BOCC pays Rick Cramer $275,000 for unlawful trespass

By Soncirey Mitchell
Reader Staff

The Bonner County board of commissioners settled a legal dispute that began January 2024, when former-Chair Luke Omodt trespassed and performed a citizen’s arrest on frequent meeting attendees Rick Cramer and Dave Bowman. As part of the settlement, the county paid Cramer $275,000, and Chair Asia Williams read a public apology on behalf of the county during the Dec. 31 business meeting.

Omodt arrested and trespassed both men for alleged “disruptive and disorderly behavior [that] has interrupted the lawful meetings of Bonner County for months.” He further implicated Cramer in alleged “threats” made by Bowman via email, which Cramer’s attorney, Coeur d’Alene-based Daniel Sheckler, said “falsely maligned [him] as a safety threat” in a Dec. 31 new release.

“Mr. Cramer was peaceful and did not pose any safety threat, as shown on numerous videos. He was falsely arrested for exercising his constitutional right to attend meetings of the Bonner County commissioners,” said Sheckler. He later claimed that the trespass was “retaliation for [Cramer’s] political speech.”

Cramer previously petitioned the board to reconsider his trespass, given that he was not responsible for the alleged threats. According to minutes obtained through an April 9 public records request, Omodt, Bradshaw and Williams unanimously voted to accept his appeal in an April executive session.

The board also settled with Bowman on Dec. 5, awarding him a public apology and $199,999 in compensation for “physical injuries” and $1 for the “violation of Bowman’s constitutional/civil rights.”

“Together with Dave Bowman’s tort claim, Luke Omodt and Steve Bradshaw cost Bonner County approximately a half a million dollars,” wrote Sheckler in his Dec. 31 statement. “The taxpayers of Bonner County bear ultimate responsibility for the conduct and decisions of the elected officials that they choose to govern us. Choose wisely.”

The apology letter read by Williams affirmed the county’s “commitment to the protection of the constitutional rights of its citizens, including those rights protected by the First Amendment.”

“Bonner County recognizes that Mr. Cramer held it accountable to the Constitution and the laws of the state of Idaho with his tort claims and litigation in the federal court for the district court of Idaho,” Williams stated. “Bonner County accepts the reproach and will learn from this experience.”