By KEN RITTER Associated Press Mar 9, 2017
LAS VEGAS (AP) — A medical complaint by a defendant with a history of health problems briefly interrupted a trial Thursday in Las Vegas for six men accused of wielding guns during a 2014 armed standoff between followers of Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy and federal agents.
An attorney for Gregory Burleson rose suddenly during testimony and told Chief U.S. District Judge Gloria Navarro that Burleson needed immediate attention.
Attorneys and spectators in the courtroom said Burleson became pale and his hands were shaking when the judge called a two-hour break.
Burleson, 53, of Arizona is blind, diabetic and uses a wheelchair. His attorney, Terrence Jackson, has argued several times for Burleson’s release from jail, saying he wasn’t getting proper medical treatment.
Burleson once told the judge he feared dying in federal custody.
During the break, Jackson told The Associated Press that Burleson has a history of seizures and felt that he was having another one.
When court reconvened, Burleson was back in the courtroom in his wheelchair, and Clark County Sheriff Joe Lombardo was back in the witness box.
The judge said medics checked Burleson and reported that his vital signs were normal but he might have been dehydrated.
Jackson said Burleson told him he was willing to go forward.
“He wants to resolve this matter in a timely way,” the attorney said.
Burleson and co-defendants Eric Parker, Orville Scott Drexler, Steven Stewart, Todd Engel and Richard Lovelien are the first of 17 defendants to stand trial in the standoff near the Bundy ranch, about 80 miles northeast of Las Vegas.
Each is accused of 10 charges including conspiracy, firearm offenses and assault on a federal officer. Each could face up to 101 years in prison if convicted of all charges.
