Residents split over militia presence

Some of the area residents say they are tired of the militia members still “patrolling” the area. Residents and travelers are calling the Mesquite police in record numbers, expressing worry about their safety from the hundreds of armed militia members who have stationed themselves alongside the highway. Bunkerville resident John Booth says:

Most of our neighbors have about the same opinions we have. They don’t like it. But they’re not really going to say anything about it.

Militia members have vowed to remain with Bundy to protect him from government attacks, though no imminent threat presents itself. Militia leader Jerry DeLemus says, “We haven’t been told by the Bundys that they’re ready for us to go.” Bundy explains why armed militia members are seen with him even at church:

The militia have been going with me everywhere. When I got to church, I said, ‘Leave your weapons in the car.’ They did. I guess there could have been weapons in the parking lot, but there were no weapons in the church house.

Some Bunkerville residents and civic leaders praise Bundy and the militia at a town hall meeting. They say the local police department did not do enough to to keep their citizens safe from the BLM, and express their concern for the amount of force they believe the BLM has used in attempts to convince Bundy to pay his grazing fees.