Idaho Dispatch

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A New Motion for Contempt of Court Filed in St. Luke’s vs. Ammon Bundy, Diego Rodriguez, et al. Case

By • May 3, 2023

A new motion for contempt of court has been filed against Diego Rodriguez in the ongoing lawsuit of St. Luke’s Hospital et al. vs. Ammon Bundy, Diego Rodriguez, et al.

In the memorandum in support of the motion for contempt, Holland & Hart, attorneys for St. Luke’s Hospital, detail what they call ‘harassment and intimidation’ of the court, counsel, parties to the suit, and witnesses. The memorandum is divided into categories. Under the heading, “attacks on the court and counsel,” they write,

“In a profoundly sophomoric but truly harassing manner, Rodriguez recently published a mocking post which states that the Court is corrupt and St. Luke’s counsel is a “dirty” “He/Him/His,” including a photoshopped image of Plaintiffs’ counsel, the Court, and Sheriff Wunder in bed together.”

It appears they are referring to this banner photo image from Rodriguez’s website, FreedomMan.org.

Rodriguez’s article accompanying the photo says in part,

“Hello, Dirty Erik, you moron! It’s called the 1st Amendment! It’s FREEDOM OF SPEECH. And no amount of legal manipulation can distort the truth of the 1st Amendment. Ammon can post whatever he wants to post, particularly and especially when he believes it to be true and has evidence to it’s truthfulness, just like I can call you “Dirty Erik He/Him/His Stidham.” Because you are dirty and wicked, you are a pervert, and I am 100% confident of those statements!

Additionally, the webpages in question (which you can see by the links below), do not intimidate, threaten, or harass anybody! They simply posit arguments that Ammon and others (including me), believe to be true and factual. And we’ve got plenty of proof, that has already been published, to demonstrate that they are facts.”

In the category called “harassment of parties,” Mr. Stidham of Holland & Hart explains,

“Rodriguez misrepresents Plaintiff Tracy Jungman as a “child trafficker” who is “responsible” for the Infant’s “kidnapping.” (posting distorted photos of Jungman on a skull background and titling the page “Child Trafficker Profile: Nurse Tracy Jungman). Rodriguez falsely accuses Plaintiff Chris Roth of “making money off of child trafficking[.]” And Rodriguez falsely states that Plaintiff Dr. Erickson referred the Infant to CPS, “use[s] threat of CPS to control her patients,” and is a kidnapper.”

In a section labeled “intimidation of third-party witnesses,” Stidham et al. writes,

“Rodriguez defames a social worker witness (specifically identified in the Protective Order) calling her “evil” and a “kidnapper,” posts unflattering photoshopped pictures of target, and posts pictures of her family. Rodriguez refers to a police officer (specifically identified in the Protective Order) as a “filthy pervert.” Even if Rodriguez was just a troubled person harassing witnesses online from some undisclosed basement in Florida, his acts would constitute violations of the Protective Order. But unfortunately, Rodriguez is more than just that, he is a leader in the People’s Rights Network (“PRN”) who can marshal tens of thousands of PRN members and others to his cause, exponentially increasing the force of his harassment and raising the intimidating prospect of violent action being taken by one of his followers.”

The memorandum in support of the motion for contempt calls on the court to punish Rodriguez for the images and statements made on his website. The memo recommends,

“The Court should act, through monetary and evidentiary sanctions, to punish Rodriguez and to prevent him from gaining an unjust advantage. By refusing to pay any of the monetary sanctions imposed on him to date, Rodriguez mocks the Plaintiffs and the legal system. The sanctions to date have been ineffectual in deterring or punishing Rodriguez. The Court must do more.”

The memorandum concludes by saying,

“Unless and until the Court is willing to act, Rodriguez will continue to mock the proceedings and harass and intimidate witnesses and the Plaintiffs will be denied justice. And absent action, the public will conclude that the legal system is too weak and ineffectual to check the actions of bullies like Rodriguez who profit on false conspiracies and defiance of the rule of law.”

Memorandum iso Motion for Contempt Against Diego Rodriguez

Six retained expert witnesses have been identified in documents filed in this case. These include,

  1. Jessica Flynn, who is being compensated at an hourly rate of $200
  2. Camille LaCroix, MD, DFAPA, whose compensation is explained: “hourly rate of $400 for all services but travel time (compensated at an hourly rate of $250) and testimony (compensated at an hourly rate of $600)”
  3. Michael Wheaton, MD, who is being compensated at an hourly rate of $500
  4. Dennis Reinstein, CPA, who is being compensated at an hourly rate of $500
  5. Devin Burghart, whose compensation is explained this way: “Mr. Burghart is not being personally compensated. The Institute for Research &Education on Human Rights is being compensated at the rate of $300.00 per hour including any testimony at deposition or trial.”
  6. Spencer Fomby, whose compensation is explained: “Mr. Fomby is being compensated at an hourly rate of $300 for all services except deposition appearance (hourly rate of $450), trial appearance ($2500 per day non-testifying, $3500 per day testifying), and travel time ($1500 per day plus expenses $0.545 per mile).”

Devin Burghart’s biography lists his qualifications as,

“Devin has researched and written on virtually all facets of the contemporary far-right movement. He has conducted groundbreaking research into the activities of far-right groups in North America and Europe. His written work includes investigative reporting on transnational white nationalist activity, “scientific” racism, anti-Semitism and Holocaust denial, the militia movement and far-right paramilitaries, white power music, anti-immigrant organizing and the new nativism, the Tea Party movement, COVID denial, and insurrectionists.”

Idaho Dispatch reached out to Mr. Burghart for comment, but have not received a response.

Spencer Fomby is a Training Captain for the Boise Police Department. He is listed here with a company called Seak: fomby Expert Witnesses – SEAK, Inc. (seakexperts.com).

Seak’s website says,

“SEAK is the expert witness training and preparation company. Our mission is to provide our clients with the Skills Education Abilities and Knowledge to succeed. We have trained many thousands of experts…”

Idaho Dispatch reached out to Mr. Fomby for comment, but have not received a response.

The document also lists eight non-retained expert witnesses. They are,

  1. Natasha Erickson, MD, St. Luke’s Hospital
  2. Tracy Jungman, NP, St. Luke’s Hospital
  3. Chris Roth, CEO, St. Luke’s Hospital
  4. Kate Fowler, CFO, St. Luke’s Hospital
  5. C.P. “Abbey” Abbondandolo, Senior Director of Security, St. Luke’s Hospital
  6. Dennis Mesaros, VP of Population Health, St. Luke’s Hospital
  7. Rachel Thomas, MD, Emergency Medicine of Idaho
  8. Jamie Price, MD, St. Luke’s Hospital

You can see the Plaintiffs’ Expert Witness Disclosure Filing below. We have omitted the exhibits, as the original document contained a total of 526 pages.

2023_03_13_Plaintiffs'_Expert_Disclosures_with_Exhibits

Photo courtesy of FreedomMan.org

Amazon Outlet


Tags: Ammon Bundy, Baby Cyrus, Devin Burghart, Diego Rodriguez, Erik Stidham, Freedom Man Press, FreedomManPAC, Holland and Hart, Judge Lynn Norton, Natasha Erickson, Peoples Rights, Spencer Fomby, St. Luke's Hospital, Tracy Jungman

25 thoughts on “A New Motion for Contempt of Court Filed in St. Luke’s vs. Ammon Bundy, Diego Rodriguez, et al. Case

  1. Diego cracks me up! I love this guy! He doesn’t care what anybody thinks. GIVE EM HELL DIEGO!

  2. Defamation usually requires a deliberate intent to publish false claims
    e.g. Google search found this:

    Defamation is a false statement of fact that harms another’s reputation. It is rooted in the idea that people have a right to their good name and reputation. To constitute defamation, the statement or statements must be false. In other words, falsity generally is a required element of a defamation claim.

    There’s already a lot of case law that addresses slander, libel etc.

  3. Uh oh, Diego hurt their whittle feewings. I’m sorry, but if these people are intimidated by a blog post and can use the courts to do their bidding, then where does it stop? They have severe anxiety phobias if they can be so easily triggered by a blog. And people are fed up with this feigning of victimhood. That’s why this video is getting so much attention.
    https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ea_JBhxPzHA&feature=youtu.be

  4. So funny. Diego doesn’t have “followers” in People’s Rights Network!

    Many people are sick of St Lukes and CPS kidnapping children for profit. We all need to keep speaking truths until they realize that by their petty lawsuit, it is actually bringing more negative attention upon themselves. The 1st Ammendment should never be enfringed upon. That officer was a sicko patting down Marissa. I hope the doctor and ALL those involved never have to experience what that wonderful family went through.

    You wouldn’t treat a calf or a foal that poorly and separate them from their mothers milk!

  5. Great article, Sarah!! Isn’t it sickening that people like Chris Roth project exactly what they are doing onto the defendants in this case(PR, Ammon, Diego). I hope at some point down the road, that everyone that participated in this law suit is ruined finanically and is put behind bars for kidnapping and aiding and abetting kidnapping.

  6. When the true reality of what the State of Idaho CPS did with baby Cyrus can be hidden and ignored and then convoluted by the Idaho so called “Legal System” and far left biased News Reporting of KTVB , that is really the basis of “GRIFTING”… Truth always wins in the end but getting back to the Truth in this matter seems to be NOT the goal of those intent on a massive defamation campaign against the family and friends of a small wonderful happy baby called “BABY CYRUS”… Stay strong and Stay vocal Friends and Family of BABY CYRUS!!! Thank YOU Idaho Dispatch!!!

  7. Make no mistake !!!!
    This is all being pushed and executed by Gov. Little, the department of health and welfare, and the political power brokers of Idaho the “IACI”. Of which there is no sainthood exhibited by st Luke’s; is a member of.
    Amon and concerned citizens exposed the secret back door deals that were being done with our stolen covid relief tax money while Gov Little and his electorate IACI secretly devided up hundreds of millions of dollars behind closed doors
    And defrauded the people of Idaho.
    This is weaponizing the court system to silence opposition or pure Marxism.
    This is the state of the union in Idaho. This is the good ole’ boy club using there ball batts to send a warning signal and groom those who would dare expose, challenge, resist them and expose their corruption.
    “Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter.”
    Isaiah 5:20

  8. Idaho citizens should consider looking into wrongful death as related to the “hospital protocol.” This should be investigated until the dead have been legally avenged and the propaganda lies completely exposed.

  9. This is nothing more than persecution by big money lawyers. St. Luke’s can afford to spend millions on this to drive Bundy and Diego into the ground – quite literally. It’s disgusting. There is no merit to these allegations.

  10. These F’ing ambulance chasers have nothing better to do than harass honest citizens trying to enjoy their lives. I truly hope the court finds their charges frivolous, vindictive, bullying, and award all court costs to the defendants. It’s high time that these bullies stop harassing innocent citizens.

  11. This is how a health organization devotes its resources? St. Lukes’ is a small part of big problem called CORPRATOCRACY (look it up) better known as fascism in the past but now that word as no meaning as everyone the left hates is a fascist even though they support fascist policies. As corporations seek to enforce woke ideology in full support of control freaks you all elect to steal and rob from the people; government laws are less relevant as corporate policies to infringe on rights replace illegal laws (with tacit consent of government). Boycott large corporations now or social credit system will force you to obey!

  12. These lawyers are nothing short of egotistical crybabies. St Luke’s and this firm show exactly how awful they really are by every stupid motion they file… ” oh my feelings are hurt, I better sue”. So, if you win, does that mean your feelings aren’t hurt? Nope. Does that mean the meme isn’t funny? Nope. It DOES mean the meme is HELLA funny! It DOES mean the more you people attack Rodriguez and Bundy , the worse you look.

  13. This entire case is about abuse of power. I went back and did a quick review of what happened to trigger the entire episode.

    1. Aaron Dykstra, a Nurse Practitioner employed by the Functional Medicine Clinic of Idaho called Child Protective Services because Marissa canceled an appointment for a weigh-in (well baby check) for Cyrus. Cyrus was having a hard time moving to solid foods which is not really an uncommon problem for some babies. In Cyrus’ previous appointment, he lost one ounce of weight. That is NOT a dire emergency and it is not indicative of child abuse. Dykstra committed medical malpractice when he called CPS.

    2. CPS worker Nice Loufoua did not personally investigate the claim of child abuse, she simply sent Marissa a text message and then called the police to take baby Cyrus away from his family. Loufoua is guilty of both dereliction of duty and filing a false police report attesting to facts that she did not personally did not witness.

    3. The police – simply following protocol but in the worst and most insensitive way.

    4. St. Luke’s – caught in the cross-fire. Once a legal process like child removal is invoked, the script is written. The legal issues have to be cleared up before anything else can happen.

    What should have happened? When the police got the black-eye for the way they handled the situation, they should have begun an investigation into the trigger events. Had they done that, maybe the whole thing could have been avoided.

    Across the nation, the problem American citizens are experiencing is an inverted power structure as exemplified by the protests in front of St. Lukes for their participation in the kidnapping of Baby Cyrus. St. Lukes response to the protests was to sue the leader of the People’s Rights Network, Ammon Bundy in civil court for defamation in an obvious demonstration of oppression of the voices of the people against institutional power.

    The People’s Rights network was initiated because of the imbalance of power between the institutions of government and their favored non-profits. This episode is a case study in how institutional power is being used for tyranny and oppression. Since all the money and the power is on the side of oppression, the people have no other recourse but to organize to fight it. No matter what happens to Ammon Bundy, the organization of ordinary American citizens to place in check the oppression of ordinary citizens will not stop. It can’t stop because we were not born to be slaves – not in America. Not now. Not ever.

    1. Great job in putting this in order, for people to see. Would you consider letting us copy this to share?

    2. Another alarming step in this nightmare was that the police dept didn’t immediately drop the resisting charge against Marissa and officers lied under oath that they saw baby Cyrus with “sunken eyes” and “lethargic“ the night they forced him out of her arms. Every person who has watched the video can plainly see that the baby was alert and healthy. He was not in imminent danger and the officers failed to correctly assess the situation and later doubled down on the lie under oath. The charge was eventually dropped, but no statement from meridian PD on how they audited and reprimanded the officers involved.
      This is the domino effect of corrupt people covering for one another. True to form, St Luke’s provided terrible patient care for baby Cyrus and he deteriorated in their possession. His medical record even states that he is a healthy baby with no medical interventions upon hospital arrival. He was healthy until downtown st Luke’s Boise imprisoned him and put him under severe duress. After a traumatic day of care at st Luke’s where he was denied nutrients from his mother’s breast milk, at Luke’s forced a feeding tube on him. St Luke’s came out looking terrible and all government agencies wouldn’t follow through on backing up their claims. CPS dropped the case, the criminals charges were dropped, and st Luke’s stands with a horrible black eye. Instead of dropping it they pursue the grandfather and feign defamation.

  14. A defamation suit should be filed a Erik Stidham at the same time he’s disbarred from ever again practicing in Idaho.

  15. When I was a child there was a saying, “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me!” The 1st Amendment gives all of us the RIGHT to say what we believe to be true. George Orwell stated, “Freedom of Speech is my right to say what you don’t want to hear!” This is precisely what this entire case is about. St. Lukes does not want anyone to hear what either Ammon Bundy or Diego Rodriguez have to say. They are mad as a wet hen about it! They want the Courts to shut these men up! They want to make an example of them. Sadly, they (St. Lukes and their hired hands at Holland and Hart) do not understand that WE ALL HAVE OUR OPINIONS and they are unable to STOP US from expressing them! This case should have been tossed and never seen the light of day! It is frivolous and retaliatory and should never have been accepted, which say A WHOLE LOT ABOUT THE JUDGE!

  16. If St. Luke’s wanted to convince the public that it wasn’t petty and tyrannical, they wouldn’t do it by throwing so much money on a frivolous lawsuit. No, I think they want to send a message. My, what thin skins they have!

  17. We, as Idaho citizens, possess the tools to fight back. Never ever use St. Luke’s medical facilities again.

  18. This is a sad time in history when we see so many attacks on normal American loving people ! I see so many comments , The media how they twist and turn the truth all over the place makes a person’s head spin! We’ve seen the video We’ve seen and heard truth yet still attacks ? Why? Now it’s all of a sudden a racial thing ,whites? Seriously? Have to be kidding me! Ever since back in the Butler days people have hung onto Idaho as just that , a white supremacist state ! Not true at all and I find this very disrespectful to our Beautiful state and the people who call it Home ! Born and raised here as many others, I have seen alot of changes and one thing I can honestly say is that we have Iove for our neighbors and for this country! Drama is Drama ! Truth is Truth ! It’s becoming very real who is DRAMA and who is TRUTH ! I pray for our state our country and our world! It’s time to leave the Drama media behind .the lies behind .and seek truth and light ! What’s even more interesting is if Idaho is so bad why are so many people moving here? Stop w the lies .Ammon and Diego are American loving guys w wonderful families who’ve been targeted as far have seen! It’s wrong it’s unjust! They have my prayers !!!and last but not least 1st amendments ! My question is Foias! How many working in govt , city , and county positions serving we the people actually have their sworn papers signed the oath of office to serve and protect Americans foreign and domestic? Do they all have them ?

  19. Amazing! Diego can marshall “tens of thousands” from what is a herd of stray cats. I will have to learn how he does this. It takes free food for us to gather a hundred.
    Me thinks Holland and Hart doth prevaricate much!

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