SOAW-W News for July, 2002 (cont.)
1) July 11.
School of the Americas/WHISC Watch–West ~ SOAW–W
July 11, 2002San Jose web site - http://teachers.bcp.org/llauro Los Angeles site - www.soaw-la.org/ (Tell your friends in L.A.!)
National web site - www.soaw.org*******
All three Bay Area defendants have been declared guilty of trespass.
Sentencing is expected on Friday, July 12.Below
1) A summary written by Elizabeth Cobb. Some statements by Fr. Louis are included.
2) Article from the Columbus GA newspaper1) Summary of July 10, 2002 (Day Three)
By Elizabeth (Liza) Cobb, mother of defendant Peter Alan GelderloosReigning on the wall of the courtroom are Jimmy Carter's words: "There is but One Law for All - The Law of Humanity and Justice." Unfortunately for the thirteen activists whose cases were adjudicated today, this was not borne out.
Before Judge Faircloth could begin adjudicating the ten defendants (Richard Ring, Rev. Charles Baker-Hirsch, Kathleen Boylan, Janice Sevre-Duszynska, Laura MacDonald, Jonna Cohen, Michael Sobol Golden, Nancy Gowen, Thomas Mahedy, and Louis Vitale) who had entered "not guilty" pleas with stipulations, on July 9, defense attorney John Reed entered a motion for acquittal on the basis of 18 USC 1382 and its idea of necessity [of protest] required in the face of the imminent danger posed by the [military] installation. The attorney ended his motion by remembering how Martin Luther King, Jr. answered those who would criticize him for going too fast to let the legal process take its course, to the effect that "we can never forget everything Hitler did was legal, and everything that the Hungarian freedom fighters did was illegal." The motion was denied. The judge ruled that the intent of the defendants, their "higher purpose" is irrelevant to their cases. Whether they in fact made unauthorized entry onto Fort Benning for the purpose of the proscribed activity of demonstrating is alone relevant.
Each of the ten defendants was found guilty. They were each allowed to make a final statement, of which highlights follow.
Rich Ring, in reference to the judge's statement that SOA/WHISC was just a microscopic part of Fort Benning, said he'd gladly protest in front of the school if only the judge would instruct the guards to let him through to it. Regarding the Government charge that defense failed to present evidence of imminent danger, Rich said that the judge would not allow the multitude of existing evidence to be admitted. "The court says we've not proven that the smoke means there is a fire. There is a fire, and we all know about it."
Rev. Charles Hirsch referred to the Carter quotation on the wall, and quoted from the Bible, how Jesus said he was not here to destroy the Law, but to fulfill it; how the Gospels distinguished between the letter and the spirit of the law when Mary, Martha's sister, a woman, sat at the feet of Jesus, a rabbi and when Jesus healed on the Sabbath. Likewise, he, Rev. Hirsch was here not to undermine the security of anyone, but to build up the Law, to fulfill it, through acts of non-violent civil disobedience. It was in response to Rev. Hirsch's impassioned statement that the judge managed to equate civil disobedience to violence, mentioned above.
Kathleen Boylan addressed the barriers against acting to end violence and to stop the killing. She sighted the Nuremburg trials and asked the judge to imagine what might have happened to Germans who tried to stop the Holocaust. She queried, what if the S/S training took place on a larger base, and on the particular day that they demonstrated, they weren't able to prove that the immolation of people was taking place on that particular day? Kathleen likened the U.S. bombing of Iraq and the U.S.' disproportionate use of world resources to terrorism.
Nancy Gowen reflected on the words of Mother Theresa and what she would do if she were here. "If your heart tells you to cross the line for Justice, and the State says no; cross the line for justice [anyway.]"
Tom Mahedy named the events at which he demonstrated, one by one, "but they would not hear my voice. The democratic process is not working, so I came here to offer my body. I don't want to, but it [the court] is the one place I can get heard. I've tried everything else."
Louis Vitale: Remembering how Maximilian [Kolbe]who was arrested by the Nazis and offered to go to death in place of a prisoner who had children, Vitale movingly asked Judge Faircloth to add whatever sentence he would give to Tom Mahedy, father of three children, to his own instead. Then Vitale detailed how SOA Watch had succeeded in sending someone to a meeting of the [new and improved] WHISC oversight board. When this person spoke with Congresswoman Sanchez, she said she had given up. WHISC had not changed its curriculum, or its practices. Sanchez (from Orange County) will recommend supporting Bill 1810, as will [Rep. Nancy] Pelosi [of San Francisco]. He spoke of listening to the voice deep within himself, despite people's warning him of the possible consequences of six months' jail time. Finally, Vitale proposed that the judge postpone sentencing indefinitely, so that the acts of SOA/WHISC will be known by everyone, and carrying out the sentencing would be as anachronistic as sentencing someone under the old Segregation Act.
Before adjourning for lunch, Judge Faircloth made a surprising suggestion to the just-adjudicated defendants (save Kathleen Boylan who'd been banned and barred for life) - a tour by the Commandant of the WHISC. The defendants quickly agreed that they'd prefer to stay in court to support their not-yet-tried codefendants. A possible tour of the base may occur after the trial.
Chantilly Geigle, Susan Daniels, and Niklan Jones-Lezama pled not guilty in order to force the prosecution to present evidence against them. Judge Faircloth found the three defendants guilty despite the Government's prosecution, which failed to uphold the burden of proof, proving the defendants guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. The prosecution's case was so
poorly prepared that it was condescending to the defendants. "Turning the concept of " 'presumed innocent until proven guilty' on its head," in defense attorney Reed's words, the prosecution challenged the defense to prove that the area around the fence was not part of Fort Benning property. Prosecution troubled itself to obtain neither deed to the property in question nor the complete army regulation on which prosecution based its case. The defense, on the other hand, eloquently revealed the flaws in the case of the prosecution. Reed said, "the U.S. Government has not taken seriously its obligation to provide the burden of proof."Chantilly took the courtroom to the pinnacle of emotion with her telling of her story. "My journey toward this moment started a long time ago, and I want to tell the court my story." She spoke of her activism in her hometown of Salem, Oregon, her involvement in the legislative process, her efforts to spread the word throughout her community about the activities of SOA/WHISC. "And now you are providing me the opportunity to spread the word to thousands more." Chantilly described her ideal community through two stories. The first story was about a peace community in Colombia, and their decision to be
non-violent, intentionally, and somehow remain neutral in the conflicts in the area. Her second story was about her correspondence with a young Colombian penpal, Carlos, who offered her prayers and sympathy after 9/11. She finished with a quote by [MLKJr]: "We must accept finite disappointment, but we must not forget infinite hope."Daniels and Jones-Lezama opted not to make statements and let their case rest.
2)13 Protesters Found Guilty
By Jim Houston
31 Await Sentencing for Trespassing unto Fort Benning
Columbus (GA) Ledger-Enquirer
July 11, 2002Source: www.ledger-enquirer.com/mld/ledgerenquirer/
U.S. Magistrate G. Mallon Faircloth found 13 SOA Watch protesters guilty Wednesday of trespassing onto the Fort Benning Military Reservation during the Nov. 18 protests that drew thousands of demonstrators to the post's gates.
The 13 join 18 other protesters awaiting sentencing by Faircloth after pleading guilty or being convicted during the first two days of U.S. District Court proceedings. Each faces up to six months in federal prison and a $5,000 fine.
After finding 10 defendants guilty who had pleaded not guilty, but admitted by stipulation that they crossed onto Fort Benning, Faircloth told the group he was going to invite them to go to the Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation -- the successor to the School of the Americas, whose presence on Fort Benning has drawn a growing number of protesters each of the last 12 years.
The School of the Americas was closed more than 18 months ago, but the protesters who allege SOA graduates have carried out atrocities in Mexico, Central and Latin America, told Faircloth that WHISC is a change in name only. The protesters testified they will not cease their demonstrations until WHISC also is closed.
The judge suggested the invitation as part of a continuing dialogue he has conducted with the protesters as their cases were tried during the last three days. He has repeatedly urged that using the democratic process, rather than committing crimes of civil disobedience, is a more effective way of achieving their goal. Most of the defendants have countered that both tactics have been used and will continue.
During her trial, Chantilly J. Geigle, 19, of Salem, Ore., told Faircloth she has lobbied Oregon's congressmen, cornered countless business and political leaders and even garnered the support of the Salem City Council for efforts to close the Fort Benning school. But the avenue of the democratic process is not the only one she will employ, she said.
"Sometimes we are called to stand up for our country and our family," said Geigle. "I'm going to do that until the SOA -- now called WHISC -- is closed."
Geigle admitted she crossed onto Fort Benning as part of the Nov. 18 demonstration after having been banned from the post for a similar trespass during protests in November 2000.
Geigle was one of three defendants who demanded a trial Wednesday without signing an agreement stipulating that they crossed onto the military reservation. She was the only one, however, who testified.
Niklan Jones-Lezama, 38, of Blacksburg, Va., and Susan Jean Daniels, 41, of Pembroke, Va., presented no evidence and did not testify, relying on arguments by attorneys Bill Quigley and John Wilson Reed, both of New Orleans, that prosecutors had failed to present sufficient evidence of their guilt.
Faircloth ruled the evidence presented by U.S. Army Capt. Dave Anglin and Assistant U.S. Attorney Dean Daskal -- including a videotape depicting both defendants' crossing onto the post -- was sufficient to support his finding of guilt. Of the 37 protesters from across the nation who faced trial this week, only one has been acquitted of trespass. Trial of the remaining five, who will represent themselves, begins at 9 a.m. today in the third-floor courtroom of the federal building at 12th Street and Second Avenue.
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