Judge's rulings lead to tense moments in Bundy case in Vegas

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Restrictions placed by a federal judge on what defendants can say about being at Cliven Bundy's ranch in April 2014 are leading to tense moments in the Las Vegas retrial of four men accused of wielding assault-style weapons to stop federal agents from rounding up cattle belonging to the anti-government figure. Chief U.S. District Judge Gloria Navarro refused Monday to order a mistrial sought by the defense attorney for Eric Parker, a defendant who Navarro ordered off the witness stand last week before telling the jury to disregard his testimony. Such a dramatic step involving a defendant in the presence of a jury is unusual and might draw scrutiny from the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco, said Robert Draskovich, a Las Vegas lawyer who said he had never heard of such a move in more than two decades practicing in federal courts. Draskovich is not involved in the Bundy case. Navarro ruled that defendants can't argue this time that they were acting in self-defense or in the defense of other protesters. They can't say they were motivated to drive to southern Nevada from Idaho and Montana after hearing about scuffles involving unarmed Bundy family members and Bureau of Land Management agents using dogs and stun guns. They can't refer to Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval and other elected officials criticizing federal agents for creating what the Republican governor called an "atmosphere of intimidation" in the days before the standoff. They can't point to so-called "First Amendment zone" corrals set up for protesters well away from the Bundy ranch; they can't cite claims of infringement on free-speech and Second Amendment rights; and they can't refer to the decades in prison they might face if they're convicted. "Just because law enforcement is pointing a gun doesn't mean you get to point one back," Navarro said Monday...more