'Kidnapped': Family at center of Bundy-led protests sues St. Luke's, police, Idaho agency

Source: Idaho Statesman

‘Kidnapped’: Family at center of Bundy-led protests sues St. Luke’s, police, Idaho agency

Angela Palermo
Fri, May 17, 2024 at 7:58 PM EDT·5 min read

The parents of the baby at the center of a child welfare case that prompted protests at hospitals led by far-right activist Ammon Bundy have filed a lawsuit naming St. Luke’s Health System, the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare, the city of Meridian and several individuals.

The lawsuit was filed March 27 by Marissa and Levi Anderson, the parents of the 10-month-old who was separated from them on March 11, 2022, after health authorities determined the child’s weight loss could threaten his life. Roughly a week after the state took custody of the child, he was returned to the Andersons.

Diego Rodriguez, the child’s grandfather and a close associate of Bundy’s, and Miranda Chavoya, the child’s aunt, also are plaintiffs in the suit, which asks for $10 million in damages.

The time in between the baby’s separation and return was marked by protests stirred by Bundy and Rodriguez — first at the St. Luke’s hospital in Meridian and then at its Boise complex. Bundy was arrested for his actions at the Meridian facility, and protests in Boise caused the hospital to go into lockdown. The health system later sued Bundy, Rodriguez and Bundy’s People’s Rights Network, winning over $50 million in damages.

The Andersons’ case was initially brought in Florida, where they now live, but ...

-snip-

Read more: https://www.yahoo.com/news/kidnapped-family-center-bundy-led-235859941.html