RJ, other media argue against court secrecy in Bundy case
May 16, 2016 - 3:28 pm

Rancher Cliven Bundy displays a bouquet of desert foliage that his cattle grazes on during a news conference at an event near his ranch in Bunkerville on Saturday, April 11, 2015. (David Becker/Las Vegas Review-Journal)

The Bundy family and their supporters gather together under the Interstate 15 highway just outside of Bunkerville in order to confront the BLM and demand the release of their impounded cattle on April 12, 2014. (Jason Bean/Las Vegas Review-Journal file)

People, including Doug Knowles of Pahrump, center, protest outside of the Lloyd George Federal Building ahead of an arraignment for Ammon and Ryan Bundy, among others, in Las Vegas on Friday, April 15, 2016. (Chase Stevens/Las Vegas Review-Journal) Follow @csstevensphoto

Dave Bundy,, right, son of rancher Cliven Bundy, and informal family advisor Joel Hansen fill out the paperwork to file official complaints and press charges against federal law enforcement agents stemming from last months failed cattle round up at Las Vegas Metro Police headquarters in Las Vegas on Friday, May 2, 2014. (Jason Bean/Las Vegas Review-Journal)

Dave Bundy, left, and his brother Ammon Bundy, far right, talk with Las Vegas Metro Police Chief Deputy Tom Roberts while trying to convince the BLM to release their impounded cattle outside of Bunkerville on April 12, 2014. (Jason Bean/Las Vegas Review-Journal)

Dave Bundy, middle, talks with Las Vegas Metro Police Chief Deputy Tom Roberts, right, while trying to convince the BLM to release their impounded cattle outside of Bunkerville on April 12, 2014. (Jason Bean/Las Vegas Review-Journal)

Embattled Bunkerville rancher Cliven Bundy, left, and his son Dave Bundy talk to a reporter on the corner of North Las Vegas Boulevard and East Stewart Avenue in downtown Las Vegas Monday, April 7, 2014. The 37-year-old Bundy was taken into custody by federal agents on Sunday afternoon along state Route 170 near Mesquite. He was released Monday after being issued citations for failing to disperse and resisting arrest. (K.M. Cannon/Las Vegas Review-Journal)
News organizations led by the Las Vegas Review-Journal have filed court papers bolstering their opposition to a government push for secrecy in the Bunkerville standoff case.
Attorney Maggie McLetchie — who represents the Review-Journal, Battle Born Media and The Associated Press — argued federal prosecutors have failed to establish good cause for a proposed “expansive protective order” to withhold their mass of evidence from the public in the high-profile case.
Prosecutors contend a protective order is needed to ensure the safety of witnesses.
In recent court papers, prosecutors cited examples of anti-government “cyber bullying” by defendants charged in the April 2014 armed confrontation involving Bunkerville rancher Cliven Bundy, his followers and law enforcement.
But according to McLetchie, none of the social media examples “constitute actual, specific threats” that justify putting all of the government evidence under an “impenetrable shroud of secrecy.”
Last week, U.S. Magistrate Judge Peggy Leen issued an interim order maintaining the confidentiality of the evidence, as prosecutors met a court-imposed deadline to begin turning over documents to the defense.
Leen expects the order to remain in effect for weeks until she decides whether to issue a permanent one barring public disclosure of the evidence.
Prosecutors want to prohibit defense lawyers from making public copies of critical trial evidence, including sworn search warrant affidavits and FBI investigative reports.
Lawyers for most of the 19 defendants, including Bundy and four of his sons, also oppose the government proposal.
One of the sons, Dave Bundy, lost another bid for freedom Monday, when U.S. Magistrate Judge Cam Ferenbach refused to release him from federal custody while he awaits a Feb. 6 trial with the other defendants.
Following a hearing, Ferenbach said Dave Bundy posed a danger to the community and a threat of not making court appearances if released.
His defense lawyer, Cal Potter III, argued that Dave Bundy was a “peacemaker” and a “voice of reason” during the 2014 Bunkerville confrontation.
But Assistant U.S. Attorney Nadia Ahmed countered that Dave Bundy was intimately involved in the alleged conspiracy to assault Bureau of Land Management officers and recruited people to the site of the standoff near the Bundy ranch.
Potter said afterward that he would appeal Ferenbach’s decision to Chief U.S. District Judge Gloria Navarro, who is presiding over the case.
All 19 defendants remain in custody.
Contact Jeff German at jgerman@reviewjournal.com or 702-380-8135. Find @JGermanRJ on Twitter.
Previous coverage
Full coverage of the feud between the Bundy family and the BLM