An Idaho rancher was “needlessly” killed by two deputies at the scene of an accident last week, according to family members present when he was gunned down.

Jack Yantis died Nov. 1 in a murky exchange of gunfire with two Adams County deputies along a dark, open stretch of highway. Yantis had responded to the scene after one of his bulls was struck by a station wagon after sundown. This much is agreed upon: at some point, something went wrong and Yantis was killed during an incident in which he and the two deputies all fired their weapons, according to authorities.

“In this case, I stood 10 feet away and watched two deputies escalate the situation and needlessly kill a man”

– Rowdy Paradis

But Yantis’ wife, Donna, and nephew, Rowdy Paradis, told the Idaho Statesmanon Saturday that the actions of police directly led to the death of the 62-year-old Council resident.

“In this case, I stood 10 feet away and watched two deputies escalate the situation and needlessly kill a man,” Paradis told the Statesman.

The family’s version of events begins with Yantis being informed of the accident around 6:45 p.m. An Adams County dispatcher told the rancher he’d have to go down to the highway and put down his 2,500-pound black Gelbvieh bull, whose leg was injured by the crash and who was becoming agitated. As Yantis was making the necessary arrangements to take care of the animal, the deputies began shooting at the bull, but failed to kill it, instead reportedly hitting it in the gut, prolonging its misery and causing the bull to become even more distressed.

Yantis finally got his .204-caliber rifle and stood about 2 feet from the bull, prepared to shoot it when “one cop turned around and grabbed [Yantis’] shoulder and jerked him backward,” according to Paradis. The rifle’s barrel was still pointed at the ground at this point, the family contends, though Paradis does allow that the gun may have fired, perhaps accidentally. A deputy said later that he had been grazed by a bullet, according to a family friend also present, who contends he didn’t see any “blood,” “torn thread” or “powder burn.” The official statement on the incident also alleges that one of the deputies suffered a minor injury.

That discharge prompted the deputies to turn their guns on Yantis, shooting him in the chest and abdomen, ultimately killing him, the family said. When Donna and Paradis approached Yantis, the deputies “threw us on the middle of Highway 95, searched us and handcuffed us, and wouldn’t let us go take care of Jack,” Donna said. Paradis said one of the deputies pointed a gun at his head.

During the incident, Donna suffered a heart attack. She was in critical condition for several days before being upgraded to serious.

The bull was left to bleed out on the road, and police ignored their pleas to humanely kill the animal, the family said.

The deputies were wearing body cameras, Adams County Sheriff Ryan Zollman told the Statesman on Thursday, though it’s unclear whether they recorded the incident. A dash camera in the deputies’ vehicle was not turned on, Zollman said. The investigation is currently in the hands of the Idaho State Police.

“I’m a transparent person, I will give you the facts when I know the facts,” Zollman told KTVB. “I’m not hiding anything from anybody.”

COUNCIL, Idaho — Idaho State Police are investigating after a Council rancher was shot and killed Sunday by deputies with the Adams County Sheriff’s Office.

The incident began when a Subaru station wagon crashed into a bull on US 95 north of Council at about 6:45 p.m. Emergency responders and Adams County deputies responded and were working to extricate the two people inside the car. Adams County Sheriff Ryan Zollman said the bull, which was injured in the collision, started charging at emergency responders and other vehicles.

“The bull was very agitated and was aggressive to emergency services, as well as the other cars coming up and down the highway,” he said.

Deputies were getting ready to put the animal down when the bull’s owner, 62-year-old Jack Yantis, arrived on the scene with a rifle. Zollman said dispatchers had called Yantis after the crash, telling him that the bull that was hit appeared to be his, and was down on the highway near his house.

What happened next is still under investigation, but Zollman said there was an altercation and Yantis and both deputies all fired their weapons.

Yantis was fatally wounded and died at the scene. One of the deputies suffered a minor injury.

An emotional Zollman said Monday that his thoughts went out to everyone involved, and that his office took the shooting very seriously. ISP has taken over the investigation to prevent a conflict of interest.

“This is going to be a big hit to this community,” Zollman said. “The gentleman involved, Mr. Yantis, was a well-known cattle rancher around here. It’s just a sad deal for everybody involved, for the whole community.”

The deputies who shot Yantis have been placed on paid leave. Their names have not yet been released.

“To the best of my knowledge, this is the first officer-involved shooting that Adams County has ever had,” Zollman said.

Yantis’ wife, Donna Yantis, suffered a heart attack after learning that her husband had been shot, family members said. She was taken to a Saint Alphonsus Regional Medical Center in Boise, where she was listed in critical condition Monday.

Both people inside the Subaru were taken to a Boise hospital by air ambulance. Their conditions are unknown. The bull was killed, although authorities are still investigating whether a bullet from Yantis’ gun or one of the deputies’ weapons killed the animal.

The area where the bull was hit is open range, Zollman said, and darkness had fallen by the time the Subaru crashed into the black bull in the roadway.

“It’s not uncommon for us to have these kind of livestock versus vehicle accidents,” he said. “Typically they don’t turn out this way.”

US 95 was blocked until 3:05 a.m. The investigation is ongoing.

Former Jefferson County Sheriff Blair Olsen

RIGBY, Idaho — A former Jefferson County Sheriff was sentenced Monday to a total of 15 days in jail for misusing public funds.

Blair Olsen was convicted on three felony charges in May to 15 days in jail, followed by 60 more days that Olsen has the option to waive in lieu of community service.

Olsen was also ordered to pay approximately $1,000 in fines and $2,500 in restitution to the county to cover the cost of his theft, which involved purchasing a cellphone and service for his wife’s personal use on the county’s dime.

Attorney General Lawrence Wasden, the prosecutor in Olsen’s trial, explained that the sheriff’s actions erodes the public’s trust in government.

“Public corruption cases are serious for the simple fact that the offender holds a position of public trust and authority, and then takes advantage of that position. This remains true if the crime results in the loss of even the smallest amount of public funds. But the real loss in these cases is to the erosion of trust and faith citizens have in their government. Tackling public corruption is essential to restoring that trust and faith citizens must have in their government and those elected to lead it.”

Despite substantial evidence, the county chose to keep the sheriff employed, refusing to even place him on administrative leave while he was being investigated for misusing their resources. The recent conviction has since forced Olsen to forfeit his office.

An encounter that started with a Meridian police officer talking to a man about lingering in a crosswalk has become a test of what is protected free speech — and what constitutes a threat against a police officer. At stake is a felony charge punishable by up to five years in prison and a $50,000 fine.

Matthew Townsend was charged with felony witness intimidation after he “tagged” police — and family members of an officer — on a Facebook post in which he complained bitterly that his January arrest was unjust and should be dismissed. He’s accused of resisting and obstructing officers, a misdemeanor.

Townsend is a restaurant cook who ran unsuccessfully for Meridian City Council in 2013 and for Ada County coroner in 2014. He’s a gun rights activist who promotes public awareness of open carry laws. He’s also involved in Cop Watch, part of the police accountability movement, and frequently records police stops.

In his March 18 Facebook post, Townsend said that if the misdemeanor charge wasn’t dropped, he planned to begin a nonviolent “shame campaign” against the officer who arrested him, staging protests in the officer’s neighborhood, causing “upsets” at homeowners association meetings, sending mailers and more.

“I know where you all live – this is notification of knowledge and future protests, not a threat,” Townsend wrote.

At the close of the Facebook post, the 29-year-old said the state has a few options in dealing with him. He suggested that he could engage in “non-violent” retaliation and asked: “Do you want to be the focus of my rage?” He said another option was for the police to kill him and then deal with those who love him.

Facebook tagging is a way to share a posted message to specific people and make it more likely they will see it. Townsend tagged the Meridian Police Department, family members of Cpl. Richard Brockbank, Meridian Mayor Tammy de Weerd, local media and numerous others.

Ada County prosecutors say Townsend’s social media message crossed the line. The amended criminal complaint says Townsend communicated “a promise and/or threat” to a police officer, his friends and family and outlined consequences if his criminal charge wasn’t dismissed.

FREE TO CRITICIZE POLICE

Aaron Tribble, Townsend’s attorney, said the only thing that his client was threatening to do was protest.

“You have a right to complain about public officials when you think they’re doing something wrong or corrupt,” Tribble said. The First Amendment, he said, allows the public to criticize public officials.

“He didn’t make any kind of physical threat,” Tribble said. “He didn’t say, ‘I’m going to hurt you, I’m going to hurt your family.’ … If you wanted to threaten someone physically, why would you go around tagging news stations?”

According to court records, Brockbank, the officer who arrested Townsend in January, testified about the Facebook post at the preliminary hearing April 15.

“We all want to be safe and secure in our homes. Someone telling me that they know where I live in an adversarial manner like this, I view that as a threatening statement,” he said. He noted that he was aware of an officer in Idaho Falls whose house had been burned by an angry suspect.

Meridian Police Deputy Chief Tracy Basterrechea manages the department’s Facebook page and was the first in the department to see Townsend’s post. He said in court that his biggest concern was that Brockbank’s family was tagged on the post.

At Townsend’s pretrial conference March 19 on the misdemeanor charge, prosecutors apprised Fourth District Judge James Cawthon on Townsend’s Facebook post. Cawthon ordered Townsend to untag Brockbank’s family members from the post. It appears from the post’s edit history that Townsend did so, and also deleted some of the original post.

A warrant for Townsend’s arrest was issued March 20, and he was taken into custody just before 9 p.m. that night, according to the sheriff’s office. He was booked into the Ada County Jail, but within a few hours posted $25,000 bond.

Townsend was in Ada County Court last week for a preliminary hearing. He is set to enter a plea May 15; a trial date has not been set.

ORIGINAL CHARGE

The misdemeanor arrest that riled up Townsend occurred around 6:30 p.m. Jan. 30 on East Franklin Road and North Main Street in Meridian, according to the probable cause affidavit.

Officer Brockbank said he observed Townsend – dressed in a black robe, holding a sign and plastic pick ax – enter the crosswalk at the corner when the crossing light was flashing, the affidavit says. Brockbank said the crosswalk light turned solid, indicating “don’t walk,” when Townsend stopped in the middle of the crosswalk to face traffic and raise the sign and pick ax.

Tribble said Townsend was dressed as the grim reaper and carrying a plastic sickle. Townsend has said that he was protesting taxes that day.

Brockbank said in the affidavit that Townsend paused about five seconds before continuing in the crosswalk. Brockbank said he pulled over to talk to Townsend about crosswalk laws.

“I approached the male and he immediately began to tell me he had not broken the law,” the affidavit says. “I explained to the male that he had broken the law by stopping in traffic and preventing eastbound traffic from going.”

Brockbank said Townsend pointed the plastic pick ax at him while they were talking and refused to put it down. The officer said he took the plastic ax and cuffed Townsend only after he refused to provide identification and walked away, ignoring several requests to stop.

Townsend was booked into the Ada County Jail on a charge of resisting and obstructing officers. That’s a misdemeanor that carries a punishment of up to a year in jail and a fine of up to $1,000. A trial date was set for June, then vacated. A pretrial conference on that charge has been set for July 8.

‘LIBERTY ACTIVIST’

Townsend works at a Boise restaurant, according to his application to have a public defender appointed for him. He obtained a public defender, then opted to have Tribble represent him.

A “Free Matthew Townsend” Facebook page has been created to raise awareness about the charges against him. His advocates have picketed on his behalf, and some appear in an online video. The Free Matthew Townsend Facebook page, which calls the Meridian man a “liberty activist who was targeted by police for official retaliation,” has more than 500 “likes.”

Like-minded individuals around the country are paying attention. A representative with the online website copblock.org, which describes itself as a “diverse group of individuals united by their shared goal of police accountability,” asked to record video of one of Townsend’s hearings. That request was denied. Fourth District Judge Theresa Gardunia said the court must be sensitive to victims, and that the group requesting to record is a non-traditional media outlet that concentrates on efforts that are “activist in nature.”

“The court is a legal sanctuary where disputes are resolved in a civilized, respectful and dignified manner while governed by the rule of law,” Gardunia’s ruling said. “Preservation of this process is too important to jeopardize the outcome of any proceeding in an effort to satisfy one group, entity or individual’s appetite for Internet fodder.”

BOISE, Idaho — The Idaho House of Representatives voted 57-11 in favor of HB 301 on Tuesday. The bill purportedly “Repeals, amends and adds to existing law relating to the carrying of concealed weapons,” and removes the state requirement for a concealed-carry permit while outside the city limits.

The Idaho State Capitol in Boise

The bill includes an elected-official exemption, with less restrictions for state officials. Rep. Rick Youngblood, R-Nampa, despite voting for the bill, expressed an opposition to the exemption. “I personally call that a special privilege, one that I would not support personally. I don’t agree with any special privileges as a legislator that I might have over my constituents.”

Rep. Melissa Wintrow, D-Boise, spoke out against the bill. “I think that with our personal rights do come personal responsibility. In my view, if we’re going to hide a gun, then I do feel we should have a permit to do so.” Wintrow felt it was acceptable for Idaho to limit and regulate rights granted by the US constitution, adding “…if we are going to hide it, especially in public, I think that extra safety measure of having a permit is a good thing. One, you get training. And the other thing is we can do a background check.”