(No verified email address) 08 Aug 2003
I cannot reveal my identity for security reasons, but I
have a subscription to a news service called "total E-clips"
published by the Foundation for Biomedical Research, and
intended for corporate use. The story is in yesterday's
edition(#442). I had to claim to be a corporate exec to get
on the list.(totaleclips (at) fbresearch.org)
On Monday, August 4, an Arkansas IndyMedia editor found a small
news item on Washington DC's IMC site
about the Patriot Act being used against animal rights activists
in Tulsa. The news item was based on a posting
to a professional biomedical research listserve.
In attempting to verify the story, Arkansas IMC found three different
sources. First is a posting to our site from
a DC correspondent, giving a copy of the original email off of
that listserve. Next is a summary of an AP newswire
story found through a lexis nexus search. Finally, we have a
report from the No Compromise website.
----Below is the posting from the DC correspondent, including the text of the original listserve message----
"Here is the full text of the story from Total E-clips.
'TULSA AREA MAN IS SUBPEONAED IN DOMESTIC TERROR CASE
Tulsa World(OK), August 1-A Tulsa area animal activist has been subpeonaed
by
an Oklahoma City federal grand jury that is apparently investigating
what could be
the state's first case of domestic terrorism covered by the USA Patriot
Act.
The investigation appears to be focussing on three acts of vandalism,
allegedly
committed by an animal extremist group called SHAC (contact FBR for
full text).'
I cannot vouch for the story itself, but it is shocking that vandalism
would be investigated
as terrorism with or without the Patriot Act. There are three possiblitieshere:
One is that
the press is trying to spin a small investigation into a big one, another
is that the grand jury
is bluffing trying to scare off SHAC, and the final possibility is
that this is for real.
Never forget that the Patriot Act's provisions were originally written for use on US-prior to Sep 11th"
a SHAC supporter from DC
----Next is our summary of an AP newswire story----
On August 1, 2003, The Associated Press filed a story from Tulsa
Oklahoma under the headline "Attorney says officials are using Patriot
Act to
intimidate client". According to that AP story, a Broken Arrow animal
rights activist named Chris Green was subpoenaed by a Federal grand
jury
in Oklahoma City. The AP report also indicates that Mr. Green may be
the first person in Oklahoma to be investigated under the Patriot Act.
The only activities by Mr. Green mentioned in the AP wire story are
leafletting and exchanging emails with the Stop Huntingdon Animal Cruelty
group. Associated Press does note that Huntingdon's Life Sciences,
the
research company SHAC is protesting against, has been accused of
conducting "cruel and unnecessary experiments that kill 500 animals
a day."
----Finally, the No Compromise web site has the most details. Here's their report verbatim----
"Northeastern Oklahoma Animal Helpers (NOAH) member Chris Green went
to
Edmond, OK a few months ago and spent a couple of hours handing out
leaflets explaining Legacy Trading Company's connection with Huntingdon
Life Sciences (HLS), an animal testing lab. Now he's facing a subpoena
to
a Grand Jury, as the U.S. government continues to harrass and attempt
to intimidate activists who appear to have any ties to Stop Huntingdon
Animal Cruelty (SHAC)'s campaign against HLS. Chris is scheduled to
appear before the grand jury on Tuesday, August 5 at 9:00 am in Oklahoma
City (200 NW 4th). Please come to the courthouse to show your opposition
to government repression! You might also want to let Skip at Legacy
know we won't give up while his hands are still covered in blood from
trading in HLS stock (trading line: 405. 216.9443).
Grand Juries have been convened in California, New Jersey, Washington
DC, Arkansas, Washington, Indiana and now Oklahoma to target activists
all around the country. Inside a Grand Jury room, one's basic rights
are
denied. One has no right to have a lawyer present, and even one's
constitutional rights can be set aside. Contact No Compromise immediately
if
you or anyone you know is served with a Grand Jury subpoena..."
See also:
<http://www.shacamerica.net/>
<http://www.nocompromise.org/>