‘Guilty!' — Of Trying to See Our Senator

On Thursday, September 6th, 2007, six of us were found guilty in Federal court in Albuquerque, NM by a Federal judge for trying to visit the office of our senator. We will be sentenced in a few weeks. The message? It is a Federal crime to attempt to speak to an elected Republican about the U.S. war on Iraq. Don't visit your senator. Don't get involved. Don't speak out. Don't take a stand for peace–or you too may end up in jail.

It all started one year ago, on September 26, 2006, when nine of us entered the Federal Building in Santa Fe, New Mexico, and tried to take the elevator to the third floor to the office of Senator Pete Domenici to present him with a copy of the “Declaration of Peace,” a national petition campaign aimed at stopping the U.S. war on Iraq, bringing our troops home, and pursuing nonviolent alternatives and reparations. Over three hundred seventy five similar actions took place across the nation that week.

The Senator‘s office manager came downstairs, said she would only allow three of us upstairs, and after forty five minutes of waiting and negotiations, we nine just decided to go upstairs, figuring we had a right as group of constituents to deliver our petition to the Senator's office.

As we stepped onto the elevator, a policeman put his foot in the door, and the next thing we knew, the power was turned off. So there we stayed–for some six hours. At one point, a police officer brought over a chair for one elderly member of our group who uses metal crutches. It seemed the officer was inviting us to make ourselves at home. He even said he supported our anti-war stand.

By the end of that memorable day, with over twenty police officers, SWAT teams, and FBI officials standing in the lobby, the Homeland Security director told us we had the choice to be arrested, jailed and tried, or cited and tried. He never gave us a warning, never told us to leave, never read us our rights. We took the citations, and for the past year, have been in and out of court, waiting to testify about our attempt to visit the Senator's office.

The prosecution would hear none of it. As far as the prosecutor was concerned, we went there to disrupt the Federal Building and shut down the elevator. He seemed to think we liked being in an elevator. He, of course, had been a marine for decades, and now commands a national guard unit, and was just back two days before the trial from directing military operations in Colorado Springs. He called the police and the senator's assistant to testify against us. They said we had plenty of warning, said we threatened to do a sit in, and said we disrupted the government's office work.

Then it was our turn. One by one we took the stand–Philip, Michella, Sansi, Ellie, Bud and me. Our excellent pro bono lawyers, Todd Hotchkiss and Penni Adrian, asked us why we went to the Federal Building and what happened. We each testified that we intended to bring a copy of the “Declaration of Peace” statement to the senator's office, in the hope that it could be faxed to him, that he would sign it, and that he would work to stop this evil war.

During my testimony, I was asked about the lists of names I brought with me that day. I had printed out the name of every U.S. soldier killed in Iraq, and some ten thousand Iraqi civilians killed, and said I thought they would help remind us why we were there, that perhaps we might leave them with the Senator's staff. The judge interrupted me and asked if I carried those names around with me all the time. While unfortunately it's now all too common for many of us to spend our time at demonstrations reading the names of the dead, I held back from saying, “Yes, don't you? Don't you care about the U.S. soldiers who've been killed, and the countless, innocent Iraqi civilians killed?” Instead, I said I always carried with me information about the war and how to stop it.

It was a grueling, exhausting eight hour day. At the end, the judge returned with his verdict but then launched into a speech explaining why he believed the police and the senator's staff person, and not us, particularly, not me. He said the fact that I carried with me the names of every U.S. soldier killed and some ten thousand Iraqi civilians killed proved I intended to be there a long time, and shut down business in the Federal Building. He basically called us all liars, and defended the government's evil war.

I'm not so sure that on the day one year ago I did intend to shut the Federal Building down, as noble a nonviolent act that might be in such times. Only a few months before, I brought a group to meet with Governor Bill Richardson, and he received us warmly, and let me speak for twenty minutes about why he should work to end the war on Iraq, disarm Los Alamos and abolish our nuclear weapons, and end the death penalty in New Mexico. I didn't rule out the possibility that in fact Domenici's staff might be willing to hear us. In the end, however, the police themselves disrupted business as usual. They turned off the elevator. They shut down the Federal Building. They prevented us from visiting our elected representative's office.

So what do we learn from this experience? What is the message from Federal Court in New Mexico? I suppose it's this: Anyone who dares visit their Republican senator to speak against this evil war is liable of a Federal crime. Don't presume you have any rights in this so-called democracy. Those days are over.

The judge said he would sentence us within thirty days, so there's more to come. He asked each of us to submit a statement to him. We face 30 days in jail and a $5000 fine, which I certainly won't pay.

Meanwhile, the real crime continues, and the real criminals get away with mass murder, with the crucial, full backing of our courts. The war goes on, the killings go on, and the lives of our sisters and brothers in Iraq, Afghanistan, Palestine and elsewhere are shattered. Our government, in its race to become a global empire, has sunk to all new levels of corruption, lying, repression, and old fashioned hubris. Our task is permanent nonviolent resistance against the culture of war, nonviolence as a way of life, full-time non-cooperation with violence, war, and empire.

All things considered, then, it's a great blessing to be found guilty of speaking out against this evil war. I hope more and more people will write their senators and congress people, especially Sen. Pete Domenici of New Mexico, and demand that they end this war; that more and more people will sign up at www.declarationofpeace.org and keep building the movement against this war; that more and more people will march for peace, vigil for peace, organize for peace, agitate for peace, speak out for peace, fast for peace, cross the line for peace, pray for peace, and find themselves guilty of pursuing a new world without war.

In such times as these, there may be no greater blessing.

Rev. John Dear is a Jesuit priest, pastor, retreat leader, and author of twenty five books on peace and nonviolence, including most recently, “ Transfiguration ” (Doubleday, with a foreword by Archbishop Desmond Tutu, available from www.amazon.com ). He is featured in a new DVD film, “The Narrow Path,” with music by Joan Baez and Jackson Browne (at www.sandamianofoundation.org ), and writes a weekly column for the National Catholic Reporter at www.ncrcafe.org . He lives in northern New Mexico. For information, see: www.fatherjohndear.org

Judge convicts peace activists of blocking elevator

By BY ANDY LENDERMAN | The New Mexican, Santa Fe, NM
September 7, 2007

ALBUQUERQUE -- Six peace supporters were convicted Thursday for their roles in an anti-war protest at U.S. Sen. Pete Domenici's Santa Fe office last year.

A judge found them guilty of failing to comply with signs and regulations in a federal building, a misdemeanor. Two others entered Alford pleas Thursday morning, which is a plea where the defendant does not admit guilt, but admits there is enough evidence to convict at trial.

Thursday's bench trial in U.S. District Court stems from a Sept. 26, 2006, incident in which the defendants tried to deliver a ``Declaration of Peace'' on the Iraq war to U.S. Sen. Pete Domenici's Santa Fe office. Domenici, a six-term Republican, was an early supporter of the war in Iraq, and the peace activists wanted to get his attention at the federal building in downtown Santa Fe.

The defendants unquestionably have a right to petition their representatives, U.S. Magistrate Don Svet said. But they could have delivered the declaration to a Domenici staffer in the lobby, he said. Instead, testimony showed, the group went into an elevator, tried to go to Domenici's third-floor office, but were prevented by security guards from doing so. They stayed there for more than 41/2 hours, reading the names of thousands of Americans and Iraqis killed in the war, a process that moved them to tears.

``I find that the defendants intended to unreasonably block the elevator,'' Svet said.

Philip Balcombe, Sansi Coonan, Michella Marusa, Martin Ryan, Eleanore Vouselas and the Rev. John Dear were found guilty of the misdemeanor, which carries up to 30 days in jail and a $5,000 fine. They were released without bail, and sentencing is expected to be completed within 30 days. Lawyers for those six defendants said they have not decided whether to appeal.

``We were just found guilty for trying to see our senator,'' Dear said after Svet's ruling. He testified he thought they would eventually be allowed to go to Domenici's office to talk about the war, which he called ``demonic.''

He said Domenici's office manager, Maggie Murray, should have let them in a conference room at the federal building that day. Instead, she offered to see three of the petitioners at a time.

``I didn't know if they were going to commit civil disobedience or not,'' she testified. Murray said she heard one person suggest they go up to Domenici's floor and block the hallway.

She also offered to meet with the group in the lobby, which they declined.

William Pflugrath, a prosecutor for the U.S. Attorney's Office, summarized the case this way: ``They came; they loitered; they were cited.''

He also said the case is not about the war in Iraq, but about disregard for others.

Several of the defendants in the elevator testified no one told them to leave the elevator.

``I was trying to be hopeful that we would be received as constituents of the senator,'' Dear testified.

Earlier Thursday, Bruno Keller and Jan Lustig entered Alford pleas and received no jail time nor fines. They must still pay a $25 court cost fee.

Contact Andy Lenderman at 986-3073 or alenderman@sfnewmexican.com

Comments
By Mark Wright Rev John Dear was our main preacher up in the remote for a couple years, say about 4 or 5 years ago.

John was always very polite and thoughtful. Also, he was a very effective and provocative preacher (Very impressive younger preacher, much much much better than most).  One of those that rarely comes along which we call the "Real Deal."

Domenici, judge sam sanches and a bunch of the state's legal and govt boys really need on overhaul on little things like child trafficking out of the same remote area.  It would be rather coincidental if the judge on this deal happens to be the same sanches also.

Irregardless, Rev John Dear is no criminal (never was, never has been, and never will be).....No matter how anyone wants to spin it.

In a system construed of supposedly legal but moreso quasi legal governmental communist practices, it's always important to know the real truth from the ground level.

The reason being, that crippled legal and quasi governmental systems tend to lose track of things.  So horribly is the track lost, that they will lead the people to the sand, tell them that sand is also good food to eat, and tell em that's the truth too.

By John Chadwick
Let's see, Scooter Libby lies and gets special treatment from our George Bush. Some elderly ladies and a minister try to voice their concern over the war in Iraq to our senator and have to go to extreme measures since he refuses to listen to their concerns and are now criminals. I really don't understand how anyone could have perceived these folks as a threat.

think that the protesters were very brave for trying to make a statement. Their actions were intentional civil disobedience decrying a war that has no justification.

By Chael Christopher This country has a history of civil disobedience and it is encouraging to see that some patriots are willing to resort to it when other means (such as writing letters, legal protests, etc.) are ignored. Furthermore, this government has silenced any dissent over this war and their equally repugnant dismissal of our civil liberties, so what else are citizens supposed to do? Domenici ultimately changed his stance on the war. Maybe the six defendants affected him. Or was it your letters?