Sentencing

Tim DeChristopher Sentenced — What’s Next for the Environmental Movement?

Environmentalist Tim DeChristopher was sentenced to two years in prison for using non-violent civil disobedience to disrupt a sham oil and gas auction. He had been found guilty on two felony counts for making fake bids in the auction, costing corporations hundreds of thousands of dollars, and faced up to ten years. He increased the […]

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Jake Ferguson Sentenced to 5 Years on Drug Charges

Jacob Ferguson was the lead arsonist in the Earth Liberation Front cases dubbed “Operation Backfire,” but the heroin addict avoided any prison time by wearing a wire and recording conversations with his former friends that could be used against them in court. By being an informant, Ferguson got a free pass on all of his […]

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Jacob Ferguson, Lead ELF Arsonist, Interviews with CNN

Jake Ferguson was the lead arsonist in the “Operation Backfire” Earth Liberation Front actions in the Northwest. He was involved in more than a dozen arsons, more crimes than any other defendant. But he is walking the streets, free, because he became a government informant. He wore a wire and entrapped his friends into make […]

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Animal Rights Protesters Face Higher Sentences than Racist Cross Burners

Four animal rights activists are facing charges under the Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act for chanting, demonstrating with masks covering their faces, and chalking defamatory slogans on the sidewalk. If convicted, the “AETA 4,”—Joseph Buddenburg, Maryam Khajavi, Nathan Pope, and Adriana Stumpo—could be sentenced to 5-10 years in prison. The AETA 4 case is a startling […]

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“Good Time Bill” Could Reduce Prison Times for Environmentalists and Animal Rights Activists

I have sat through so many sentencing hearings for environmentalists and animal rights activists when the judges and prosecutors have noted, and even applauded, how activists are not like “typical” defendants. By this, they mean that the defendants have solid education backgrounds (some even pursuing law degrees and master’s degrees while incarcerated), they have supportive […]

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Environmentalist Receives Higher Prison Sentence than Al-Qaeda Operative

An Al-Qaeda operative charged with creating a weapon of mass destruction has received a lesser prison sentence than an environmentalist who set fire to an empty building. Christopher Paul, aka “Abdul Malek,” is an Ohio native who joined Al Qaeda in the early 90s. According to the FBI, he: received training in “the use of […]

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Environmentalist Sentenced to 21 Years as a “Terrorist”; Violent Racists Receive Half That

I’ve written a lot of articles like this, when prison sentences are handed down to activists who have been labeled “terrorists” for property crimes, and instead of getting easier it just keeps getting harder. It’s getting harder to write about this rationally, calmly. These cases are getting worse, folks. The government is growing increasingly aggressive […]

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Woman Sentenced to 2 Years for Rescuing Dog, “Terrorists” Rescue More Animals in Retaliation

As both the US and UK governments (and many others) are cracking down on animal rights and environmental activists, labeling them as terrorists and hitting them with outrageous prison sentences, supporters say it is for a few reasons. First, they say that these activists are national security threats. Second, they say that this boot-on-the-throat approach […]

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Just in: Briana Waters Sentenced to Six Years

From The Seattle Times: The woman convicted in an ecoterror attack at the University of Washington has been sentenced to six years in prison. TACOMA, Wash. -The woman convicted in an ecoterror attack at the University of Washington has been sentenced to six years in prison. KIRO-TV reports that Briana Waters asked for mercy because […]

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McDavid Sentenced to 20 Years in Prison as a “Terrorist”

Eric McDavid was sentenced to nearly 20 years in prison on Thursday, as a “terrorist,” for conspiring to sabotage federal facilities in the name of the environment. Nearly 20 years. That number is shocking enough, considering that the average sentence for violent offenders, in 2004, was about 7.6 years. That number is shocking enough, considering […]

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