Legal Updates
BRUNSWICK, GA – We’re underway. A jury some feel hopeful about and opening defense statements illustrating the humanity of the seven Kings Bay Plowshares activists completed the first day of the Plowshares trial. At the end of the day reactions were mixed among supporters who traveled far to this southern Georgia resort town for the…
Read MoreJudge Wood’s final decision that expert witnesses will not be allowed for necessity or international law defenses but that the danger of nuclear weapons and defendant’s motivations would be allowed in opening and closing arguments and testimony and cross examination. Read Order Denying Motion
Read MoreMagistrate Cheesbro rules against defendants’ motions and grants government’s. Order on Motions Oct 11
Read MoreDefendants are raising defenses of First Amendment, Necessity, International Law, and War Crimes. Over the years, some courts have refused to allow defenses similar to some of these being raised, i Importantly, none of the prior cases have addressed the issue of the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) in any way. Indeed, many were decided…
Read MoreThe United States of America, by and through Bobby L. Christine, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia, moves the Court for an Order prohibiting the presentation at trial of evidence concerning Defendants’ justification for entering Naval Submarine Base Kings Bay on or about April 5, 2018, unless and until each Defendant proffers…
Read MoreDefendants will raise the defense of necessity in this matter. First, defendant sincerely believed that he was faced with a choice of evils and he chose the lesser of the two evils.
Read MoreJudge Lisa Godbey Wood issued a 19 page ruling on August 26th denying all the pretrial motions from the Plowshares. The text follows as a PDF. Open PDF to view the Order Denying Motions to Dismiss 8/26/19
Read MoreElizabeth McAlister, through her attorney Bill Quigley, applied for release on her own recognizance on Monday August 12, 2019, the Monday after the court hearing. The motion pointed out that Ms. McAlister, who will be 80 in November, has been jailed for 18 months and has been a model prisoner. The motion said Ms. McAlister…
Read MoreStatement by Mark Colville to The Federal Court, Southern District of Georgia Brunswick, Georgia, August 7, 2019 Good morning Judge Wood. My name is Mark Colville, and I’m pleased to meet you. I won’t bore you with the boring details of my boring life—much of that is already part of the court record, which incidentally…
Read MoreJudge Wood, good morning. It is good, and a bit intimidating, to finally get to meet you. We’ve heard from various people that you are, ‘the smartest person I’ve ever met,’ or ‘She has a photographic memory,’ and ‘She runs a tight ship.’ Otherwise, one very becoming item we heard about you is that you…
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