Anderson set for Monday court appearance

GRANGEVILLE — Sean L. Anderson, who was charged in connection with a July shootout with law enforcement officers, is scheduled to be arraigned in Second District Court here Monday.

A previous preliminary hearing for Anderson, 52, of Riggins, was waived, according to court records. During the arraignment, Anderson would be asked to enter a plea to the charge of felony aggravated assault on a peace officer, and the case would be scheduled for trial. He faces a potential maximum penalty of 25 years in prison.

Anderson was taken into custody July 23 after being injured in a shootout five days earlier with deputies from Lewis and Idaho counties and a Nez Perce Tribal Police officer. The confrontation that occurred in Ferdinand followed a traffic stop on U.S. Highway 12 from which Anderson allegedly fled. An Idaho State Police investigation revealed Anderson called the Idaho County Sheriff’s Office before being stopped at Ferdinand and allegedly threatened to shoot officers if they tried to stop him.

According to a probable cause affidavit, Anderson first fired on the officers with a sawed-off 12-gauge Winchester shotgun after his vehicle was blocked by the officers in a residential area of Ferdinand. All four officers then returned fire, and Anderson was hit in the face and did not fire a second round. He was taken to St. Joseph Regional Medical Center and later moved to Providence Sacred Heart Hospital in Spokane. Upon his release from the hospital, Anderson was taken into custody and later waived extradition to be returned to Idaho. He is being held in the Kootenai County Jail on a $1 million bond.

Shortly after his arrest a psychological evaluation was administered and a hearing held to determine whether Anderson was competent to proceed with the case. Latah County Prosecutor William W. Thompson confirmed Tuesday that Anderson was found competent.

Anderson and his wife, Sandra, were among the last four holdouts of an armed occupation of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in Burns, Ore. in 2016, along with Ammon Bundy of Emmett. During that standoff, Anderson was featured in a video posted online yelling: “American people better wake up and get here and fight for your country right now. It is on. If they stop you from getting here, kill them.”

Later, during a federal court hearing in Oregon releasing him from jail, Anderson apologized for the statements and said he was embarrassed about them.

He is being represented by the Idaho County public defender law firm of McFarland Law Offices.

Hedberg may be contacted at kathyhedberg@gmail.com or (208) 983-2326.