From staff reports
NS&D Monitor
Feb. 21, 2014
Their actions on July 28, 2012, prompted an almost complete security makeover in the U.S. nuclear weapons complex, and this week, the perpetrators—Michael Walli, Sister Megan Rice and Greg Boertje-Obed—received years of prison sentences as a result. U.S. District Judge Amul R. Thapar showed some leniency to the Y-12 protesters, handing out lower-than-recommended sentences. But he wanted to make it clear to all who heard him that the law comes first, even if he admired the protesters’ commitment to their cause. “In our country I firmly believe that breaking the law is not the answer [to making change]. The political process is,” Thapar said before sentencing the protesters who called themselves the Transform Now Plowshares.
The federal judge refused a request from the 84-year-old nun to give her a sentence that would guarantee she’d spent the rest of her life in prison. Thapar sentenced her to 35 months—only half of the low end of the government’s recommended sentencing range. He said he hoped that when she was released she would use her “brilliant mind” to make a difference in Washington, D.C., rather than commit additional crimes in Tennessee.
5 Years, 2 Months for Other Two Protesters
Walli and Boertje-Obed were each sentenced to 5 years and 2 months in prison. Those sentences also were significantly lower than the government’s recommended punishment for the pair. The veteran activists each had been arrested dozens of times for protest actions. All three of the protesters will be placed on three years of supervised probation after release from prison. They also are responsible restitution of $52,953, the reported damages done by their actions at Y-12 — which included cutting through multiple fences, splashing human blood on the plant’s uranium storehouse, and spray-painting messages. The judge said those expenses would be taken from their earnings while in prison and applied to their tasks while on probation. “No man or group is above the law,” Thapar said.
During final statements, the three protesters showed no remorse for breaking into the Y-12 nuclear weapons plan. On May 8, 2013, the three were convicted on charges of sabotage and destruction of government property. In the early part of the hearing, Thapar made it clear he did not believe the government’s sentencing guidelines for those charges was appropriate for nonviolent protesters, noting that—even though they caused harm at Y-12—they were unarmed and did not plan to disrupt operations by force. The judge compared their actions to a would-be bank robber who shows up with a “note and hope” versus one who arrives with guns loaded and ready for action.
Defense Likely to Appeal
One goal of sentencing is to deter criminals from repeating their crimes, and during the five-hour hearing Thapar repeatedly asked defense attorneys and the federal prosecutor to recommend sentences that would serve as a deterrent. Such a recommendation didn’t come, apparently because no one believed prison time would keep the protesters from continuing their acts against the nuclear weapons complex. William Quigley, a law professor from Loyola New Orleans University who worked pro bono for the peace activists, said the defense team will likely appeal the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeff Theodore, who specializes in national security cases, said the protesters hurt the nation’s defense by their actions and argued that they should have received stiffer sentences within the recommended guidelines. Boertje-Obed, for instance, has been arrested more than 40 times, Theodore said, and the trio has a history of recidivism and show no respect for the law. After the hearing, however, Theodore acknowledged the federal judge had many complicated factors to consider. “We respect the sentences he pronounced today,” he said.
Thapar quizzed Theodore several times during the hearing about how the nation’s defense was actually damaged by the protesters. The federal prosecutor cited previous testimony that indicated the Oak Ridge plant’s credibility was damaged by the incursion by protesters. Chris Irwin, an attorney representing Walli, said the Plowshares protesters considered it a miracle from God that they were able to enter the plant and get all the way to the uranium storage facility, where they had a picnic. They never expected to be able to accomplish that and had no intention of taking down operations at the plant, he said. Walli, his attorney stated, is “many things, but he is not a saboteur.”
Sentencing a Victory for Protesters?
Francis Lloyd, an attorney for Rice, said the protesters stopped well short of doing what people with really bad intentions could have done. The courtroom was packed with members of the news media and peace groups supporting Rice, Walli and Boertje-Obed. An adjacent courtroom was opened for the overflow. After making her prepared statement, Rice asked the judge if she could lead the court in a song to lighten the mood, and he granted that request. She sang, “Sacred the Land,” with supporters quickly joining in. As the defendants were led from the courtroom in shackles, their supporters sang, “Rejoice in the Lord Always.”
After the hearing, Michele Naar-Obed, the wife of Greg Boertje-Obed, said she thought her husband’s sentence was a victory. Naar-Obed renewed her wedding vows with her husband a year ago, knowing he was facing possible prison time. “I came here with the feeling that anything below the [recommended sentencing] guidelines was a win because it made this judge really think and not just consult to the letter of the law, which is what the prosecutor wanted. He had to think about the spirit of the law,” Naar-Obed said. “And he thought about it, obviously. It was reflected in what he considered rather large downward departures or downward variances. And maybe they are. I don’t know. I mean in terms of how Greg and I will get through it, it wouldn’t have mattered how long it was. We will get through it. But I’m just really grateful that this judge struggled with the spirit of the law versus the letter of the law. I think that’s a win.”
Prosecutor: Sentences Send a Message
Following the sentencing, U.S. Attorney William C. Killian said he hoped those sentences would send a message to others thinking about similar acts. “The Y-12 National Security Complex plays a critical role in our country’s national defense,” Killian said in a statement. “People cannot take the law into their own hands and unlawfully intrude upon sensitive government facilities. Those who violate the law and compromise the security of the Y-12 National Security Complex will be vigorously prosecuted.”
