Ammon Bundy denied bankruptcy to pay multi-million-dollar defamation damages against St. Luke’s

SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4) — A federal judge ruled Tuesday that an Idaho anti-government activist could not file for bankruptcy to pay a multi-million-dollar defamation bill.

In March 2022, a baby was being transported to St. Luke’s Health System emergency room in Meridian, Idaho due to severe malnourishment. Soon after, anti-government activist, Ammon Bundy, spread narratives that the hospital was attempting to kidnap and traffic the baby, a lawsuit claims.

Bundy’s group, the People’s Rights Network, joined him in attempting to remove the child, leading to a large protest outside the hospital on March 15, 2022, despite there being no evidence of child trafficking or kidnapping.

The suit even alleged that multiple armed individuals entered the building during lockdown while the protest was ongoing.

St. Luke’s went on to file a defamation suit against Bundy, in which the court ordered him to pay the hospital over $50 million in damages.

Bundy filed for bankruptcy in order to pay the extensive damages. However, a federal judge in Utah concluded that Bundy was “fully adjudicated” during the original suit and denied him bankruptcy to avoid the charges imposed by the defamation ruling.

Bundy insisted he was innocent, calling the trial “illegitimate.”

The court found that Bundy’s actions were “malicious” and carried out to induce “deliberate or intentional injury,” citing precedent cases that lead to their decision. “The court’s hands are tied. The law is clear, and to hold otherwise would violate fundamental constitutional principles,” the court said.

St. Luke’s was ordered to submit a final amount that Bundy owes.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.