Prosecutors have asked the judge in the Nevada ranch standoff case to limit defense theories and not allow Cliven Bundy, his two sons and Ryan Payne to claim federal officers provoked the armed confrontation in April 2014. In a motion filed late Monday, Acting U.S. Attorney Steven Myhre said the defendants are relying on "theories of defenses that are not legally cognizable.'' He said they shouldn't be able to argue that they were entrapped or acted in self-defense when federal officers tried to impound the Bundy cattle.The motion comes as the trial is stalled and the judge is considering whether the government violated its obligation to turn over FBI reports and multiple agencies' threat assessments that could assist the defense. The judge also is considering what remedy she should impose for any violations. The judge cited information that trickled out as the trial got underway about a surveillance camera on a hill above the Bundy ranch, a law enforcement log that captured who viewed the live-feed camera, reports on FBI and National Park Service tactical officers' roles, an FBI sniper on watch outside the Bundy residence and multiple agency threat assessments conducted of the Bundys between 2011 and 2014. Defendants have argued the information about surveillance of the ranch in early April 2014 is directly relevant because the indictment alleges that Payne and others were deceitful and falsely suggested that the ranch was surrounded by federal snipers and isolated when Payne put out a call for militia to respond. On Tuesday, Payne's defense lawyer filed a counter motion to strike the prosecutors' attempts to limit defense arguments. Assistant federal public defender Brenda Weksler accused the government of "stalling or sandbagging'' the case. She argued that the government should be stopped "from claiming its conduct and the reasonableness of its actions is irrelevant.'' Weksler further noted that the court already gave prosecutors a chance to file its response to the judge's concerns about the government's faulty evidence sharing, noting the judge remarked on Dec. 11 that "the government never took seriously the motions that were filed by the defense.''...more
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