his sources.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Geoffrey Barrow argued that the government wasn’t asking Sepulvado to disclose a confidential source.

Defense lawyer Jesse Merrithew, representing Jake Ryan, argued that “This is not an interview. This is a story that was editorialized by OPB to tell the news from their perspective.”

Judge Brown seems to want to force the defense to call Ryan Bundy to discuss the interview. However, this would violate his rights, as he is still under indictment in the Nevada Bunkerville trial. Additionally, the charge of theft of FBI surveillance cameras against Mr. Bundy resulted in a hung jury, which has yet to be dealt with.
Judge Anna Brown granted Bosworth’s motion to quash the subpoena.

I am a strong supporter of the first amendment. I believe in Freedom of the Press, and do not want my rights as a journalist to be thrown aside by any court.

In that respect, I agree with Judge Anna Brown.

My problem with the case is that Judge Brown is picking winners and losers. She has trampled on the US Constitution more times than any other judge that I have seen. She has denied Constitutional rights to the defendants, including, but not limited to, the right of bail.

The government has also claimed that a ‘redress of grievance’ is not a legal document, which Judge Brown upheld. However, it is clearly laid out in this same First Amendment.

Judge Brown has repeatedly denied defendants the chance to quote from the Constitution, stating that the law will be applied as she interprets it only. The Constitution is not allowed in her courtroom. So, why now?

The interview is very biased. Sepulvado has repeatedly called the defendants names, such as ‘thugs’ and ‘dipsh*t’, and admits to doing so. He was upset at the verdict of ‘Not Guilty’ and did not hide that. There can be no doubt that the final edited version of his interview was very biased.

The questions of how much was cut from the interview and thrown on the editors floor cannot be answered. It is obvious that the intent of the journalist was to develop a biased piece strictly for the purposes of propaganda. It would be a travesty for this to be admitted as ‘evidence’ against these defendants.

US Constitution

Amendment I

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.

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The person in this video is Melvin Lee, a friend of Mark McConnel. He posted this video in facebook on Feb. 8

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https://youtu.be/O6YoGV7qQCI

Burns Confidential - Feb 8 - MNWR - MLee - Patriotic WarriorsValley Forge Network 31 views

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SUBSCRIBE1,58924Published on Feb 26, 2017Repost from Facebook for Posterity, + Research Purposes - Patriotic Warriors Melvin Lee, published on February 8th. I am reposting so others can see what was being said at the time. I hope it helps in your research.

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Fence WalkerYou are full of shit Mister.....any one that had anything to do Lavoys death is not an American. 36 minutes ago (edited)•1https://yt3.ggpht.com/-lo1d6vjbM_Q/A...ffff/photo.jpg

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MoeWOOOOW 51 minutes ago•1

Valley Forge Network ~ Trial of remaining Malheur defendants

http://youtu.be/cebGuWMl9DQ

https://youtu.be/cebGuWMl9DQ

VFN Trial Update for Oregon - For Defense of Final Four


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Published on Feb 26, 2017Video short for Oregon Trial. I have had to wait until now to offer some of my research up. The prosecution has switched their tactics to adjust to the First Oregon Trial and I couldn't risk this getting out before the prosecution showed their hand. People are being threatened by the Prosecution, this stuff is real people. This isn't fun, and is not something I signed up for (I really just wanted to make some videos to support them and its turned into this, thank you for all your support and views it has meant the world to me to keep doing this) I will go into more as the trial goes on , but I want to let things run their course. I will publish all info to counter the prosecutions lies, as they come out in court. The information which came out Thursday and Friday allowed me to make this video rather confidently, all people need to do is speak up and tell the truth, its not my fault all of this info is available to the public. I post this cause I feel it is the right thing to do. "Sunlight is the best disinfectant' This is the microwaveable version, since time is short. Check out the 'Burns Confidential' Series for an extended look at Burns , Oregon from another persepctive than what I initially believed.

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Kelli Stewart *URGENT Oregon Trial #2 Blaine Cooper Testimony Update by Kelli (Not Good)

http://youtu.be/DTXhOfbvwzQ

https://youtu.be/DTXhOfbvwzQ

Monrty

Always fight the good fight !


But also know the difference !

Peace..

Call me someday.

Lazaro Ecenarro ~ A Very Important Message from Oregon trial

http://youtu.be/Z1KAKVBrgfg

https://youtu.be/Z1KAKVBrgfg

Felon Blaine Cooper testifies for prosecution Malheur trial #2. Reading this report which sounds like much of what he says is not true it shouldn't be difficult to for the defense to impeach him as a witness. The jury surely can see through the lies.



Felon Blaine Cooper Testifies for Govt in Malheur II


I INTEND TO DO ANYTHING I HAVE TO TO GET HOME TO MY KIDS.”

February 27, 2017 BLM, Featured, Oregon

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Convicted Felon Blaine Cooper Testifies for Government

by Shari Dovale
Shuffling through in jailhouse shackles and shoes, Blaine Cooper took the stand to testify against the final defendants on the Malheur Protest Trial in Portland.

In a deal brokered by the Federal prosecutors, he testified he has not been promised a reduction in his sentence, but he is hoping for one. He also said that he was not asked to testify today, rather that he offered to do so.

Cooper described himself as becoming a type of celebrity, with over 30,000 followers on his YouTube Channel by 2014. He seemed to thrive in believing he was a public figure. He talked about the various ‘operations’ he was a part of, from Bunkerville to Sugar Pine Mine, Oregon, and Big Sky in Montana.

His testimony included describing a meeting on December 29, 2015 in a private home in Burns, Oregon, naming several people as attendees, including BJ Soper, Joseph O’Shaughnessy, Ryan Payne, Ammon Bundy, Jon Ritzheimer, Jason Patrick and Corey Lequieu. He testified that the attendees were directed to leave the phones and computers in another room during the meeting.

This meeting, he said, was where the taking of the Refuge was first discussed. They were not expecting to meet any employees, but if they did they were to politely ask them to leave. If they refused, “we would have probably removed them, I believe,” Cooper said.

Cooper also stated that BJ Soper and Joseph O’Shaughnessy were against the plan, with Soper clearly saying he wanted nothing to do with it, though O’Shaughnessy was willing to stay in town and offer moral support.

Blaine then told of Jon Ritzheimer wondering if someone “Let the cat out of the bag” when they passed police on the way to the Malheur Refuge on January 2^nd. He also told of Brand Thornton playing his Shofar as they arrived at the Refuge. Cooper described the sound of the Shofar as ready for “Battle, and God is with us.”

“The idea was to stay there as long as it took” to redistribute the land to the people of Harney County.

On cross examination, Andrew Kohlmets, Jason Patrick’s standby attorney, questioned the government’s witness extensively. Kohlmets pointed out several discrepancies in Cooper’s direct testimony, including the statement that he never carries a firearm due to his felony convictions.

When Cooper was arrested February 11, 2016, he admitted to an FBI agent that he had carried an AR-15 at Bunkerville in 2014. Additionally, he fired a handgun in a video made at his home, in front of his wife and daughters, while wearing a mask.

It was also pointed out that Cooper was never in the military, though he liked to wear military gear. He explained that he wears “militia” clothes and gear at these events.

Kohlmets also played a 4 and a half minute clip of a video where Cooper desecrated a Quran by tearing out pages, wrapping them in bacon and throwing them on a fire. He then shoots arrows into the remainder of the book before adding it to the fire, as well.

Kohlmets continued to point out inconsistencies, including statements made on several jail-recorded phone calls that Cooper made. During one phone call with a friend, when asked who’s idea it was to go to the refuge, he responds that he didn’t know. He didn’t think it was any one person's idea.

In another call to his wife, Blaine tells her that he did not know they were going in [to the Refuge]. In describing some of the statements in the phone calls, he tried to say that “disinformation” was not really a lie.

Caught in several contradictory statements, it was made clear in front of the jury that Cooper would do anything to reduce his time in jail. In a letter to Ammon Bundy, he wrote, that God sent him two crappy attorneys that manipulated him. “I intend to do anything I have to to get home to my kids.”

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Burns Chronicles – Terri Linnell aka Mama Bear Part 2February 26, 2017In "Burns Chronicles"
DeLemus and Cooper To Plead Guilty For BunkervilleAugust 22, 2016In "BLM"
Burns Chronicles – Fabio Minoggio aka John KillmanFebruary 26, 2017In "Burns Chronicles"

Teresa Brookshire's thoughts on Blaine Cooper's testimony

https://m.facebook.com/groups/175105...&__tn__=%2C%3B

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Deb Jordan tells how she knows Ammon Bundy was not in Burns on Dec. 29, 2015

https://m.facebook.com/story.php?sto...&__tn__=%2C%3B

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I have felt from early on in the Malheur Protest that Bundy's were set up by the government. This man ks posting on facebook that it is coming out in the trial they were set up. My gut feeling is Harry Reid was behind it.

https://m.facebook.com/groups/237360123055985/

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Blaine Cooper becomes first Malheur protester to testify for govt.


Blaine Cooper becomes 1st occupier to testify for government in refuge takeover trial

Posted on February 27, 2017 by Doug Knowles

By Maxine Bernstein | The Oregonian/OregonLive updated February 27, 2017 at 8:07 PM

Ammon Bundy called a clandestine meeting around the dining room of their host’s home in Burns on Dec. 29, 2015, and directed the six other men there to leave their cellphones and laptops behind in a separate room.
Bundy then discussed his idea of taking over the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge, said occupier Blaine Cooper, called as a government witness on the fifth day of the second Oregon standoff trial.

Cooper’s testimony about the dining-room sit-down marked the first time anyone in court has referenced a late December meeting between Bundy and the other men about seizing the refuge before the Jan. 2, 2016, occupation.

During his three hours and forty minutes on the stand, Cooper also became the first cooperating witness to testify against fellow refuge occupiers.

Four defendants — Jason Patrick, 43, of Bonaire, Georgia, Duane Ehmer, 46, of Irrigon, Darryl Thorn, 32, of Marysville, Washington, and Jake Ryan, 28, of Plains, Montana — are in the midst of trial, charged with conspiring to impede federal employees from carrying out their work at the federal refuge through intimidation, threat or force.

During cross-examination, defense lawyers sought to impeach Cooper’s testimony by citing contradictory statements Cooper made on jail phone calls, including one to his wife on April 5, 2016, saying “I didn’t know they were going in there” in reference to the refuge.

They also played inflammatory videos that Cooper made, including one when he tore out pages of the Koran, wrapped them in bacon, threw them into an outdoor fire pit and then shot arrows at the Koran. They pointed out that Cooper, despite being a convicted felon, was seen with an AR-15 rifle at the Bundy ranch in 2014 in Nevada. And they elicited testimony that Cooper had spent time in institutions because of behavioral and mental health problems earlier in his life.

Cooper, his hair disheveled, shuffled into the courtroom, his ankles chained together, wearing an ill-fitting dark suit, blue-striped dress shirt and tan jail slippers – a stark contrast to the confident, camouflage-clad figure he portrayed on his Third Watch Videos that he distributed on social media during the refuge occupation.

Cooper, 37, has entered guilty pleas to conspiracy to impede federal workers in the Oregon case and guilty pleas in Nevada to conspiracy to commit an offense against the United States and assault on a federal officer.

He acknowledged that he agreed to cooperate with the government in the hope of reducing a recommended six-year prison sentence. Cooper has been described by prosecutors as a recruiter, calling men to come to the Oregon refuge with guns and to Bunkerville, Nevada, in April 2014 during a standoff with federal agents outside the ranch of patriarch Cliven Bundy.

The December 2015 meeting lasted about a half-hour in the Burns home of Patty Overton with Cooper, Ammon Bundy, Ryan Payne, Jason Patrick, Joseph O’Shaughnessy, Corey Lequieu and B.J. Soper, Cooper said.

They talked of going into the Malheur refuge with guns, Cooper said, and if they encountered any refuge staff there, they’d ask them to leave politely. If not, “we’d probably remove them at that point,” Cooper said.

They spoke of having security checkpoints at the front gates, he said, and discussed logistics, such as food and power at the facility and what to do if counter-protesters came.

The refuge seizure, Cooper said, sprung from frustrations born out of having Ammon Bundy’s redress of grievance and petitions, distributed through legal avenues, ignored by local, state and federal officials. Bundy wanted the sheriff to prevent the return to prison of Harney County ranchers Dwight Hammond Jr. and son Steven Hammond, who were set to surrender on Jan. 4, 2016, to serve out mandatory minimum five-year sentences for setting fire to public land.

“The idea was to stay there as long as it took” to redistrict the refuge land and give it to the people of Harney County, Cooper said.

Everybody in the group favored the takeover except O’Shaughnessy and Soper, Cooper said. O’Shaughnessy agreed to be a “buffer,” provide medical support on the outskirts.

“He thought we could go to jail,” Cooper said.

But the consensus “to me was to make sure nobody came in, whether it be the FBI, BLM.”

“And U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service?” Assistant U.S. Attorney Geoffrey Barrow asked.
“And Fish & Wildlife Service,” Cooper added.

After the Jan. 2 rally in Burns to support the Hammonds, Cooper said he returned to Overton’s house to get into “militia gear,” including body armor, camouflage clothing and boots.

He said others had assault rifles; he brought a GoPro and camera. As they drove to the refuge, he noticed some law enforcement vehicles and heard occupier Jon Ritzheimer say, “Somebody let the cat out of the bag.” But a good omen, he testified, was spotting a bald eagle on the drive to the refuge.

Cooper identified the type of guns that each of the men who arrived first at the refuge carried in sweeps of the property. At one point, he stood in the witness stand and showed how the others cleared the refuge building, stretching out his left hand in front of him while making believe he was pointing a rifle in his right hand.

He testified that Patrick had an AR-15 rifle during the initial sweep. According to Cooper, the men would say as they went building to building, “Is anybody in here? The militia is here … hello?”

Occupier Brand Thornton blew a shofar, a symbol “for battle — that God is with us,” Cooper testified.

Cooper admitted that he cut part of a barbed-wire fence on the refuge boundary during the occupation, saying that was an act of civil disobedience, a symbol that “we were taking the land back for the people.”

Cooper left the night of Jan. 26, first driving with others east out of the refuge until they encountered several law enforcement SUVs. They headed back west and then drove south to Cedar City , Utah, through Nevada, he said.
Barrow asked Cooper why he agreed to cooperate with prosecutors.

Cooper said his tearful phone calls with his daughters convinced him to make amends.

“My little girl Sissy,” Cooper said. “She cries to me a half hour a day … how she wants her Daddy to come home. She tells me I shouldn’t have gone to the refuge, and should come forward and tell the truth.”

After he entered guilty pleas, Barrow asked Cooper, why did he record messages that were posted on social media, claiming he wasn’t guilty.

“Ethically, morally, spiritually, I felt like I did the right thing. I had a duty to God to do that, under the Constitution,” Cooper said, referring to his role in the refuge occupation. At first, he said he didn’t understand the law of conspiracy, but after consulting with his attorney, he realized, “I did in fact commit a crime and I have to accept responsibility.”

When Cooper was arrested Feb. 11, 2016, defense lawyer Andrew Kohlmetz pointed out that he admitted to an FBI agent that he had carried an AR-15 at the Bundy Ranch in Nevada and also fired a handgun while wearing a mask in a video filmed outside his Arizona home in front of his family – both while a felon.

Cooper said he didn’t remember, so Kohlmetz played the recording of the FBI interview. The agent asks Cooper why he carried the weapons if he was prohibited from possessing them. Cooper responded “The Second Amendment says I have the right to bear arms and says it shall not be infringed.”

Cooper, on the stand, denied that he ever possessed a gun, outside of the Bundy Ranch in 2014, since his felony convictions.

Kohlmetz, standby lawyer for Patrick, asked Cooper what his jail experience has been like. Cooper described it as “horrible.”

“Is it true you told folks on the phone while you’ve been in jail you would do anything to shorten that experience?” Kohlmetz asked.

“Yes sir I may have said that,” he answered.

Under questioning by Kohlmetz, Cooper acknowledged that he had tried in 1997 to join the U.S. Marine Corps, but was rejected because of an arrest warrant. In 2006, at age 27, he changed his name from Stanley Hicks Jr. to Blaine Cooper. Cooper said he took his stepfather’s last name because his father was physically abusive.

Kohlmetz asked if Cooper took the name of Jesse Ventura’s Blain Cooper character in the movie “Predator,” and Cooper said he didn’t know the last name of Ventura’s character.

Of the Dec. 29 meeting, Kohlmetz said: “You never told this story until today.”

Cooper responded: “My attorney had this information from the beginning.”

Kohlmetz played an April 5, 2016, jail phone call between Cooper and his wife. “Because phone calls are recorded, I can’t say a lot,” Cooper said on the recording. “I can tell you I didn’t know they were going in there.”
Under additional questioning from defense lawyer Jesse Merrithew, Cooper said in the Dec. 29, 2015 meeting with Bundy and others, taking over the refuge “was agreed upon but not when.”

Kohlmetz, citing another phone call Cooper made to his wife, said Cooper suggested he was going to destroy computer evidence in the case. The lawyer asked what happened to a video Cooper took of the initial sweep of the refuge. Cooper said he had his GoPro and a camera, but the memory cards were missing.

Kohlmetz also played a video of Cooper from jail, when he said Cooper “lied under oath” when pleading guilty in Nevada.

Asked about social media posts in which he first expressed interest in withdrawing his guilty plea but then changed his mind, Cooper said, “A lot of people thought that Trump would pardon us.”

He also said he had his attorneys tell Ammon Bundy and his brother, Ryan, about his guilty pleas before he entered them in court because he didn’t want to “go behind their back.”

“I thought I had a duty and obligation to let them know that,” he said, getting emotional. “I love the Bundys very much. They’re some of the best friends I have.”

Cooper also wrote to Ammon Bundy before he testified Monday.

“I wanted to let you know I decided to do whatever I have to do to get home to my kids,” Cooper wrote. He said he couldn’t justify sitting in prison for six years if he could do something to cut that time in half. He also said “God sent me two crappy attorneys,” who manipulated him into the plea deals.

Ammon Bundy’s wife, Lisa Bundy, was in court with her sister-in-law Angie Huntington Bundy, Ryan Bundy’s wife. When Cooper took the stand, Lisa Bundy waved to him, and mouthed, “We love you.”

After his testimony, Lisa Bundy said, “I’m so sad that he’s lying. He’s a pathological liar.”

Bundy said her husband was home with her and their family in Idaho between Christmas 2015 and Dec. 31, 2015, and couldn’t have been at the meeting Cooper testified about in Burns. There could have been a meeting, but not on the date Cooper said it occurred, she said.

— Maxine Bernstein

mbernstein@oregonian.com
503-221-8212
@maxoregonian

source http://bit.ly/2mom4YZ

John Lamb ~ 9th day of Malheur Protest trial 2. Feb. 28. Ammon Bundy is testifying

http://youtu.be/YMB1LQA9v7U

https://youtu.be/YMB1LQA9v7U

While prosecutors claim conspiracy defense unveils evicence of illegal FBI acts under Obama

As Oregon Prosecutors Claim Conspiracy, Defense Unveils Evidence Of Illegal FBI Acts Under Obama

Posted by Donna Kay | Feb 28, 2017 | Breaking News

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Did Obama conspired with FBI authorizing illegal activities at protests to falsely charge ranchers?

When one hears of one incident of corruption within a federal agency, it can stand to reason it may have been a lone rogue employee gone bad. But when there are two and three reports of illegal activities within an agency there is a problem.

When the illegal activities involve the same people “investigating” the same “cases” or standing against a perceived “enemy” of the government then you have a conspiracy. A conspiracy against those legally exercising their right under the First Amendment to peaceably assemble and protest overreaching government agencies; one enforcing illegal ‘regulations” never voted on or approved by Congress or any state legislation.

Then we must ask: How far up the chain of command does the conspiracy go, and who ordered the now proven illegal activities of the FBI? Was it the local bureau chief in Oregon or were agents following the FBI chief at the helm of the federal agency in Washington D.C.? Were the attorney general and Department of Justice involved in this conspiracy?

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Both FBI head Comey and AG at the time Lynch were getting daily briefings on the Oregon refuge occupation along with Obama. The use of federal resources like drones were authorized by them.

Did the President of the United States order an illegal crackdown using drone technology that led to the henchman style assassination of an American citizen who was referred to as “the Virus” by a US Congressman in a secretly taped conversation?

As more evidence is revealed in the Nevada Bundy standoff trial and two trials involving most of the same ranchers who stood up against illegal activities by the BLM in Oregon, what is the answer?

The answer appears to be yes on all accounts. And yet what will be done? Will Obama and his hand- picked FBI chief Comey and former Attorney General Loretta Lynch ever be held accountable?

A conspiracy to silence law abiding Americans pointing out to the American people illegal activities of federal agencies. Corruption that affects the freedoms and rights of all Americans as was the case in the western rancher’s stand at Oregon’s Malheur Refuge. A conspiracy to strike back in revenge against the same ranchers who through peaceful means forced the BLM to back down and return property it illegally confiscated without any due process of law.

The Oregon natural refuge is tax supported public property owned by the American people, and falls under the protection of the Constitution for people to gather and protest on the land, regardless of how the MSM and the federal government choose to mislead the American people.

The following video is an excellent breakdown of just the facts of the Oregon refuge occupation, and history leading up to the protest and the trumped up charges against the Hammond family and the protesting ranchers:

http://youtu.be/A1JzuQf4DMU

A jury already found five defendants not guilty in the first trial involving the ranchers’ protest including the Bundy brothers, Ammon and Ryan. In the first trial, it was brought to the jurors’ attention the FBI used paid “informants” to infiltrate the protest and then authorized illegal tactics and activities be used to incite violence and frame those there to peacefully voice a grievance. Activities the jurors found despicable and unconstitutional.

As reported here, jurors’ through an email exchange with OregonLive stated the prosecution failed to prove their “conspiracy” charges in explaining their unanimous decision to acquit. They also stated they were offended by the prosecution’s constant objection to the defense’s use of the Constitution as part of its strategy to show the defendants violated no laws.
Given the verdict and the reasons for the not guilty conclusion, one would think prosecutors and the FBI would go off somewhere to lick their wounds and call it day. They would drop charges against other protestors at the refuge who, according to jurors in the first trial, broke no laws. Wrong.

Last week, federal prosecutors moved forward with the second trial against more protestors, including Montana native Jake Payne. Payne received national attention because he, young and scared, decided to hide from the same authorities who had shot and killed rancher LaVoy Finacum even though Finacum stood with hands raised in compliance. A shooting now under investigation. Payne later turned himself into local law enforcement.

And though previous jurors specifically stated there was no proof of conspiracy prosecutors are once again pursuing “conspiracy” charges against the second round of defendants. Only this time prosecutors are putting a “new twist” on what defines a “conspiracy.”

According to OregonLive, prosecutors told jurors last week in opening arguments though there were no organized “meetings” which defines traditional conspiracy, a “meeting of minds” does prove there was a conspiracy.

What the hell? Now just “thinking” like others, sharing others’ political idealism, is conspiracy and a threat to the government according to assistant US Attorney, Geoffrey Barrow, who is prosecuting the case.

And it gets worse. The FBI, the same FBI that used undercover paid “informants” in the Nevada Bundy standoff, also used them in Oregon and again authorized and ordered those “informants” to break the law.

http://youtu.be/bx4ocLdWE90

As reported here informants and agents under the direct orders of the FBI used alcohol to get ranchers drunk then incited them to make self-incriminating statements on video tapes that was allegedly for a “documentary.” The FBI set up a “fake” film company and lied to protestors, supplied them with booze, paid them money and then “coached” them to say things that would be “more” exciting and interesting to the “audience.”

And now prosecutors in Nevada are attempting to use the FBI’s “fake” documentary tapes against defendants in Nevada now in its second week of trial.

Does it not raise at least a small curiosity as to why both trials are suddenly being held simultaneously, one from the Nevada standoff and one from the Oregon protest? What else is the FBI trying to bury in the news cycle? Perhaps the fact it was their undercover agents who organized the activities in Oregon and not the ranchers?

The answer is yes, according to reports coming out of testimony in Oregon.

“FBI Special Agent Ronnie Walker, who was called by the government as a witness later in the day, was very clear. He testified that some informants were authorized to engage in “otherwise unlawful activity” during the occupation,” wrote Oregonlive on its website.

Walker’s testimony directly conflicts to what now “retired” FBI Special Agent Supervisor, Greg Bretzing. who was in charge at the Oregon standoff testified to earlier.

When directly asked during cross examination by the defense if any of the FBI agents and uncover informants were ordered or authorized to conduct illegal activities, Bretzing answered under sworn oath, he did not have any “direct knowledge."

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Now retired FBI special agent in charge Bretzing is responsible for the illegal roadblocks that led to the death of Finacum.

When questioned further Bretzing maintained he was in charge and “briefed” on the activities of those undercover agents.

So how is it a federal FBI agent running the show and responsible for handing down orders including “briefing” others, not know undercover agents were carrying out illegal activities ordered by the FBI?

Who is lying under oath? The ground agent Walker, who just follows his orders or Bretzing, the Oregon bureau chief in charge and holding daily phone conversations with chiefs in DC and the department of justice? Who has the most to lose?
The FBI is under investigation over the fatal Finacum shooting. An illegal roadblock set in a blind spot curve in an area known for no cell coverage using drone technology that former president Obama had already threatened to use against ranchers after the Nevada standoff gave the federal government a black eye in a humiliating defeat.

“I have one word for you boys, drones,” quipped Obama at a press correspondents dinner when talking about ranchers standing up for their rights.

Finicum's spilt blood is on Bretzing hands and the hands at the top who had to silence the “Virus” from talking to others, educating others on how to use the Constitution to defeat the BLM legally through the local sheriff’s offices and court system. A tactic Finacum used and won in Arizona.

A voice of reason that was spreading across the internet and resonating with every day Americans, not just the western ranchers. So Bretzing used the trap to murder a man as he stood with hands in the air. Most would be charged with murder in such cases, but Bretzing gets to “retire” with full government pay and benefits the rest of his life gratis the tax payer.

Joining Bretzing is Loretta Lynch and former President Obama; all sitting cozy being kept by the taxpayer for years to come.
Yep, who has more to lose? This writer’s bet is, it isn’t special agent Walker who like a good soldier merely did his duty and followed his orders.

John Lamb ~ End of Day 9 Update Malheur Protest trial #2

http://youtu.be/yEJYWscxP5w

https://youtu.be/yEJYWscxP5w

Ammon Bundy's wife and sister-in-law Feb. 28 video Malheur Protest Trial 2

http://youtu.be/yiNZNVd-h4g

https://youtu.be/yiNZNVd-h4g

Ammon Bundy testifies for the defense Malheur Protest Trial #2


Ammon Bundy returns to federal courtroom in Portland as a defense witness

Posted on February 28, 2017 by Doug Knowles

By Maxine Bernstein | The Oregonian/OregonLive
Updated February 28, 2017 at 8:42 PM

Prosecutors spent twice as long cross-examining Ammon Bundy when he returned to a Portland courtroom Tuesday compared to last fall during his own trial that ended with his acquittal on conspiracy and weapons charges.

This time, Bundy was the first witness for the defense of four men who say they were inspired by his videos and calls to take a “hard stand in Burns” and now face trial themselves in the 41-day occupation of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Ethan Knight began his cross-examination the same way he did last year, asking Bundy if he was the leader of the occupation. But Knight covered more ground and pointed out inconsistencies in Bundy’s testimony this time versus the first trial.

Knight’s 35 minutes of questioning stood in stark contrast to his less than 15 minute cross-examination in October.

Bundy’s direct testimony on behalf of the four defendants also was noticeably shorter: nearly three hours compared to three days last fall.

Bundy for the first time confirmed the account that occupier Blaine Cooper gave jurors a day earlier, saying that he shared his proposal to take over the refuge with a group of men at a Dec. 29, 2015, meeting at a home in Burns.

Bundy said he asked those attending to keep their cellphones and laptops in a separate room because he didn’t want to be interrupted and didn’t want what he shared to be “broadcast.”

He told them about his “journey of discovery” about the injustices he felt Harney County ranchers Dwight Hammond Jr. and son Steve Hammond faced in their federal prosecution for setting fires to public land, he said. He talked about how his efforts to urge local, state and federal officials to intervene or investigate the case were met with “zero response” and that he felt “more needed to be done.”

At the meeting, “I proposed going into the refuge,” he said.

“So I felt we should go into the refuge and occupy the refuge, and that would wake them up,” Bundy added.

He said Cooper, Jon Ritzheimer, Ryan Payne and B.J. Soper were at the meeting and several others. He said he didn’t remember if defendant Jason Patrick was there as well, as Cooper had testified Monday. He said he didn’t really know Patrick before the occupation.

Bundy said some in the group were opposed to his idea and no concrete plan was reached. “There was no plan to do anything. It wasn’t decided,” he said. “We left it open.”

Bundy also said he had shared his takeover plan with the Committee of Safety in Harney County that he helped form in the fall of 2015 and with a group of ranchers at another meeting and other individuals.

Yet in testimony later Tuesday, former Harney County and Burns Fire Chief Chris Briels directly contradicted Bundy’s testimony that Bundy had told the committee about the plan. Briels had been one of the people nominated to sit on the Committee of Safety.

“Did Ammon ever meet with the Committee of Safety and share his plan to take over the Malheur
refuge?” Assistant U.S. Attorney Geoffrey Barrow asked Briels?

“No,” Briels answered.

The group opposed the refuge occupation, he said, and had wanted to address on its own some of the issues Bundy raised, such as federal management of public land and the Hammonds’ prosecution.

Knight also sparred with Bundy about inconsistencies Knight pointed out in his testimony last fall in which he said he first shared the refuge seizure idea at a morning meeting in the back rooms of the Ye Olde Castle restaurant in Burns with about 30 people before a planned Jan. 2, 2016, march to support the Hammonds.

Knight asked Bundy if he recalled testifying that the only time he discussed the occupation was at the Burns cafe.

“You need to keep reading in the transcript,” Bundy said.

Knight asked again.

“No, you’re not being honest,” Bundy said.

“So the answer is no?” Knight asked.

“The answer is no,” Bundy replied.

Bundy, in loose-fitting blue jail scrubs over a jail-issued pink shirt, winked to his wife as he sat beside the judge in the witness stand. He looked out at the defendants — Jason Patrick, 43, of Bonaire, Georgia, Duane Ehmer, 46, of Irrigon, Darryl Thorn, 32, of Marysville, Washington, and Jake Ryan, 28, of Plains, Montana — and smiled and nodded at them. They face conspiracy, weapons and misdemeanor charges.

Defense lawyer Andrew Kohlmetz took Bundy back to the fall of 2015.

At that time, Bundy said he was living in Emmett, Idaho, with his wife and six children. Spurred by concerns raised by his father, Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy, Ammon Bundy said he began to research the plight of the father-and-son ranchers.

“I felt a drive — an urge to find out all I can,” Bundy said. He retold to this jury how he wrote a letter to “concerned citizens and government officials” in November 2015 and then drove to Burns to meet the Hammonds.

What the Hammonds were facing was “very similar to what was happening to my family,” Bundy said.

“I felt what was happening to the Hammonds was a gross abuse of government, and I felt it needed to be exposed,” he testified as jurors listened raptly, some taking notes.

He said he also met with Harney County Sheriff Dave Ward in November 2015 “to see if he would bring light and stand for the Hammonds.” Bundy testified about how he believed the sheriff is the chief law enforcement officer in the county and his job is “to make sure the people are protected.”

Under questioning by Kohlmetz, Bundy spoke of how he seized the refuge in an effort to stake claim to the property through a principle of adverse possession. In two occasions, Knight popped out of his seat to object and ask the judge to advise jurors that Bundy wasn’t stating the law.

Brown turned to jurors each time and cautioned that it’s not the role of a witness to tell jurors what the law is or isn’t.

In cross-examination, Knight suggested that Bundy didn’t believe the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service or U.S. Bureau of Land Management had authority to own land.

“They do have authority to control land but it’s limited,” Bundy replied.

Drawing on testimony last fall when Bundy called the refuge seizure a “win, win, win” situation, Knight asked if he thought it was a “win, win, win” for the 16 employees who couldn’t go to work because of his actions.

“It very well could be,” Bundy said.

Drawing from Bundy’s own testimony that the refuge occupation was “really neat,” Knight asked if Bundy thought it was really neat thing for the employees to not go to work?

“I do not know that,” Bundy said.

But it was for you?

“And a lot of people,” Bundy responded.

Knight played a video of occupiers firing guns near the refuge boat launch.
“So that’s an expression of a peaceful assembly?” Knight asked.

“That’s correct,” Bundy answered.

Knight pointed out that Bundy had testified that having “all these guns” at the refuge prolonged the occupiers’ ability to remain at the refuge. “Yes,” Bundy said.

Bundy claimed occupier Brian Cavalier, who earlier pleaded guilty to conspiracy, wasn’t his bodyguard when asked.

“That’s a little extreme words, but I had people with me,” he said.

“He was protecting you?” Knight asked.

“There was a lot going on. He was concerned for me,” Bundy said.

Asked if there were armed guards at the refuge during the takeover, Bundy again called that “a little extreme terminology.”

When asked if Ryan Payne was leading the gun training near the boat launch in late January 2016, Bundy retorted, “Actually I think it was your FBI undercover guy.” He said Payne wasn’t the one who encouraged occupiers to shoot in the launch area, but an FBI informant, referring to Fabio Minoggio.

Knight showed Bundy photos that depicted him seated in refuge offices. Knight pointed out Bundy in the office of refuge fish biologist Linda Beck. “I learned that yes in trial,” Bundy said, the only time he referenced his prior trial.

“And you look pretty comfortable don’t you?” Knight asked.

“My feet were cold. It was a pretty cold day,” Bundy said. The photo showed him with his boots off, wearing socks.

“While you’re in there,” Knight said, people who work at the refuge can’t be in there?
“It’s inconvenient, sometimes yes, to petition your government for redress of grievance,” Bundy said.

Knight showed a photo of Bundy standing in front of a large group of occupiers gathered in the fire house at the refuge and asked if employees could have worked there during the occupation.

“They could have come if they wanted to,” Bundy said.

“It’s your testimony the employees were welcome to come in if they wanted to?” Knight asked.

“Absolutely,” Bundy said.

“Thank you,” Knight responded.

Bundy’s statement now opens the door for the prosecution to directly ask refuge employees if they felt welcome or feared returning to the refuge while occupiers remained – something prosecutors felt restricted from asking during the first trial.

Bundy was transferred on Saturday to Oregon from Nevada, where he awaits trial on federal conspiracy, extortion and assault charges stemming from the 2014 standoff with federal land agents near the Bundy Ranch in Bunkerville, Nevada.

Also Tuesday

Prosecutors rested their case after just over five days of testimony, ending with a video played of refuge occupiers using the boat launch area as a makeshift firing range, aerial videos of two defendants operating an excavator to dig trenches on the property and an FBI agent called to dispute some of the defense arguments.

FBI Agent Ronnie Walker testified that the first trench dug near the west embankment of the refuge left .16 acres of damage and the second one by the front gate caused .06 acres in damage.
He testified that defendants Duane Ehmer and Jake Ryan operated the excavators on the morning of Jan. 27, 2016. Ryan was seen in video wearing a green parker jacket over his tactical vest as he operated the refuge excavator.

The agent also sought to rebut some defense arguments, such as showing that a defense photo of a helicopter flying above the refuge was really a Fox News copter, not the FBI’s.

He talked about papers found on the refuge that delineated the occupiers’ infantry squads and rapid response teams and their leaders. He pointed out that “SLYone” was defendant Darryl Thorn, who was in charge of Rapid Response Team 2. He said “Duane,” listed as team leader of the headquarters rapid response team, was defendant Duane Ehmer.

Ehmer’s defense lawyer, though, noted in cross-examination that there were at least two other men on the refuge during the occupation named “Duane.”

Defense lawyers sought to distance their clients from Bundy. Bundy said he didn’t know Jason Patrick until the occupation. He said he hardly spoke to Ehmer during the seizure, and only met Jake Ryan after they were arrested and brought to appear in federal court. He said he noticed Thorn on the refuge, but only made small talk in passing.

No laughing in the courtroom

The judge warned spectators and parties in the case not to laugh out loud during trial after some testimony from Bundy and defense witnesses elicited chuckles Tuesday.

At the end of the day, Burns resident and former fire chief Chris Briels drew laughter, for example, when he testified that he wanted to “chew on Ammon’s butt,” because he was angry he was caught by surprise by the refuge takeover.

“The next person who laughs out loud is out of this courtroom for the rest of the trial,” the judge cautioned.


When a deputy U.S. marshal first led Bundy into the federal courtroom, supporters and family stood in the courtroom gallery.

“Please you need to be seated,” U.S. District Judge Anna J. Brown admonished. “Sit down or leave.”

— Maxine Bernstein
mbernstein@oregonian.com
503-221-8212
@maxoregonian


Source http://bit.ly/2mbEhIL

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BLM Ranger testifies he turned off his body cam as situation escalated


BLM ranger testifies that he turned off body cam as Bunkerville standoff escalated

Posted on February 28, 2017 by Doug Knowles
By JENNY WILSON
LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL
Updated

As the 2014 standoff in Bunkerville escalated and authorities started to fear a gunfight, Bureau of Land Management Ranger Patrick Apley turned off his body camera.

“I was mad,” Apley testified Tuesday in the trial against six men accused of conspiring with rancher Cliven Bundy to block federal authorities from seizing cattle. “I felt like we were going to be in a firefight, and I really didn’t want to record that.”

Apley’s body camera recorded the events of April 12, 2014, until the situation reached a boiling point, with armed protesters on one side and armed law enforcement officers on the other. Testimony at the trial has revealed that both sides feared a spray of gunfire on the open range.

“It’s gonna get Western,” Apley said before he stopped recording. Federal prosecutors played the body camera footage in court Tuesday.

First Assistant U.S. Attorney Steven Myhre asked Apley why he didn’t want to record a gunfight.
“I didn’t want to record any mayhem,” Apley replied.

Defense attorney Jess Marchese, who represents defendant Eric Parker, hammered the ranger for that decision.
“What’s the purpose of having a body camera?” Marchese asked.

“The purpose of a body camera is to record the incident, however, I was under a lot of stress at that point and I just didn’t want to continue with all that,” Apley said.

In direct examination Tuesday, Myhre, the lead prosecutor, extracted testimony from Apley about the nature and severity of the threat protesters posed to federal law enforcement. As the situation grew increasingly tense — but before federal agents decided to abandon the operation and head home — Apley spent 10 to 15 minutes standing with several other agents behind the bed of a pickup truck, their weapons drawn.

When asked to rate the threat level on a scale of one to 10, Apley said it was “about a 7” — which he said compared only to his combat days.

BLM agents eventually left the site, passing by protesters who Apley said were “flipping us off, telling us to go home.”

Myhre asked Apley how the events in Bunkerville had affected his ability to carry on with his duties.
“I’m more aware of my surroundings now,” the ranger said. “I’m a little bit more leery of people carrying guns, and how they’re carrying guns.”

The six men are standing trial on charges of conspiracy, extortion, threats, and assault for their role in the 2014 armed standoff that occurred after federal authorities tried to seize Bundy’s cattle. They represent the first of three groups of people who will be tried in the case, after federal prosecutors divided the 17 defendants into groups of culpability for trial.

None of the defendants in the first trial is a Nevada resident. Federal prosecutors characterize them as “gunmen” because they drove to Bunkerville and joined armed protests after learning of the clashes through online postings.

Contact Jenny Wilson at jenwilson@reviewjournal.com or 702-384-8710. Follow @jennydwilson on Twitter.

source http://bit.ly/2mbDw2j

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John Lamb Mid-day update Malhuer Protest Trial #2 March 1
http://youtu.be/e2o0oL3i5O0

https://youtu.be/e2o0oL3i5O0

John Lamb End of day report for March 1 Malheur Protest Trial

http://youtu.be/ZvvFgKgGSG0

https://youtu.be/ZvvFgKgGSG0

Ammon Bundy Testifies ~ Shari Dovale version "The govt. not having their best day, but, the defendants were smiling."

Malheur II – Ammon Bundy Testifies


THE GOVERNMENT WAS NOT HAVING THEIR BEST DAY, BUT, THE DEFENDANTS WERE SMILING.

February 28, 2017 Constitution, FBI, Featured, Oregon 3

http://www.avantlink.com/gbi/11653/2...9211/image.jpg

https://i0.wp.com/redoubtnews.com/wp...size=641%2C360Ammon Bundy during a jailhouse interview. (KATU Photo)

Malheur II – Ammon Bundy Testifies

by Shari Dovale

Ammon Bundy entered the courtroom in his trademark “Political Prisoner” jailhouse scrubs and testified in the second Malheur Protest trial today.
During his own trial last fall, Bundy was on the stand for three days. Today’s testimony was complete in a few hours.

Bundy confirmed Blaine Cooper’s testimony of a meeting held on December 29, 2015 at a private home in Burns. He could not remember everyone that attended the meeting, specifically whether or not Jason Patrick had attended.

However, he did say that he asked everyone to leave their cell phones and computers in a separate room. Though it was not a “secret” meeting, he did not want his discussion to be broadcast.

He admitted that he was the one that originally brought up the idea of the “hard stand” and taking over the Malheur Wildlife Refuge.

Jason Patrick’s standby attorney, Andrew Kohlmets, took Bundy through the first part of his testimony, beginning in the fall of 2015, when he learned about the plight of the Hammond family.

Dwight and Steven Hammond are a father and son that were sent to prison under the Federal Antiterrorism Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996 for starting a necessary backfire on their property.

Bundy felt the plight of the Hammond’s were very similar to what his family has been enduring at their ranch in Nevada.

After learning all of the details behind the Hammond’s troubles, Bundy attempted to get them help beginning with the Sheriff of Harney County, David Ward. Ward was a political appointee and immediately asked the FBI to take over for him, as he did not know how to deal with citizens on this level.

Bundy continued to tell the jury of how the Malheur Protest came about and what the actual plans were. These plans included educating the citizens and beginning ownership transfer of the Refuge property back to the citizens of Harney County through a legal doctrine called “adverse possession.”

As Bundy explained what adverse possession entailed, the prosecution objected to the legal premise being described. Judge Anna Brown reminded jurors that interpreting the law was for her alone in the courtroom.
By the time the prosecution questioned the witness, they seemed to be highly agitated. They fired several questions at Bundy intended to confuse his answers, however, he seemed confident and prepared for them.

Questions that Assistant U.S. Attorney Ethan Knight asked during cross examination included asking him if the Hammond’s had distanced themselves from “the refuge occupation and you?” Bundy was clear when he answered “No. They were threatened.”

Knight showed a video of protesters firing guns at the boat launch at the refuge and asked him, “That’s an expression of a peaceful assembly?”
“Correct,” was Bundy’s answer.

Knight made the mistake of asking Ammon if Ryan Payne led the group in the video at the boat launch. Bundy said, “No, I believe it was your undercover FBI guy that did that.”

Knight also asked if he thought it was a “Win, Win, Win for the 16 employees that could not go to work in their offices because of your actions?”

Bundy simply told him Yes.

Knight continued to get upset, “No one can work!”

“It is sometimes inconvenient to petition your government,” Bundy replied.

Each time the prosecutor would read quotes from the transcript of Bundy’s previous testimony, it seemed to get thrown back at him. “I would love for the jury to hear the whole audio,” Bundy said at one point.

The next witness was former Harney County Fire Chief Chris Briels. Briels had tendered his resignation when he caught the FBI being less-than-honest while in Burns last year. He was, basically, told to mind his own business by County Judge Steve Grasty.

Briels was also very effective with the jury, connecting with them with a few snarky comments.

At one point, Briels was asked what he first intended to do when he originally went to the Refuge. He told the court he “wanted to chew Ammon Bundy’s butt.” This produced snickers throughout the audience and jury.

Judge Anna Brown had to stop this immediately and threatened anyone that laughed again to be thrown out of the courtroom for the duration of the trial.

The government was not having their best day, but, the defendants were smiling.

Local witnesses testify to character of protesters. From Free Range Report, reprinted from the Oregonian

http://freerangereport.com/index.php...ff-defendants/


https://i1.wp.com/freerangereport.co...size=601%2C194
Local witnesses testify of kindness, good manners of Oregon Standoff defendants

March 2, 2017 editor Leave a comment

“They took very good care of my place. I trusted them completely,” she said.During cross, Overton acknowledged that Patrick left her a $100 tip at the truck stop one night. She also said the men paid her electric bill and bought her a new set of pots and pans.

Maxine Bernstein
Oregon Live

Refuge visitors, character witnesses testify for defense in refuge takeover trial

Montana resident Roxsanna Ryan, who home schooled her 12 children, said she wasn’t surprised when her middle child Jake Ryan, 28, chose to stay at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge last winter when he accompanied his father and brothers on a drive from their home to deliver community-donated goods to the occupiers in Oregon.

She said the next time she heard from Jake Ryan was the night of Jan. 26, 2016, in a “goodbye” call, his voice shaking and in fear following the police fatal shooting of occupation spokesman Robert “LaVoy” Finicum.

“He says will you please tell everybody goodbye for me,” she recalled. “He said things are pretty hectic here. I don’t know what’s going to happen, but I love you and please take care.”

Ryan’s mother was one of the many witnesses called Wednesday by defense lawyers in the second Oregon standoff trial to testify about the four defendants’ character and their motivations in going to the refuge last winter. Prosecutors sought to limit repetitive testimony from defense witnesses about the atmosphere they found at the refuge when visiting.

Jake Ryan, Jason Patrick, Duane Ehmer and Darryl Thorn are charged with conspiring to impede federal employees from doing their work at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge through intimidation, threats or force.

“More than anything I wanted my children to be able to think for themselves,” Roxsanna Ryan said.

Roxsanna Ryan said she has raised her children to read the U.S Constitution and the Bible. A typical writing assignment would be asking them to copy an amendment of the U.S. Constitution and then explain what they thought it meant, she said. Until his arrest on Jan. 27, 2016, Jake Ryan lived on his family’s 30-acre farm in the small town of Plains, Montana, its population of about 1,200, his mother said. She said he was heavily influenced by a man considered an “adopted
grandfather,” who suffered a bankruptcy and spoke to her boys about his support for limited government. She said the family also rallied for the election of a so-called “constitutional sheriff” in their county.

Since Jake Ryan had no cell phone of his own or a computer at their house, Jake Ryan’s older brother stopped by frequently and encouraged his younger brother to look at YouTube videos that occupation leader Ammon Bundy had posted about the refuge seizure, she said.

“The influence of LaVoy and Ammon were very strong because they spoke to the things that meant so much to Jake,” his mother said.

The next time Jake Ryan’s mom heard from him was when he was at the FBI checkpoint, having left the refuge on Jan. 27, 2016. Ryan wasn’t arrested until April, caught sleeping in a stranger’s shed in Clark County, Washington. He had a handgun by his side, according to the Clark County sheriff’s deputy who took him into custody.

Asked by defense lawyer Jesse Merrithew why he stayed at the refuge, his mother said, “He felt like he needed to go to support the Hammonds and be there.” In a prior response that was stricken by the court as non-responsive and beyond the scope of the question, she said, “It was his earnest desire to see and to stand with men who were willing to support their neighbor.”

$100 tip

Earlier in the day, jurors heard from local Burns and Vale residents who visited the refuge during the occupation, and character witnesses for Patrick and Ehmer.

Patricia Overton, who works at the Eddies Fastbreak Truck Stop in Burns, said she met Patrick and Ryan Payne in December 2015, waiting on them. She invited them to park Payne’s pickup full of sleeping bags under her carport, and they ended up staying in her horse trailer’s living quarters and using a guest room in her home while she was away visiting family in Nebraska from about Dec. 23, 2015 until Jan. 2, 2016. It was at her home that Ammon Bundy testified this week that he first shared his plan to seize the refuge with others.

“They took very good care of my place. I trusted them completely,” she said.

During cross, Overton acknowledged that Patrick left her a $100 tip at the truck stop one night. She also said the men paid her electric bill and bought her a new set of pots and pans. Asked if she saw the men with any guns, she first said no. But when pressed that she had told an FBI agent there were two handguns at the home, she said, “little pistol things. Nothing extreme.”

Refuge visitors

Debra Ann Johnson, a Burns resident, rancher’s wife and mother of five children, said she visited the refuge with her children on Jan. 4, 2016, after the local schools closed down for a week after the holiday break. When she drove up to the refuge gate, she was surrounded by a media crush, she said.

“Everybody wanted to know what in the world this crazy lady was doing there with her kids,” she testified. She called the refuge before arriving, and spent about three hours there.

“My goal was to help the kids see what was going on in Harney County,” she said. “Most of all, put my kids’ minds at ease about what was going on.”

She recalled meeting Patrick. “He just wanted people to read the Constitution and know it for themselves,” she said.

She said she didn’t find the refuge threatening or intimidating. Asked by Assistant U.S. Attorney Geoffrey Barrow whether she knew there are employees who worked at the refuge, she said yes, and noted, “during the winter people don’t go down there.”

Asked why she didn’t call the federal government before she went to the refuge, she said, “I didn’t have a number for the federal government.”

Asked if she supported the Bundys’ cause and the takeover, Johnson replied, “We didn’t support the way it happened but in the end, we’re glad it took place.”

Pat Horlacher, who lives along Highway 205 a few miles outside of Burns, called the atmosphere at the refuge during the occupation peaceful, calm and “laid back,” and said the media coverage “spewed” a lot of “baloney” about it being threatening.

Morrow County sheriff’s deputy Todd Siex, who met Ehmer in Irrigon, Oregon, described him as a “peaceful individual.” Prosecutors then brought up 1998 misdemeanor convictions Ehmer had in Kansas for aggravated assault on an officer. His defense lawyer pointed out that was at least 18 years old.

Ken Medenbach back in court

Kenneth Medenbach, who was acquitted of conspiracy in a trial last fall, testified that he had “Closed Permanently” signs ordered and made and screwed them to the U.S. Bureau of Land Management’s dispatch center in Hines, outside of Burns in January 2016. He said he did so after consulting with Ammon Bundy and his brother Ryan Bundy, but with none of the four defendants now on trial.

Why? “To show the people of Harney County they were going to get their property back. It was unconstitutionally stolen from them in the 1800s..We’d already taken it by adverse possession,” he said.

Medenbach also would not acknowledge the refuge is owned by the government, calling it “The Harney County Resource Center.”

Just as defense lawyer Andrew Kohlmetz was about to ask whether it was Medenbach’s opinion that adverse possession is a legal mechanism to take control of federal property, prosecutor Ethan Knight asked to address the court outside the presence of the jury.

Once the jury left, Knight urged the court to admonish attorneys not to ask additional questions about adverse possession. He also successfully argued for the judge to read a stipulation to jurors later that the refuge is federal property and adverse possession is not a legal defense to the crimes charged.

The judge directed Medenbach to just answer the questions asked and not go beyond the scope of each or she’d strike all his testimony.

Turning to the judge from the witness stand, Medenbach protested, “I took an oath to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.” But moments later, he said he’d abide by her wishes.

Court testimony ended early, with defense lawyers having run out of witnesses to call on Wednesday, but they said they had a full line up for Thursday. They’re expected to rest their case by late Monday, and the jury could begin deliberating sometime next week.

https://i2.wp.com/freerangereport.co...size=620%2C413Beth Nakamura | The Oregonian/OregonLive

Free Range Report

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Land Disputes, Legal, Property Rights adverse possession, Ammon Bundy, defense witnesses, Harney County, Malheur Refuge, Oregon Standoff, trial

John Lamb with the mid day report from Malheur Protest Trial #2, March 2

http://youtu.be/jQUh6TBKRkw


https://youtu.be/jQUh6TBKRkw

Brand Thornton Who the hell is in charge. Trick or treats from the prosecution

http://youtu.be/4lD6FvV4XmE

https://youtu.be/4lD6FvV4XmE

John Lamb Update #2 for Malheur Protest trial #2 March, 2. Motions Considered, Some charges should be dropped.

http://youtu.be/iOMTX-o9Sh0

https://youtu.be/iOMTX-o9Sh0

Harney County resident Thom Davis tells about testifying at the Malhuer Protest Trial

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What Judge Anna J. Brown didn't allow in the Malhuer 2 trial this week


Malheur II – What Judge Brown DID NOT Allow This Week


HOW CAN THEY BE FOUND GUILTY OF CONSPIRACY WHEN THOSE THAT THEY ARE SAID TO HAVE CONSPIRED WITH WERE LEGALLY FOUND NOT GUILTY OF THIS CRIME?

March 3, 2017 BLM, DOJ, FBI, Featured, Oregon

http://www.avantlink.com/gbi/11653/2...9211/image.jpg

https://i0.wp.com/redoubtnews.com/wp...size=641%2C418

Malheur II – What Judge Brown DID NOT Allow This Week

by Shari Dovale

The prosecution of the second group in the Malheur Protest Trial has had clear assistance with Judge Anna Brown.
She has trimmed the defense witnesses to less than half of their original list.

She has repeated that she will not allow testimony on how nice the people were at the refuge, how clean they kept the refuge, how peaceful it was or even how much safer the refuge was compared to the town of Burns.

She does not like character witnesses for the defendants, so she has either narrowed the scope of their testimony to the point that they need not bother taking the stand, or she flat out said no, they could not testify.

Thursday, she got rather annoyed with the defense that they did not have a ready list of people waiting in the halls for her to rake over the coals. When she asked where the witnesses were, attorney Jesse Merrithew tried very hard to keep calm and polite while explaining that because of her cuts, the full line up of that day’s witnesses were depleted.

Judge Brown has also helped the prosecution in other ways. She has ruled that an excerpt of the interview with former OPB reporter, John Sepulvado, will be played for the jury. Sepulvado is well known for his bias against the protesters, even going so far as to publicly call them nasty names.

Judge Brown has already ruled that Sepulvado will not be required to authenticate his interview, nor explain what parts got cut from the raw footage.

Brown suggested that either side could call Ryan Bundy to the stand to talk about the interview. She must be giggling vindictively over that, as Bundy could not possibly take the stand since he is still under indictment for theft of the government cameras, and is currently preparing to defend himself in the Nevada Bunkerville trial.

Then again, Brown has never seemed overly concerned with the rights of the defendants.

Brand Thornton was ready to testify for the defense, until Judge Brown had a Federal Public Defender come have a chat with him. The prosecution has decided that since Thornton told the court in October that he did not talk to “media” about the case, they will expand the definition to include “social media” and threaten him with prosecution for perjury.

Ah, yes, is this witness intimidation?

The defense now would like to read from Thornton’s October transcript, but of course, the prosecution is now allowed to consider it “tainted testimony”. We will see how Judge Brown handles this one.

Part of Thornton’s testimony would cover the blowing of his “Shofar”. The prosecution would like the jury to believe that he used this as a tool to let others know when the Refuge had been “cleared” of any Federal employees on January 2, 2016. Others have described it as a “Call to Battle” with God leading the charge.

Thornton has repeatedly said that it is part of his Christian ministry. He praises God through his Shofar. Judge Brown is a bit flummoxed, apparently, over this instrument to the point of calling Thornton “Mr. Shofar” in the court record.

Judge Brown pushing the envelope…

The trial last fall acquitted all of the defendants, including Ammon Bundy, Ryan Bundy, Shawna Cox, Neil Wampler, Kenneth Medenbach, David Fry, and Jeff Banta, of all conspiracy charges.

Yet, Judge Anna Brown has continued to refer to them as the “Co-conspirators”. She has, also, allowed the prosecution to refer to them as such.

This brings up several legal questions. First is the fact that this case is called “US vs. Ammon Bundy, et. al.” meaning Ammon Bundy and others. The jurors very clearly ruled out any conviction of “Conspiracy to Impede”, so why are the current defendants even being charged with this crime?

How can they be found guilty of conspiracy when those that they are said to have conspired with were LEGALLY found Not Guilty of this crime?

But, with the Judge and Prosecutors constantly referring to them as “co-conspirators” the jury is being led to believe that these people have been convicted. I wonder if the previous defendants would have enough evidence to bring a slander suit against Judge Brown? It is certainly worth looking into.

What Judge Brown DID Allow.

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Malheur II - What Judge Brown DID Allow This WeekMarch 3, 2017In "BLM"
Malheur 7 - The Corruption Continues!October 13, 2016In "BLM"
Excitement in the Courtroom – Malheur 7October 11, 2016In "BLM"

What Judge Brown did allow this week

What Judge Brown DID Allow This Week


THE JURY COULD BE SENT FOR DELIBERATIONS AS SOON AS TUESDAY

March 3, 2017 BLM, DOJ, FBI, Featured, Oregon

http://www.avantlink.com/gbi/11653/2...9211/image.jpg

https://i0.wp.com/redoubtnews.com/wp...size=641%2C360Some of the supporters at the Mark O. Hatfield Federal courthouse this week.

Malheur II – What Judge Brown DID Allow This Week

by Shari Dovale

The case of the second group of Malheur Protesters is getting close to the end. The jury could be sent for deliberations as soon as Tuesday, March 7^th.

Witnesses this week included David Duquette, from “Protect the Harvest”, whose interest in the Hammond family had nothing to do with Ammon Bundy. Judge Brown was unsure of allowing him to testify and insisted that his testimony be given out of the jury’s presence before scaling it back tremendously.

Duquette, who produced a video starring Trent Loos, was allowed to testify to seeing no signs of it being unlawful to go to the Malheur Wildlife Refuge in January 2016, but not much else.

Though he stated that he was with actually with the Hammonds during the rally on January 2^nd, Judge Brown ruled that the Hammond information was not relevant in the case.

Thom Davis testified for the defense. Davis, a rancher from Riley, Oregon about 25 miles from Burns, had heard about the rally on January 2^nd, but did not attend. However, he did end up going to the Refuge several times and sympathizing with the Protesters.

Davis, who had already been highlighted in a video during the trial trying to calm down an Arizona environmentalist, ended up being on the Harney County Committee of Safety. Davis repeatedly said during his testimony that the employees from the refuge were not impeded but “They were on vacation,” a reference to the seasonal work common in the northern colder climates.

Davis was able to make a point, to the chagrin of Judge Brown, in that he told the jury that the protesters were “Not Anti-government! Just Anti-Corruption!”

Robert Jones, who traveled from Nampa, Idaho, had his testimony trimmed by Judge Brown to talking about watching Duane Ehmer put away supplies and donations. Though he made at least 3 separate trips to the refuge, he was not allowed to discuss much of his time there.

Michelle Kohler, attorney for Duane Ehmer, called her investigator to the stand to introduce Facebook posts surrounding the governments “Facebook Meme Evidence”. Putting them into proper context was an important step in the defense.

Amazingly, Kohler was also able to sneak into the record a comment that the government has called the protesters “terrorists”. I am surprised that Judge Brown let that one get by her without admonishing the defense, as is typical for her.

Sheriff Thomas Rummel, of Sanders County Montana was allowed to testify, but his testimony was limited to his personal knowledge of Jake Ryan. Having known him for several years, Rummel was only allowed to say that Jake was a very law abiding citizen. “He is the least of my worries in Sanders County,” he stressed to the court.

The longest testimony for the day came from Barbara Berg, who brought her Bible to court for her swearing in. She discussed how she traveled from Winnemucca, Nevada the night that LaVoy Finicum was murdered. Arriving at the RV park known as “The Narrows” she secured a rental trailer. She traveled to the outskirts of the refuge and saw Jason Patrick walking along the road. She gave him a ride to the FBI checkpoint where he turned himself in.

Berg also told of how she went back and saw Jake Ryan, as well. She testified that she took custody of all his weapons and stored them in her rental trailer at the Narrows, where the FBI later retrieved them.

She then took Jake down to the checkpoint and video taped him walking towards the checkpoint with his hands in the air.

When asked about the mood of the people at the refuge that night, she got emotional and started to cry. She explained how tense and scared the protesters were, and afraid for their lives from the FBI.

Berg testified that her point in being at the refuge that night was, in part, to hold the FBI accountable in case of another event like WACO or Ruby Ridge. She was mostly concerned with keeping her friends alive. She was so concerned that she refused to go to the FBI checkpoint herself, as she did not trust them.

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Kenneth Medenbach took the stand this week to tell the jury that it was he, not any of the current defendants, that ordered, made, and placed the signage on the BLM office that said “Closed Permanently”. He also took full responsibility for the signage at the Malheur Refuge that renamed the facility to the “Harney County Resource Center”.
At one point, Judge Brown stopped his testimony, without benefit of an objection from the prosecution. She instructed Medenbach to limit his testimony. He first replied that he took an oath to “tell the truth, the WHOLE truth, and nothing but the truth.”

Judge Brown threatened him to have his entire testimony thrown out if he continued, and Medenbach then agreed to scale it back. However, it did initiate the government to request written instructions to the jury on the defense of “Adverse Possession” not being a legal doctrine in this courtroom.

https://i1.wp.com/redoubtnews.com/wp...size=182%2C243
Duane Ehmer inside the Federal Courthouse. Photo by Conrad Wilson, OPB

The highlight of the week for many supporters was the admonishment of the court media darling, Conrad Wilson of OPB. After Judge Brown repeatedly slapped down defendant advocates to not taking ANY photos inside the courthouse, Wilson decided he must have been above the ruling. I can understand his confusion, as he is usually the only person allowed to slide into court after it has begun.

However, he blatantly took a photo of Duane Ehmer in his patriotic sportcoat and posted it all over social media. Judge Brown was not happy and admonished him for his presumption.

FBI informant Will Kullman has been avoiding testifying, though he received a defense subpoena in December 2016. Jesse Merrithew had begun the process to have Judge Brown sign an arrest warrant, which she indicated she was inclined to do. The prosecution refused to assist the defense in locating this witness.

The warrant has been stopped, as Kullman has agreed to testify on Monday.

Subpoenas were also issued for Fabio Minnogio and Allen Varner, though there has been no word on the status of their testimony.

Witnesses for Monday should include Brandon Rappola, Michele Fiore, and Kullman, as well as Blaine Cooper’s father, Stanley Hicks Sr. and his step-mother, Linda Hicks. Coopers’ mother and step-father have declined to testify for the defense.

What Judge Brown DID NOT Allow.

Stupid is as Stupid Does ~ Kenneth Medenbach identifies nearly all of the FBI investigative team who searched the Malheur Refuge for evidence after the protesters were arrested.

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Kelli Stewart was able to visit Ammon Bundy while he was in Portland to testify. She asked him "What did Blaine Cooper Lie about on the stand?". She tells Ammon's answer in this video

http://youtu.be/bSx5khFE6Wk

https://youtu.be/bSx5khFE6Wk

Kelli Stewart posted this brief update from Monday March 6 morning court proceedings. S. Sgt Moe (Maureen Peltier) made a longer video presentation that has not been uploaded to youtube yet. I will post it once it is on youtube

https://m.facebook.com/story.php?sto...&__tn__=%2C%3B


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Facebook link to SSgt. Moe's Video Report on the Malhuer Protest 2 Trial Morning March 6

https://m.facebook.com/story.php?sto...93500524108607