Family farm in Idaho faces worker shortage as Trump administration immigration raids escalate
ABC News
(NEW YORK) — The U.S. Labor Department is warning of a potential food crisis linked to President Trump’s immigration raids – and one family-owned farm is caught in the middle.
“The near total cessation of the inflow of illegal aliens combined with the lack of an available legal workforce, results in significant disruptions to production costs and threatening the stability of domestic food production and prices for U.S consumers,” according to a Department of Labor report submitted earlier in October.
Owyhee Produce, a third-generation agricultural business in Idaho, is now facing worker shortages in the wake of the Trump administration’s increasing deportation raids.
Shay Myers, Owyhee Produce’s general manager, said the farm typically has 300 workers at peak harvesting times, with roughly 82 H-2A visa employees, who are temporary, seasonal agricultural workers from abroad.
According to Myers, these seasonal workers – some from Mexico, some from South Africa and other countries – are granted a visa for up to nine months after being interviewed to determine whether they qualify. Owyhee then provides their travel to the farm, and their housing – “everything, really, when they’re here except for food and clothing. That’s part of the requirements,” said Myers.
Given the cost and requirements, it may seem easier to hire local workers instead. Not so, according to Myers.
“We would love to hire people from here. The reality is that we can’t find the numbers of people here,” Myers told ABC News. “We’re in a rural area, number one. Number two: This is hard work. It is difficult work, and there are lots of people that are not willing to do it.”
Mauricio Sol, a seasonal worker at Owyhee, said 90% of the workforce at the farm is from Mexico, but it is becoming more difficult to find seasonal agricultural workers due to increased concerns about possible ICE raids.
“We all come on the H-2A visa program, so we come all here legally by the season, just for the season, and then we go back to Mexico,” Sol told ABC News. “We usually get a lot of applications. We’re not getting that many now because people is afraid of that even when they are legally here, they’re getting arrested for no reason.”
James O’Neill, the director of Legislative Affairs for the American Business Immigration Coalition, which describes itself as “a bipartisan coalition of over 1,700 employers and CEOs from across the country to provide a strong and unified voice seeking lasting immigration solutions,” says that President Trump’s immigration raids are hurting agricultural labor forces and could lead to higher food prices.
“It’s absolutely impacting the labor force,” O’Neill told ABC News. “Nationwide, the USDA’s ag labor survey suggests that somewhere between 50 and 60 percent of our farm labor workforce is undocumented immigrants.”
“And if that’s the case, if we were to deport them all overnight, then that’s 60% of the workforce, meaning that’s 60% of the supply that’s not being met without a shift in demand. And I think anyone that understands economics knows that means higher prices for them at the grocery store,” O’Neill said.
A September report by the U.S. Department of Agriculture Research Service estimated that “about 40 percent” of “hired crop farmworkers lack legal immigration status.”
Myers said he wants to share Owyhee’s story in hopes of bringing attention to the plight faced by seasonal agricultural workers across the country, “because it’s wrong not to.”
“I have a voice, I have reach. I have people that will listen,” Myers told ABC News. “And because I am a conservative and a Republican, people assume that I would have a different perspective here, and this is my reality.”
“I love these people. I love the culture, and I love the effort that they make. And ethically, to continue to not fix this problem is absolutely completely wrong.” Myers said. “We as Americans try to do the right thing. Let’s do the right thing.”
ABC News reached out to the U.S. Department of Labor for comment but was told that their press team was unavailable due to the ongoing government shutdown.
Martin County Sheriff’s Office / Handout/Anadolu via Getty Images
(NEW YORK) — One year ago, Ryan Routh allegedly tried to kill Donald Trump during his campaign for reelection as U.S. president.
Federal prosecutors on Monday will begin the process of trying to prove that claim when they start selecting a jury for a trial they have warned could quickly devolve into a “circus.”
Routh, a 59-year-old construction worker from North Carolina and Hawaii, will be representing himself during the month-long trial despite not being a lawyer and having limited legal experience. He has pleaded not guilty to five criminal charges that risk sending him to prison for life, including attempting to kill a presidential candidate and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence.
Since taking over his own defense, Routh, according to court filings, has requested a “beatdown session” with Trump, asked to compete for his life in a round of golf with the president, and proposed being part of a prisoner swap instead of going to trial.
U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon — a Trump appointee who oversaw and dismissed one of the president’s criminal cases — is allowing Routh to defend himself but has imposed strict rules to prevent the trial from spiraling into what she called “calculated chaos.”
“I will be representing myself moving forward; It was ridiculous from the outset to consider a random stranger that knows nothing of who I am to speak for me,” Routh wrote in a letter to Judge Cannon in July. “I am so sorry, I know this makes your life harder.”
‘I tried my best’ Prosecutors allege that Routh planned his attack for months, then hid in the bushes of Trump’s Palm Beach golf course with a rifle in the predawn hours of Sept. 15.
With Trump just one hole away from Routh’s position, a Secret Service agent spotted a rifle poking out of the tree line, according to prosecutors. Routh allegedly fled after the agent fired at him, and was later arrested after being stopped on a nearby interstate.
Routh faces five criminal charges, including attempted assassination of a major presidential candidate, using a firearm in furtherance of a crime, assaulting a federal officer, possessing a firearm as a felon, and using a gun with a defaced serial number.
To secure a conviction, prosecutors will need to prove that not only did Routh intend to kill Trump, but that he also took at least one “substantial step” to carry out his plan.
According to prosecutors, Routh set his plan into motion after the unsuccessful attempt on Trump’s life in Butler, Pennsylvania, which Routh was not involved in. Prosecutors say Routh acquired a military-grade rifle, purchased more than a dozen burner phones, and researched Trump’s movements and campaign events.
Prosecutors also allege that Routh tried to purchase anti-aircraft weapons the month before his alleged assassination attempt, coordinating with someone he believed was a Ukrainian with access to military weapons. He allegedly shared a photo of Trump’s private plane, discussed the price of the weapon, and wrote, “I need equipment so that Trump cannot get elected.”
In addition to ammunition and the weapon allegedly used by Routh, which federal agents plan to bring into the courtroom to show the jury, prosecutors plan to use Routh’s own words against him during the trial.
According to court filings, Routh, in the months leading up to the assassination attempt, dropped off a box with a friend that included a note detailing his plans..
“This was an assassination attempt on Donald Trump, but I failed you. I tried my best and gave it all the gumption I could muster. It is up to you now to finish the job; and I will offer $150,000 to whomever can complete the job,” the handwritten letter said. “He [the former president] ended relations with Iran like a child and now the Middle East has unraveled.”
Routh has argued in court filings that prosecutors are misrepresenting the letter by only using a portion of it. and that the entire note is about “gentleness, peacefulness, and non-violent caring for humanity.”
Prosecutors also allege that Routh expressed similar sentiments in a 2023 self-published book, in which he encouraged readers to “assassinate Trump” in part due to his foreign policy with Iran. They also allege that Routh boasted about his alleged crimes in emails from jail.
Prosecutors have disclosed more than 40 potential witnesses and hundreds of exhibits, including forensic evidence allegedly tying Routh to the weapon found at the crime scene.
‘Character is the whole of this entire case’ After being represented by federal defense lawyers for months, Routh dismissed his lawyers earlier this year. Though his former lawyers will be present in court on standby, Routh will address the jury, question witnesses, and participate in the jury selection process.
In handwritten letters from prison while awaiting trial, Routh suggested his defense would center on his character as part of an effort to prove he lacked the intent to kill Trump.
“Character is the whole of this entire case — there is nothing else,” he wrote. “If one argues lack of intent then that totally hinges on character and character alone.”
Judge Cannon has warned Routh against representing himself and threatened to sanction him or revoke his ability to maintain his pro se status if he engages in “vexatious, obstructionist, or obstreperous behavior.”
Routh will wear business attire during the trial and be permitted to use a podium; however, he will not be allowed to roam the courtroom freely.
Prosecutors have expressed concern about Routh’s antics.
Routh’s self-representation has already created issues, according to Judge Cannon, who has sharply rebuked some of his tactics in court filings. She accused Routh of using the Federal Rules of Evidence to create “calculated chaos” and called one of his potential witnesses “a farce to bring about obviously ludicrous and absurd results in a court proceeding.”
Routh’s witness list included two dozen people, including a group of Palestinian activists and professors, his own son, a former girlfriend, and Trump himself.
In one court filing, Routh offered to drop his objections to most of the other evidence disputes if prosecutors allowed him to question Trump, whom he has described as a “mad fool.” He has also requested “female strippers,” asked for a putting green to prepare for a golf match with Trump, and proposed brawling with Trump.
“I think a beatdown session would be more fun and entertaining for everyone; give me shackles and cuffs and let the old fat man give it his worst,” he wrote. “A round of golf with the rascist pig, he wins he can execute me, I win I get his job.”
Routh family told investigators that while Routh had no diagnosed mental illness, he “fixated” on things, multiple sources briefed on the investigation told ABC News.
Judge Cannon has curtailed some of Routh’s potential arguments, including trying to justify his actions, claiming he did not plan to follow through with the alleged assassination, and encouraging the jury to exercise its nullification power. She has also clamped down on his witness list, allowing him to call experts and a few friends who could testify to his character.
‘Appearance of impartiality’ Jury selection, which begins Monday morning in the Alto Lee Adams federal courthouse in Fort Pierce, Florida, is expected to take three days. Attorneys will question three sets of 60 people to settle on twelve jurors and four alternates.
Opening statements are expected to take place as early as Wednesday afternoon, and the trial is scheduled to take 2-4 weeks.
Judge Cannon has opted to keep the jury anonymous and partially sequester them during the trial, with federal marshals picking up and dropping off the jurors from a confidential location daily.
Routh unsuccessfully tried to have Judge Cannon recuse herself from the case to prevent an “appearance of impartiality” stemming from her association with Trump, who appointed Cannon to her position.
Cannon oversaw the criminal case regarding Trump’s retention of classified documents after leaving the White House 2021, and dismissed the case on a novel legal theory that was widely criticized by legal scholars. Trump has repeatedly commended Judge Cannon’s actions overseeing his case — calling her the “absolute model of what a judge should be” — and one of Cannon’s recent law clerks is now in a senior Department of Justice position.
“Although Mr. Trump is the alleged victim here, he previously served as President of the United States. While in office, he nominated Your Honor to her current position as a U.S. District Judge on the Southern District of Florida. Your Honor thus owes her lifetime appointment to the alleged victim in this criminal case,” Routh’s former lawyers argued, adding that Trump could still nominate her to a higher court.
Judge Cannon denied the request to recuse herself, concluding that Routh could not identity a legal basis that required recusal and pushing back against some of his claims.
“I have never spoken to or met former President Trump except in connection with his required presence at an official judicial proceeding, through counsel. I have no ‘relationship to the alleged victim’ in any reasonable sense of the phrase,” she said.
(DES MOINES, Iowa) — A now-former school superintendent who was detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents has been charged by federal prosecutors in Iowa with one count of being an “illegal alien in possession of firearms,” according to court records.
Former Des Moines Public School Superintendent Ian Roberts was charged by complaint on Wednesday, according to the case docket. The complaint remains under seal.
He is set for an initial appearance Thursday afternoon before a magistrate judge. The docket indicates that the appearance will be by video.
The docket also indicates that he was arrested on Thursday. He had been in ICE detention at the Woodbury County Jail in Sioux City, though he has since been taken into custody by the Department of Justice on a federal warrant for his arrest, according to Woodbury County Sheriff Chad Sheehan.
Roberts, 54, was initially detained by ICE agents on Friday. He was in possession of a loaded handgun, a fixed-blade hunting knife and $3,000 in cash, according to ICE.
Roberts, a native of Guyana, had a final order of removal issued by a judge in 2024 and no work authorization in the U.S., according to ICE. He resigned as the superintendent of the Des Moines Public Schools on Tuesday.
Roberts joined the district in July 2023 and had previously held leadership positions in school districts across the U.S. for 20 years, according to Des Moines School Board Chair Jackie Norris.
The Des Moines School Board was not aware of Roberts’ immigration issues at the time of his hiring, according to Norris, who said following his detainment that the board is taking ICE’s allegations “very seriously.”
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
In this April 13, 2025 ,file photo the New York State Supreme Court Building is shown in New York. (Anthony Devlin/Getty Images, FILE)
(NEW YORK) — A New York woman has been indicted for allegedly using fentanyl to drug and rob four men, killing three in the process, according to the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office.
Tabitha Bundrick, 36, faces 11 counts of murder, robbery, burglary and assault charges for targeting men in the span of 10 months between 2023 and 2024, the DA’s office said.
Bundrick pleaded not guilty on Wednesday at the New York State Supreme Court, according to court documents.
“This callous behavior allegedly led to the deaths of three people. As alleged, each incident was calculated: Tabitha Bundrick knowingly provided fentanyl-laced drugs to incapacitate her victims so she could steal their personal belongings. As a result of our long-term investigation, she is now facing significant charges,” Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said in a statement.
“I want to be very clear to those who think they can get away with drugging and robbing unsuspecting victims: working with our law enforcement partners, we will uncover and prosecute this conduct,” Bragg added.
Prosecutors said the first death occurred in April 2023, when Bundrick approached Mario Paullan, 42, and his friend in Washington Heights to sell them soap. She then offered to have sex with them in exchange for money, taking the men to an empty apartment she broke into and giving them cocaine laced with fentanyl, according to the DA’s office.
The friend told police he woke up the next morning with no memory of what happened, their belongings missing, and Paullan dead beside him, according to the DA’s office.
Paullan’s young son submitted a letter to the court in the federal case expressing the pain his father’s death has caused.
“My Dad’s death has been the hardest blow life has given me,” wrote the son, who was not named in the filing. “I felt like my world collapsed. He told me I had to be the man of the house, to take care of my mother and sister. Now, even though I feel broken inside, I dry my tears so I can hold them and tell them everything will be okay.”
According to prosecutors, the second death occurred in September 2023, when Bundrick met Miguel Navez, 39, in Washington Heights and went back with him to his apartment, where she also gave him drugs laced with fentanyl.
Navez was found dead three days later by his brother, missing all of his personal belongings, according to the DA’s office.
The third incident connected to Bundrick occurred in February 2024, when prosecutors allege Bundrick gave Abrihan Fernandez, 34, fentanyl-laced drugs in his apartment, and he died. Bundrick allegedly used Fernandez’s credit card multiple times and rigged the building’s front door to open for her, according to prosecutors.
Bundrick’s lawyers said in a sentencing memo that Bundrick is a victim of childhood sexual abuse and trauma from being a prostitute, who intellectually functions at a third-grade level.
“Ms. Bundrick undoubtedly made a poor decision when she shared her drugs with men who were just ‘looking for a good time.’ But she never intended to kill anyone,” her lawyers said the memo obtained by the Associated Press.
Bundrick is already serving 13 years in prison for drug offenses relating to the case, and following her court appearance, she was remanded to Rikers Island. If convicted of murder, she could face 25 years to life in prison.
