© Reuters/Jim Urquhart
Rancher Cliven Bundy
Rancher Cliven Bundy
Bundy faced criminal charges related to a 2014 standoff with Bureau of Land Management (BLM) agents. After the prosecutions numerous missteps and "willful" withholding of evidence that would aid the Bundy's defense, the judge ruled a mistrial Wednesday, The Oregonian reports.
The DOJ did not say whether it would pursue another trial against Cliven Bundy and others involved in the 2014 standoff, according to E&E News.
Attorney General Jeff Sessions "personally directed that an expert in the department's discovery obligations be deployed to examine the case and advise as to next steps," DOJ deputy director of public affairs Ian Prior told The Oregonian.
"This is every prosecutor's nightmare," retired federal prosecutor Kent Robinson said.
Weeks before U.S. District Judge Gloria M. Navarro declared a mistrial of the case, a memo written by a BLM agent assigned to investigate the agency's actions during the 2014 raid on the Bundy ranch was released. The memo contained serious allegations of misconduct and likely illegal activities by BLM officials and prosecutors, led by acting Nevada U.S. Attorney Steven Myhre, throughout the raid and trial of Cliven Bundy.
Throughout the trial, Myhre and his team of prosecutors were caught violating the Brady law six separate times for refusing to turn over exculpatory evidence that could help the Bundys.
Myhre had removed the agent responsible for the memo, Larry Wooten, from his position investigating the BLM in February, confiscating all his records and data.
Wooten wrote his 18 page memo from memory and leaked it the DOJ.
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