Eric Parker sees irony in gun story
By Eric Valentine
ReGUNited. And it feels so good. Even Eric Parker could appreciate the irony involved (pardon the gun puns).
Years after having his two long guns and two pistols taken from him by federal agents for his involvement in the 2014 Cliven Bundy ranch standoff in Nevada, the Hailey resident has been given all his firearms back.
“This was the final box to check off,” Parker said. “I finally feel like the whole thing is behind me now.”
It gets more surreal.
The FBI agents met locally with Parker, who heads up the Real 3%ers of Idaho, just days after the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, when lawmakers were sent scurrying for safety as some of them had their lives threatened by a number of those who overran Capitol Police. The national 3%ers flag, which has no formal affiliation with Parker’s Idaho group, was one of several banners carried onto Capitol grounds that day. It should be clearly noted that Parker has publicly announced his group had nothing to do with the events of Jan. 6 and has said the local 3%ers, if anything, would physically protect against that sort of thing.
Parker had two of his four guns back in his possession months ago. But since the other two guns were brought to the Bundy ranch, they stayed in possession of the federal government as evidence. That case was declared a mistrial when the court ruled the government failed to turn over evidence and failed to disclose surveillance camera footage and federal snipers stationed by Bundy’s house. Then, in August, a federal appeals court in San Francisco denied the Justice Department’s motion for a retrial. And that meant Parker’s Second Amendment right to have his guns returned kicked in.
“This has been a two-year effort,” Parker said. “They finally ran out of excuses to keep my guns.”
Parker said the lead FBI agent locally had always been cooperative and professional with him and that he was always an open book with them.
“They can’t write me an apology letter saying ‘Sorry for the hassle,’ but it felt like the district of Idaho was kind of doing that,” said Parker, referring to the effort the agent made to meet up with him where Parker could sign an affidavit and receive his pistol and long gun.
