MATTOLE ACTIVISTS SENTENCED, HEADWATERS REUNION RALLY, GYPSY MEMORIAL

NORTH COAST EARTH FIRST!

For immediate release
September 22, 2004
Contact: NCEF! Media (707) 268-5613

A FLURRY OF EARTH FIRST! ACTIONS AND ARRESTS
MATTOLE ACTIVISTS SENTENCED, HEADWATERS REUNION RALLY, GYPSY MEMORIAL

Humboldt County, California

-On Tuesday September 20th Judge Cisna
handed five non-violent forest defenders a variety of sentences
stemming from an action that occurred at Fox Camp gate on August 25,
2004, on Humboldt Redwood State Park property. At that time the
activists were there to serve a subpoena to Maxxam/Pacific Lumber's
head of security, Carl Anderson, to compel his appearance as a
witness at the pivotal pepper spray trial in San Francisco. This is
the second trial for the pepper spray case in seven years and is now
awaiting a jury's decision. Activists known as the "Pepper Spray 8"
are suing Humboldt County and former sheriff Dennis Lewis and present
sheriff Gary Phelps for violating their civil rights and torturing
them when deputies swabbed pepper spray into their eyes using q-tips
and sprayed them point blank in the face.
In the weeks prior to the arrests, activists had linked arms
to blockade the Maxxam/PL haul road that crosses the State Park land
and had peacefully dialogued with the truckers about sustainable
forestry and future jobs. During the attempt to serve Anderson,
however, a Maxxam/PL contractor charged the small group of activists
with his truck. The incident was witnessed and recorded on video by
Sara Lortie, a nearby activist. The driver of the vehicle then got
out of his truck and assaulted the videographer, smashing her camera,
chocking her and repeatedly throwing her to the ground. He then took
out his knife and cut the strap to the camera, cutting the young
woman in the process. When activists asked officer Clark to arrest
the assailant, Anderson told the officer to arrest the activists and
they were taken into custody. During the arrest, officer Carla
Bolton threw a second activist, Jessina Hunter, to the ground.
Charges against Lortie and Hunter were dismissed; Kim Starr
and Matt Dicks were sentenced to fifteen and ten days, respectively,
for misdemeanor disturbing the peace and blocking public access. A
fifth activist, Kevin Schultz, will take his case to trial on October
7th at 2 p.m. in the Humboldt County Court.
Since the Headwaters Agreement (a.k.a. "the Deal") was signed
in 1999, protests have increased in the "sacrifice zones" in the
Mattole, Freshwater, Van Duzen, Elk, and other watersheds being
devastated by Maxxam's liquidation logging practices.
An action training camp took place at Grizzly Creek Redwoods
State Park from September 13th through September 21st to support the
2-_ year tree-sit in an ancient redwood on Gypsy Mountain, where
activist David "Gypsy" Chain was killed by an angry logger who fell a
tree on him on September 17th, 1998. Activists gathered and held a
Headwaters Reunion rally on September 15th to mark the end of marbled
murrelet nesting season, after which their habitat can be destroyed.
A memorial for David Gypsy Chain was held on September 17th. No
logging has taken place in the active timber harvest plan where the
tree-sits are located since the action camp began. The camp was well
attended and had an international flavor with activists from all over
the world who came to help save the ancient trees. ###