Sr. Megan Gets 35 months…what Justice is this? More of the Story

Judge Amul R. Thapar passed sentence on Greg Boertje-Obed, Megan Rice

and Michael Walli on Tuesday, February 18, 2014 in federal court in

Knoxville, Tennessee. The three were convicted in May 2013 for their

nonviolent action called Transform Now Plowshares at the Y12 Nuclear

Weapons Complex in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, on charges of depredation of

property and sabotage—the convictions carried possible maximum

sentences of 30 years in prison. Sentencing guidelines, based on

factors including history,  recommended sentences ranging from 6-10

years.

Sentencing began at 1:30pm; the three were permitted to be in the

courtroom together by Judge Thapar.

Michael Walli received a sentence of 62 months on each count, to be

served concurrently, followed by 3 years of supervised release.

Greg Boertje-Obed received a sentence of 62 months on each count, to

be served concurrently, followed by 3 years of supervised release.

Megan Rice received a sentence of 35 months on each count, to be

served concurrently, followed by 3 years of supervised probation.

“Judge Thapar has tried to strike a compromise that reflects the

nature of this nonviolent action but satisfies the government’s

demand that Megan, Michael and Greg’s sentence send a deterrent

message to the wider community. For now, their bodies remain in

prison. But their voices are free, reminding us that the central

issue of this action and trial have not been resolved—as long as the

government continues to produce thermonuclear weapons of mass

destruction in Oak Ridge or anywhere, people are required to resist,”

said Ralph Hutchison, coordinator of the Oak Ridge Environmental

Peace Alliance.

At the hearing, each of the Plowshares resisters spoke, reminding the

court of the central purpose of their action—to call the court’s

attention to the ongoing violation of the Nuclear Nonproliferation

Treaty at the Y12 plant in Oak Ridge. In testimony at hearings

leading up to the trial, former Attorney General of the United States

Ramsey Clark called the production of nuclear weapons components at

Y12 “unlawful,” and the work there “a criminal enterprise.”

Megan, Michael and Greg entered Y12 in the wee hours of the morning

on July 28, 2012, cutting four fences and traversing a lethal-force-

authorized zone, arriving at the Highly Enriched Uranium Materials

Facility, the nation’s warehouse of weapons grade highly enriched

uranium. They poured blood on the walls of the HEUMF and spray

painted “Plowshares Please Isaiah,” and “The Fruit of Justice is

Peace.” They also chipped a corner of the concrete wall with a small

hammer, a symbolic act reflecting the Old Testament prophecy of

Isaiah who said, “They shall beat their swords into plowshares.”

The statement issued at the time declared the United States in

violation of the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty and said Y12 was

chosen for the action because of plans for a multi-billion dollar

bomb plant to be built there—the Uranium Processing Facility. The

sole purpose of the UPF (pricetag now $19 billion) is to produce

thermonuclear cores for warheads and bombs. Y12 is an active weapons

production facility—workers today are performing Life Extension

Upgrades on the W76 warhead at Y12.

Supporters outside the courtroom said, “The United States is breaking

its own law when it builds bombs in Oak Ridge. Any goverment that

would lock up Megan, Michael and Greg is desperate to hide the truth.

By their actions, they have broken the silence; their sacrifice

challenges each of us to speak up for a safer world. In prison or

out, Michael, Greg and Megan will continue to pray and work to save

the life of the planet.”