Ammon Bundy and others arrested after refusing to leave room inside Idaho Statehouse

Ammon Bundy and two other people were arrested on Tuesday in the Idaho Statehouse after they would not leave an auditorium, according to reports.

Ammon Bundy would not stand up and was wheeled away in the chair in which he was sitting, according to numerous outlets. 

Idaho legislators are participating in a special session related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Bundy and other protestors reportedly oppose proposed legislation meant to protect schools, businesses and government from lawsuits brought by individuals who contract the virus, according to The Associated Press.

"Bundy had led protesters who disrupted the special session of the Idaho Legislature for the past two days, and was in the auditorium for a committee hearing on a civil liability bill earlier in the day when two others were forcibly removed from the room after disrupting the proceedings," the Idaho Press reported. 

The Associated press said that Bundy on Tuesday was sitting in a chair intended for credentialed media.

Bundy and others on Monday reportedly entered the House gallery, and glass in a door broke amid what the Idaho Press described as "scuffling with police."

"He said police and lawmakers were itching to exert their authority after Monday’s incident," The AP noted. "He said he hadn’t instructed anyone to disrupt the meeting, and he challenged those who qualified as a credentialed member of the media."

“What does credentialed mean? Who is the freedom of the press for? Those who have credentials? No, it’s not,” Bundy told The Associated Press. “The freedom of the press is a protection for the people. Your credentials are great, and I think you guys do a much better job at it than we do, but the fact is the government is not supposed to say this person has the freedom of the press and has a right to be in a certain place and these people don’t.”

The Idaho Press reported that Bundy told the outlet he was displeased that "citizen journalists" had been removed from the hearing. "When Bundy was arrested after 5 p.m., the hearing he had briefly attended was long over, and both the House and Senate had adjourned for the day," the outlet reported.