Bombings Defendants Seek Dismissal Of Charges

Three defendants in a series of bank robberies and bombings filed a motion Friday declaring they are immune from prosecution because they are “ambassadors from the Kingdom of Yahweh.”

The motion, filed in U.S. District Court, asks that all charges against them be dropped.

Yahweh is an English rendering of the Hebrew name for God. The name is frequently used by members of white separatist groups.

The 14-page motion, which contained nearly 50 biblical references, claims the defendants should enjoy immunity in the same manner as foreign diplomats.

The motion, signed by all three defendants, was filed a day after a hearing in which one of the men, Verne Jay Merrell, made similar demands that charges be dropped.

The judge, Frem Nielsen, largely ignored Merrell’s frequent references to Yahweh, saying at one point, “We’ll deal with that later.”

A grand jury on Dec. 5 indicted Merrell, 51, Charles Barbee, 44, and Robert Berry, 42, all of Sandpoint, on 12 counts involving bank robberies, use of pipe bombs, auto theft and conspiracy. They are charged with bombing a Planned Parenthood clinic, a newspaper office and a bank during the course of two bank robberies April 1 and July 12 in the Spokane Valley.

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