Seriously Fucked up: Nun Gets Nearly 3 Years in Prison for Nuke Protest (84 yrs old)

[cali]

An 84-year-old nun was sentenced Tuesday to nearly three years in prison for breaking into a nuclear weapons complex and defacing a bunker holding bomb-grade uranium, a demonstration that exposed serious security flaws at the Tennessee plant.

Two other peace activists who broke into the facility with Megan Rice were sentenced to more than five years in prison, in part because they had much longer criminal histories of mostly non-violent civil disobedience.

Although officials said there was never any danger of the protesters reaching materials that could be detonated or made into a dirty bomb, the break-in raised questions about safekeeping at the Y-12 National Security Complex in Oak Ridge. The facility holds the nation's primary supply of bomb-grade uranium and was known as the "Fort Knox of uranium."

<snip>

Their attorneys asked the judge to sentence them to time they had already served, about nine months, because of their record of good works throughout their lives.

Rice is a sister in the Society of the Holy Child Jesus. She became a nun when she was 18 and served for 40 years as a missionary in western Africa teaching science.

Walli's attorney said the activist served two tours in Vietnam before returning to the U.S. and dedicating his life to peace and helping the poor. Walli said he had no remorse about the break-in and would do it again.

<snip>

The judge said he was concerned the demonstrators showed no remorse and he wanted their punishment to be a deterrent for other activists. He was also openly skeptical about whether the protesters caused any real harm and challenged prosecutors to prove it. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeff Theodore said they had destroyed the "mystique" of the "Fort Knox of uranium."

<snip>

http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/peace-activists-sentence-nuclear-protest-22559691

[Ilsa]

1. The plant superintendent should be grateful

to her for exposing their security flaws.

Geez, just sent her back to her convent with an ankle monitoring bracelet, if that.

[Downwinder]

14. Don't tell anybody their security is bad. Blame the messenger.

if they had been paramilitaries, they could have owned the whole place.

[cali]

2. comments are interesting. no one supports this sentence.

[Jefferson23]

3. they had destroyed the "mystique" of the "Fort Knox of uranium." Good, praise them.

Idiots.

[Downwinder]

12. Just like TSA, it is all "mystique."

[shenmue]

4. No. Just no.

Scusi per favore!!

[cali]

5. Her 2 co-defendents, got 62 months each. fuck the judge. fuck Holder. fuck the DOJ

and fuck them not only for the sentence but for the comments made about them not being repentant. asshole. of course they aren't repentant. It was a protest of conscience.

<snip>

The activists' legal team had received hundreds of letters and a 14,000-signature petition pleading for leniency in the case, including from Rice's religious order, the Society for the Holy Jesus, which asked for a reduced or suspended sentence given "her age, her health and her ministry". Lawyers for Rice, Boertje-Obed, a Vietnam veteran from Washington DC, and Walli, a painter from Duluth, Minnesota, had also pleaded for leniency.

But the US government argued at the January hearing that they did not accept that they had committed crimes, took no responsibility for them, showed no contrition and then, during the trial, proceeded to argue against the laws they had broken. It has described the three, who have previous convictions related to their protest activities, as "recidivists and habitual offenders".

<snip>
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/feb/19/nun-jailed-break-in-nuclear-plant

[Are_grits_groceries]

6. The government is mad

because that 84-year-old nun and her cohorts embarrassed the government with their'massive security' plans to protect our atoms.
Don't embarass the government. They will throw the book at you for their mistakes.

[woo me with science]

7. Good god.

Every time I think this government cannot horrify or disgust me further...

[cali]

8. I'm so sad about this. and pissed.

I've been following this story for the last 18 months.

[OutNow]

9. When I think of all the people who deserve to be in prison for their actions

Megan Rice is not on the list. This is so so wrong.

[UTUSN]

10. Neh not fucked up. LOVE the disobedience AND taking the heat. Snowden/Green LEARN n/t

[Pretzel_Warrior]

17. VERRRRRY GOOD POINT

[bullwinkle428]

11. Job well done, Eric Holder!

Tonight, let it be Lowenbrau!

[Logical]

15. They were offered to plead guilty to a simple trespassing charge and refused it. n-t

[Orrex]

16. And Meg has stated that her only regret is that she didn't do this decades ago.

I'd say that she knew what she was doing and likely knew the consequences.


I respect her decision.

[Logical]

18. I agree. But the government offered them no jail time. Not sure what else they could of done. n-t

[Motown_Johnny]

19. POTUS should commute these sentences

Then when the Cons attack him for it, we should all compare these people to Scooter Libby.