As 2016 got underway, Americans were treated to a story that still seems hard to believe. A group of well-armed militants drove to the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in Oregon, took control of its headquarters, and posted guards in camouflage outside. The military members, led in part by Ammon and Ryan Bundy, controversial rancher Cliven Bundy’s sons, said they were willing to kill and be killed if necessary in their effort to have federal land turned over to local authorities.
Not surprisingly, federal officials weren’t willing to meet the militants’ demands, and nearly six weeks after the controversy erupted, the militia members exited the wildlife refuge, and Ammon and Ryan Bundy, among others, were taken into custody.
The organizers of this standoff are still awaiting trial, but Oregon Public Radio reports that the Bundy brothers are not satisfied with the conditions of their detention.
Ammon and Ryan Bundy are actively considering whether they should pursue a civil rights lawsuit against the Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office for conditions at the county detention center.In court documents released Tuesday, the leaders of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge occupation give a list of conditions at the jail they said are violating their constitutional rights.Among the complaints, the Bundys and several other occupiers — including Kenneth Medenbach, Pete Santilli, Jason Patrick, Blaine Cooper and Ryan Payne — said they should have more access to the jail’s law library, discovery materials, office supplies and religious underwear.
It’s hard to evaluate the complaints on the merits, though I was struck by something from a written statement from Ryan Bundy.
“My rights are being violated,” he said. “My right to life is being violated. All of my First Amendment rights are being violated. My right to freedom of religion is being violated. My Second Amendment rights are being violated. I never waived that right.”
Just so we’re clear, Ryan Bundy is currently incarcerated. And while it’s true that prisoners don’t forfeit all of the civil liberties while they’re wards of the state, jails tend to frown on prisoners having access to firearms.
Bundy doesn’t have to “waive” his Second Amendment rights in order for the corrections department to disarm him. He’s convinced his Second Amendment rights “are being violated,” which is true. That’s what happens to people in jail.
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Steve Benen is a producer for "The Rachel Maddow Show," the editor of MaddowBlog and an MS NOW political contributor. He's also the bestselling author of "Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans' War on the Recent Past."