Update: Canceled Caldwell Football Game Last Year Due to Ammon Bundy or Phone Call Threats?

In October 2020, Ammon Bundy attended a football game at Caldwell High School, where his son was playing football for Emmett High School.

Bundy stood outside the fence because he refused to put a mask on to enter the stadium. The game was canceled at halftime for what law enforcement said were threats to the school made by calls to Canyon County Dispatch, none of them by Bundy.

Idaho Dispatch followed up on the investigation, and through a Public Records Request, we learned that Bundy would not be charged with trespassing for the incident.

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In the 54-page document, a page titled “Canyon County Prosecuting Attorney Case Report Form,” the document marks a box titled “Case Not Filed.” As a reason cited for the case not being filed, the document says, “Case cannot be proven beyond a reasonable doubt.”

Bundy tried to pay to enter the stadium during the game, but the school said masks were required. So Bundy and several people that were with him decided to watch the game from outside the stadium near a fence and offered to pay so they could watch from there instead.

Caldwell High officials said that was not acceptable, and Bundy either had to leave the premises, watch the game from inside the stadium with a mask on, or go to Brother’s Park to try and watch the game. Officials also told Bundy that the game would be canceled at halftime if he did not comply with their demands.

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Bundy refused to leave, and Caldwell police eventually arrived on the scene but told Bundy they would not physically remove him.

At halftime, the game was canceled. After the game ended, police told the media that the game was canceled due to threats from phone calls that came into Canyon County Dispatch.

However, in the Public Records Request, School Resource Officer Eric Phillips, in his report, indicates that the school staff was already on their way to cancel the game because Bundy refused to leave the premises.

Here is part of the statement from Phillips in his report (emphasis from Idaho Dispatch),

Canyon County Sheriff’s Office notified us over the radio that threats of a shooting had come in. Due to my concern of a potential shooting, I met with Lt. Rice and spoke with him about the threats. We agreed I needed to notify the administrators for C.H.S. immediately since they were in the process of calling the football game to end, and it was halftime.

According to Phillip’s statement, he says that the administrators were already on their way to cancel the game and that it was already halftime. The police then informed the administrators of the potential threats, according to Phillips’s report.

Last year, Idaho Dispatch attempted to reach the Caldwell police for further explanation but we could not get a comment from them at the time.

The report does not mention that any charges are pending against any of the callers who called Canyon County Dispatch that day.

As Idaho Dispatch has the report in hand, it appears that the investigation has been concluded. Typically, files cannot be obtained through a Public Records Request until the investigation is complete and is no longer “active.”

What do you think about this case?

Should Bundy have been charged with trespassing? Why do you believe the game was canceled?

Let us know in the comments below.