Dozens attend dinner fundraiser for Bundys amid trial

Dozens of well-wishers gathered at the Veyo Park Saturday to raise money for the families of Southern Nevada ranchers facing trials on criminal charges stemming from their battles with federal government land management policies. The dinner-dance fundraiser for the families of Bunkerville rancher Cliven Bundy and his sons Ryan, Mel, Ammon and Dave was the brainchild of EllaMay Walther, a Bunkerville-area resident who lives by Cliven and babysat his sons when they were younger. “They are like family to me, and I am trying in a way to help the family,” Walther said. “The wives of the guys who are in prison and jail, they do not have any income coming in and they need help at this time. (Their husbands) have been in there for over eight months. … They have babies that they have at home (and are) taking care of.” The trial for Ammon and Ryan Bundy and Kanab resident Shawna Cox is scheduled to enter its 12th day Monday and is expected to continue until November, at least. Cox wrote a book that offers her perspective of that confrontation, and she has gained notoriety for capturing the events surrounding Finicum’s death on cell phone video as she rode in the vehicle he was driving. Walther said money raised at Saturday’s event will be divided equally among the five Bundy families to use however they wish, whether for legal bills, food supplies or other necessities. Jeanette Finicum, LaVoy’s widow, was also present at the event and raised some funds by selling a novel her husband LaVoy wrote about a family’s “struggle to come together and survive in the midst of national crisis,” as well as copies of Cox’s book on her behalf. Jeanette said she has been paying attention to the trial and has chatted with Cox while continuing to pursue her own interests, which include a planned lawsuit against law enforcement officers involved in what she regards as the “murder” of her husband and participation in a ranchers’ association scheduled to meet Friday night in the Hurricane Community Center to discuss property allotment rights. “I sure hope (the trial) turns out well for all of (the accused). I’m praying that it does,” Jeanette said. “They’re in there … for our freedom and to keep the Constitution,” Walther said. “They are here fighting for us. … I think (the dinner-dance) has done great. There’s been a lot of people willing to help and donate.”...more