An Idaho judge has issued a civil arrest warrant for Ammon Bundy after the far-right figure again refused to turn up for a court appearance amid an ongoing lawsuit with Boise-based St. Luke's Health System, the Idaho Capital Sun reported April 18.
The lawsuit dates back almost a year, alleging Mr. Bundy and his supporters threatened hospital workers and disrupted health services while protesting the hospitalization of the infant grandson of Mr. Bundy's associate Diego Rodriguez, who is also a co-defendant in the case. The infant had been placed in child protection and hospitalized by the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare, according to the lawsuit.
"I believe it is important that St. Luke's stands up to the bullying, intimidation, disruption, and self-serving and menacing actions of [Bundy, Rodriguez and their organizations]," Chris Roth, CEO of St. Luke's Health System, said in a sworn statement. "Inaction would signal that this type of behavior is acceptable in our community. It is not."
At a previous court hearing, a judge issued an order allowing the health system to seek up to $7.5 million in punitive damages. A jury trial in the case is set for July.