Illegal or not, county commissioner shouldn’t be intervening on behalf of Ammon Bundy
Ada County Commissioner Ryan Davidson’s request for a judge to “accommodate” Ammon Bundy, who failed to appear in court because he refused to wear a mask in the Ada County Courthouse, raises serious concerns.
The Idaho 97 Project, a new group opposed to extremism and disinformation, has asked the Idaho Attorney General’s Office to investigate Davidson.
We are concerned that Davidson used his position as an elected official to exert influence or put pressure on a judge.
Davidson on Monday asked Magistrate Judge David Manweiler “if there was any accommodation” that could be made after Bundy and another man were unable to attend trials connected to their trespassing arrests at the Idaho Statehouse last summer.
As nonelected, ordinary citizens, not many of us could even imagine trying to pull something like that with a judge.
Some have suggested Davidson’s actions could have violated Idaho Code 18-1353, which considers it a felony when someone “privately addresses to any public servant who has or will have an official discretion in a judicial or administrative proceeding any representation, entreaty, argument or other communication with purpose to influence the outcome on the basis of considerations other than those authorized by law.”
We won’t weigh in here on whether Davidson broke the law. That will be for the Attorney General’s Office to decide.
Even if you are to give Davidson the benefit of the doubt, when he says he was “just trying to resolve a situation” or trying to “help put an end to the protest” that had gathered outside the courthouse, this is troubling, as well.
Why is our Ada County commissioner trying to “resolve a situation” on behalf of Ammon Bundy?
This is not your job, Commissioner Davidson. Get back to work and do the job you got elected to.
“As an elected official, I’m very opposed to the current COVID restrictions that are in place by the Idaho Supreme Court,” Davidson told the Idaho Press. “I’m working on finding a solution to that. I’m working to have people be able to get into the courthouse without masks and social distancing. That’s my personal belief.”
Again, that’s not your job, and just because that’s your personal belief doesn’t mean you have license to intervene.
Davidson, newly elected in November, shows an egregious lack of understanding of his job.
He has been seen at Ada County Commission meetings in the Ada County Courthouse not wearing a mask.
Regarding a decision on nominating someone to the Central District Health Board in January, Davidson asked, “Are we required to make the appointment on the record, by vote, or can we deliberate now and issue our votes behind the scenes?”
We’re also concerned about Davidson’s involvement with Bundy and some of his supporters. Davidson last year was also seen at a protest against a Black Lives Matter rally in Boise, protesting alongside a group of Nazis.
As commissioner, Davidson has taken an oath to uphold the law. He should not be asking the judicial branch to bend the law for one of his buddies, which, regardless of his statements, is exactly what he was trying to do.
Ammon Bundy doesn’t deserve to be martyred for not wearing a mask. Bundy was informed of the law. Every citizen has three options when it comes to the law: obey it, break it, or work to change it. Bundy had all three options at his disposal, and he chose to break it. He is subject to the same consequences as any other citizen.
In the meantime, commissioner Davidson needs to stay in his lane and do the job that he was hired to do.