Jury selection began Monday in the high profile case in federal court in Las Vegas. Bundy, 71, along with two of his sons, Ammon and Ryan Bundy and independent militiaman Ryan Payne, are accused of assault on a federal officer, carrying firearms in relation to a crime and other felony conspiracy charges. This week's proceedings cap an almost dizzying array of drama since the initial standoff. Ammon and Ryan Bundy and other anti-government militants were acquitted for staging an armed takeover of the Malheur National Wildlife in Oregon, an event that was inspired by the Nevada standoff. And there have since been several more failed attempts by federal prosecutors to convict some of Bundy's lower-level associates in Nevada, which have included hung juries and acquittals on certain counts. All of this means prosecutors are under enormous pressure to get a conviction in Las Vegas. Joan Anzelmo, a retired federal land manager and frequent Bundy critic, says an acquittal of the family patriarch and his closest associates would send a chilling message to federal employees in the West. "People are going to take notice and say, why are we doing this job, why are we taking care of these places when federal laws can be ignored," Anzelmo says...
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"People are going to take notice and say, why are we doing this job, why are we taking care of these places when federal laws can be ignored," Anzelmo says...
And there is a similar "chilling message" sent when federal land managers ignore the law. You just don't hear about it on NPR.
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