SOA Trial report - for those Irish people outside Dublin US embassy

national | miscellaneous | news report Thursday July 11, 2002 20:22 by blisset

There is but One Law for All -The Law of Humanity and Justice

July 10, 2002 Reigning 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.

July 10, 2002
Reigning 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 on Tuesday, with stipulations, 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. 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; 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 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 where here. “If your heart tells you to cross the line for Justice, and 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.�

Louie Vitale remembered how Maximilian who was arrested by the Nazis, 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 [new and improved] WHISC meeting of the oversight board. When this person spoke with Congresswoman Sanchez she said she had given up – WHISC had not changed its curriculum, or its practices. She will recommend supporting Bill 1810, as will Pellosi. 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 Fort 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 be postponed until after 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, intentional, and remain somehow 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.

Reported by Elizabeth (Liza) Cobb, mother of defendant Peter Alan Gelderloos