Costs keep piling up in the civil judgment against anti-government activist Ammon Bundy related to his defamation case involving Idaho’s largest hospital system.
Late Thursday, federal bankruptcy judge William Thurman wrote Bundy owes St. Luke’s Health System and three of its workers $60.2 million. That’s counting interest and up from the original judgment of about $52 million.
Thurman ruled against Bundy in August, saying he willfully and maliciously defamed St. Luke’s in 2022.
Bundy falsely accused the hospital of kidnapping and trafficking children to make money in connection with child protective services.
Protests organized by Bundy also briefly shut down St. Luke’s downtown Boise hospital, forcing ambulances to reroute for a time.
He has repeatedly said he’s only exercising his First Amendment rights and that the health system is practicing “lawfare” to bankrupt him.
Bundy was not in court Thursday to comment on the decision.
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