Utah traffic stop that sent Ammon Bundy to jail on multiple charges
By: -----
Boise, UT - Yes, Ammon Bundy got his pickup truck back — after he paid more than $1,100 in fees and fines.
No, it still doesn't have a license plate.
"So I bought the truck in 2020 brand new, and I never registered it," Bundy said.
A southern Utah sheriff's deputy stopped Bundy on Oct. 7 on Interstate 15 near New Harmony. Video shows the episode ended with four peace officers lifting each of Bundy's limbs to haul him into the back of a police vehicle.
It's the latest confrontation with government for Bundy. He and his father, Cliven Bundy, made national headlines in 2014 for a standoff with the Bureau of Land Management over grazing fees for their cows near Bunkersville, Nevada. Then in 2016, the younger Bundy was one of the organizers of the takeover of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in Oregon.
"There's no plate on the truck. Is there a reason for that?" an Iron County sheriff's deputy asks Bundy in the Oct. 7 video.
It's hard to hear Bundy's answer to that question, though later in the video he can be heard saying: "God gave me that right to travel."
Wednesday, Bundy contended he does not need a driver's license or vehicle registration. When asked about the state position — that travel may be a right, but driving is regulated — Bundy retorted: "So what you're saying is that we have a right to travel if we only walk?"
The deputy informed Bundy he planned to impound the Ford F-250. He ordered Bundy out of the truck. Bundy said no.
"It was my truck, and he was taking it," Bundy said.
More deputies and state troopers arrived. Video shows them opening the truck door and dragging Bundy out. Once he was cuffed and on the ground, they lifted Bundy, first by his arms and then by his legs, too, and walked him to a police vehicle and took him to jail. Bundy bailed out a short time later.
Federal prosecutors failed to convict Bundy of crimes in either the Nevada or Oregon standoffs. He has had less success with a court in Idaho. In 2023, a court there ordered him to pay a $52 million judgment for defaming a hospital and workers there, accusing them of trafficking in children to make money. The creditors have been trying to collect. Bundy moved to the Cedar City, Utah, area after the judgment.
Now Bundy has legal problems in Utah, too. He has been charged in Iron County Justice Court with four counts. The most serious is a count of interfering with police. That stems from his refusal to exit the truck. The count is a class B misdemeanor punishable by up to six months in jail and a $1,000 fine.
His arraignment is scheduled for Feb. 1. He said he intends to contest the charges.
Bundy said he is not afraid his lack of a license plate will lead to another confrontation with police.
"I'm peacefully traveling," Bundy said, "harming nobody, only doing good with, with the right that I have to travel. Why should I be afraid?"