anarchists claim string of fires in east bristol

Just before sunrise this morning we launched a targeted arson spree along Glebe Road — which meets the main east Bristol thoroughfare of Church Road — and burned out corporate, luxury, private security and hunt-scum vehicles.

Just before sunrise this morning we launched a targeted arson spree along Glebe Road — which meets the main east Bristol thoroughfare of Church Road — and burned out corporate, luxury, private security and hunt-scum vehicles. Wildfire in the arteries of the city-prison! To break the lie of social peace and intensify the hostilities!

Emergency services were too slow to catch the responsible as the empty street was brightened from end to end as by torches. In a few words, the selected vans and cars were active components of the life they represent and also enforce.

Virgin Media supply television and also internet, and a national fibre optic cable network. To keep us enmeshed in the modern information economy and the spectacle of celebrities, video games and advertising is their business. Destroy what domesticates and stupefies us!

A car as fancy as a Quattro is an extra spit in the face for the property-less as well as the earth. In wealthy areas or parts undergoing gentrification they're commonplace, in England as in Argentina, Sydney as in Berlin, and there to be picked off at our leisure.

BWS's security vehicle in ashes is one less to aid their task across the UK of keeping the haves from the have-nots by threat or force and of expanding the matrix of surveillance cameras we pass under hundreds of times in a day. Minions of the established order have chosen their side! Insurrectional action against the constructs of authority above us, around us, within us.

Either an active fox hunter or a supporter and promoter of killing wild animals solely for entertainment — either way, owner of a heavy-duty 4×4 bearing pro-hunt stickers — got their incendiary gift too. Some call bloodsport uncivilised, but it's really perfectly reflective of the disdain for the nonhuman, upper class entitlement and also cross-class collaboration which is the basis and content of civilisation. Let's make the rich and their terrier-boys the hunted, let's harass them in city or countryside.

This deed coincided with the call for collective action in support of our caged brother G. Pombo da Silva (Spain), who's resisting his forced transfer to a maximum security module. Hopefully our flaming regards will also make it through the prison bars to the wandering she-wolves A. Trudeau and F. Rouiller along with compa C. 'Chivo' López (Mexico) — they all face charges over Molotov attacks against State and Capitalism. We're also thinking of the unnamed animal liberation fighter who prosecutors have tried to link to the anarchist paper UpprorsBladet (Sweden) and the co-convicted who also had the sense to stay silent before the cops. While A. Cospito and N. Gai, G. Iacovacci and A. Antonacci will all be tried next on July 4th, we take aim to light up their jail cells with the warmth of our solidarity. Prisoners to the streets, running wild and free!

ABOUT THE ACCUSED IN BRISTOL
We learned from the scum-press newspapers that early on June 12th an individual was stopped in their vehicle by police in the Bradley Stoke area and suspected of going equipped to commit a crime, then arrested on suspicion of four counts of arson. This was in the context of four coordinated sabotages in the days before which took down many phone signals and also radio services — all of which had already been claimed by Live Wires, FAI/ELF, as reported in the scum-press and carried by anarchist counter-information pages (although hidden once again by the moderators of Bristol Indymedia).

After the resounding silence so far from the local anarchist movement, the first thing we want to state is that — although none of ourselves, our wider network or fleeting affinities know who this person is or anything about their sympathies or complicities — the repressive move by the State aims to discourage similar actions and we will not stand complacent. Either police made an unconnected arrest in efforts to shed some of the criticism they've come under in the regional and national media for failing to stem the flow of anarchist attacks in their area, in which case it was a fruitless provocation as action continues, or that individual really did set out to somehow fight the system that night — singularly, in the context of decentralised informal groups open to anyone such as FAI or ELF, or anonymous — in which case they're a potential comrade and we would defend them as such.

It seems for now that police have little interest in the arrested individual as according to the scum-press they're out on bail after questioning, but we call on anyone with more information to release it if they see fit. Meanwhile, solidarity with the live wires and whoever shares their motivations to do the same!

Informal anarchist federation/Earth liberation front
Rogue fire brigade.

Summary of Repression from ZAD

Screen shot 2014-06-30 at 12.46.24 PM 30th June Summary of arrests and trials since the demo in Nantes, February 22nd, according to information found by the anti-repression committee (CARILA)

Screen shot 2014-06-30 at 12.46.24 PM 30th June Summary of arrests and trials since the demo in Nantes, February 22nd, according to information found by the anti-repression committee (CARILA)

February 22nd: 14 arrests, two released without charge. Of the 12 people charged, 5 had immediate trials the next day, and the 7 others will have trials later (3 on June 19th, 2 minors in children’s court, and no news for the 2 others).

February 24th: 5 immediate trials, 4 of them judged for “violence against someone with public authority”, and “participating in an armed group”. They were all convicted.
- 100 hours of community service
- 5 months suspended sentence
- 5 months of prison
- 5 months of prison and 1 month probation
- 6 months of prison and 6 months of probation + 500 euros for the undercover cops supposedly injured

Of all those convicted this day, no one went directly to prison. This means that they can negotiate a lighter sentence.

March 31st: First wave of arrests after the demo: 9 people were arrested at home (in Carquefou, St. Herblain, Nantes, and Ille-et-Vilaine).

- 2 were released without charges
- 4 were judged the next day in immediate trials
- 2 minors: one accused of throwing fireworks at the police judged in juvenile court, placed under house arrest until their trial in 2015, the other we don’t think they were charged but we have no confirmation
- 1 person had a trial later but we don’t have contact with them

April 1st: Immediate trials for those arrested the day before

- P: 4 months suspended sentence, forbidden to carry weapons for a year, forbidden to protest in Notre Dame des Landes and Nantes for a year
- J: 5 months of prison, forbidden to carry weapons for 2 years, forbidden to protest in Nantes for 2 years
- G: 2 months suspended sentence + 2 months prison (suspended sentence from last arrest), aquitted for vandalism
- E: 1 year of prison, starting immediately after the trial, forbidden to protest for 3 years, forbidden to have explosives or flammable materials for 3 years. The judge doubled the sentence that the DA asked for!

May 14th: G arrested in Paris under a warrant for vandalism February 22nd. He refused an immediate trial, fuzzy photos were the only evidence. He was placed in preventative detention, but got out a month later because of a procedural error. His trial is July 16th.

May 27th: R. arrested in the street in Rennes by undercover cops, transferred to Nantes. He refused immediate trial, and was put under house arrest, and forbidden from the Loire-Atlantique region until his trial, June 19th.

June 13th: Additional trial for someone convicted February 24th to decide how much they should pay in damages to the undercover cops. No information on the verdict for the moment.

June 18th:
- O. arrested at home in Rennes, accused of vandalism, he has an immediate trial the next day.
- Someone from the ZAD arrested in Nantes, who had a warrant out for violence against the police and participating in an armed group.

June 19th:
- Trial for 3 people arrested during the demo -K: convicted of throwing paving stones towards the police and arrested in possession of a hammer and an iron bar, 4 months suspended sentence, 18 months probation (forced to find a job or go to vocational school, and forbidden to carry weapons) + 105 hours of community service -C: convicted of participation in an armed group and throwing a beer can at the police, sentenced to 2 months suspended sentence -G: arrested in possession of a hammer, sentenced to 1 month suspended sentence
- Hearing for O. (arrested in Rennes the day before): he refuses his trial and is put under house arrest until his trial, July 10th
- Trial of R. (arrested in Rennes, May 27) for vandalism and participating in an armed group. Sentenced to 8 months suspended sentence + 1 month suspended sentence + 5218 euros in damages for the city of Nantes+ forbidden from Loire-Atlantique region for 2 years.
- Hearing for 5 people arrested 2 days before by undercover cops while driving: -one person (a hitch-hiker) accepted the immediate trial, convicted to possession of 1 gram of hash + refusing fingerprints and DNA. No sentence 3 people refused immediate trials and are put under house arrest until their trial, July 18th 1 person refused an immediate trial and is in prison awaiting trial (July 18th)

“They were arrested tuesday after a “random” identity control by undercover cops on the ring road in Nantes. Amoung them was R., who had a trial Thursday and was on their way to Nantes to see their lawyer with their friends. After 48 hours of police custody, 4 of them were charged with “possession of stolen goods”, suspected of having stolen… a head lamp. Also they refused to give fingerprints and DNA. More seriously, they are accused, based on some flyers in their car and a toolbox, of “association of wrong-doers”, and “intent to commit an armed assembly in front of the courthouse in Nantes”. They risk up to 5 years in prison.”

June 20th: Hearing for S., who lives on the ZAD. He was arrested 2 days before in Orvault, accused of having stolen 2 books. He had a warrant out for participating in the February 22nd demo. He is accused of theft (with prior convictions), refusing fingerprints and DNA (with prior convictions), and participating with a weapon in an armed group, and violence against the police. He refused an immediate trial and has been put in jail awaiting his trial on July 7th.

2 people are currently in preventative detention, awaiting trial.

Nantes, France: Call for a Demo and Decentralized Solidarity Actions Against Repression of the Anti-airport Movement

17-mai8th May 2014 On February 22nd, 2014, more than 50,000 people gathered in Nantes for the biggest anti-airport demonstration ever.

17-mai8th May 2014 On February 22nd, 2014, more than 50,000 people gathered in Nantes for the biggest anti-airport demonstration ever. As it was declared illegal by the prefecture, it quickly faced stunning repression; hundreds of over-armed cops surrounded the demo while a huge anti-riot wall blocked the central street of the city (le cours des 50 otages). It was the first time in Nantes’ social struggles history that a demo couldn’t pass by there. Politicians and media talked about “lootings” and “devastations”, deploring the violence after a group of demonstrators attempted to walk the original route.

However, the Power and its accomplices failed to mention the extreme ferocity in the crackdown on this demonstration. On February 22nd, hundreds of people were hurt by police weapons. At least three of them lost an eye from rubber-bullet shots. A lot of people breathed tear gas, were shaken up from stun grenades, or wounded from dispersion grenades, or repulsed by water cannons.

 

A few weeks later, on March 31st, media exultantly declared a first “dragnet” following a special police force’s investigation. Nine comrades had their houses searched and were arrested in the early morning. Two of them were immediately released, as one of them was not even in Nantes on the day of the demonstration. Four others couldn’t prepare their defense since they were sent to the court through the immediate arraignment procedure. Sentences are as heavy as the records are empty: indeed, the only real evidence the prosecution had were the confessions of the accused. Three of them have been condemned to prison terms without remission. During this parody of a trial, judge Tchalian did not hesitate to double the prosecutor’s requisitions and put our comrade Enguerrand directly in prison. One year in prison without remission for some stones and smoke cans.

The purpose of the repression from police and the justice system that the anti-airport movement is now facing is only to terrorize those who revolt and start fighting against capitalism’s hold on our living spaces. It is to psychologically and physically touch a social movement, to mutilate and incarcerate some of us to reach all the others. The sentences and mutilations of the 22nd of February are not only an application of laws or peacekeeping techniques—they are deeply political. This real state terrorism expresses clearly what must be expected for those who resist.

Today, Enguerrand, Quentin, Damien, Emmanuel, Philippe, J. and G. are its victims. It could have been any one of us. According to the State and its so-called justice, taking part in a demonstration is sufficient to justify the loss of an eye or a prison term.

We shouldn’t step back as we are facing such violent repression. By doing so, we would only prove their case. The best support we can give to our wounded and incarcerated comrades is to keep on fighting. Our struggle has never been so powerful, and we have never been so close to realizing a future without concrete. More than ever, we must keep on fighting and not give anything up in the struggle against the airport and the world that produces it.

Against the assassin Power that mutilated and incarcerated, we have a weapon that it cannot take back. In a letter, on April 8th, Enguerrand stated: “The strength of activist solidarity cannot be defeated,” and indeed, we agree. Actions in support of those wounded and accused in the struggle have already been diverse and numerous, modeled on the diversity within the movement. Infinite are the potential actions. Organize a concert or a fundraiser to financially support the accused and their families. Call for a demonstration (“peacefully helmeted”? —a reference to the “Flashballes” song) to express revolt against police crimes. Cover the walls with painted slogans or posters to make sure that no one ignores what is happening…

Every initiative is welcome to bring reassurance to our comrades and remind the Power of our rage and determination. Against the conniving silence of the media spectacle, we can only rely on ourselves to make “justice” a meaningful word again. We strongly encourage every solidarity action against repression of the anti-airport movement, no matter whether it happens in Nantes or anywhere else, today or anytime.

No justice, no peace!
Solidarity with the wounded and the accused!
No to the airport and its world!

DEMONSTRATION Saturday, May 17th, 2014 at 3pm – Nantes prefecture

To write to the support committee for Enguerrand or to sign this call: soutien.enguerrand(at)riseup.net

BREAKING THE FRAME

A GATHERING ON THE POLITICS OF TECHNOLOGY

2nd – 5th May 2014

Unstone Grange, Derbyshire

YOU NEED TO BOOK -SEE BELOW

Organised by Luddites 200, Corporate Watch, and Scientists for Global Responsibility

A GATHERING ON THE POLITICS OF TECHNOLOGY

2nd – 5th May 2014

Unstone Grange, Derbyshire

YOU NEED TO BOOK -SEE BELOW

Organised by Luddites 200, Corporate Watch, and Scientists for Global Responsibility

Technology can bring some benefits for ordinary people, but its development is almost entirely conmtrolled by corporate, military and technocratic elites, so it usually serves their interests and reinforces their power.

The politics of food, energy, work, gender, peace, economics, health, etc are all shaped by choices about technology made by those elites. The whole way our society develops is massively influenced by technology, yet ordinary people never have a proper say in it.  We're always left reacting to the technocrats' latest plan, whether it's drones, internet surveillance, GM food, fracking, designer babies or nuclear power.

We think all these issues are linked. So it's time for a more joined up and more proactive approach, one which addresses the root causes of problems and is not limited by the dogma that technology equals progress.

  • We want to create a new politics of technology based on bringing together the insights of different movements and learning from each other.
  • We want a human-scale technology that serves real human needs, not corporate bottom lines.
  • We want democratic control of technology.

An world facing environmental meltdown and massive inequality -both caused byb 200 years ofn industrial capitalism- needs better solutions than more dangerous techno-fixes such as climate engineering.

Whether you're a technology politics campaigner, trade unionist, environmentalist. altech developer, artist or just plain concerned, BREAKING THE FRAME IS NOT TO BE MISSED.

YOU NEED TO BOOK

www.breakingtheframe.org.uk      

email: luddites200@yahoo.co.uk

(020) 7426 0005

Accommodation is either in the conference centre OR camping (which is cheaper).  The concessionary rate for camping is £36, which includes all meals for 4 days (it's a bank holiday weekend).

BUT if £36 is more than you can manage, we're committed to making sure nobody is left out for lack of money.  So get in touch now.  Rich people can make extra donations, of course!

Police Attack 20,000 French Citizens Protesting Against Airport Notre-Dame-Des-Landes

4371803_3_a8d2_selon-la-prefecture-la-manifestation-a_fb63a9c22897e38e5bfc3f4b4776d41b

4371803_3_a8d2_selon-la-prefecture-la-manifestation-a_fb63a9c22897e38e5bfc3f4b4776d41b

The event attended by ten’s of thousands of French citizens against the airport Notre-Dame-des-Landes escalated Saturday afternoon in the city center of Nantes when Police Blockaded the progression of the march and attacked with charges to the people protesting. Many citizens were wounded by tear gas and rubber bullets. Participants responded with fired projectiles – bottles, cans, steel balls, flares – towards the police who charged repeatedly.

About 20,000 people demonstrated in the city center of Nantes to protest against the construction of the new airport of Our Lady of Landes.Des violent clashes took place at the end of the event between violent groups and CRS | Franck Dubray

About 20,000 people demonstrated in the city center of Nantes to protest against the construction of the new airport of Our Lady of Landes.Des violent clashes took place at the end of the event between violent groups and CRS | Franck Dubray

4371804_3_ea2b_dans-le-defile-a-nantes-samedi-22-fevrier_273e5de25cb5fac4de98ec550578eec2

“This is tens of thousands,” assured Julien Durand, spokesman for the ACIPA, the main opposition group to the airport project, while refusing to give a precise figure.

According to him, the participation is equivalent to the previous rallies, such as in November 2012 which according to the organizers had expected 40,000 people (13,000 according to police).

In the late afternoon, the city center of Nantes showed scenes of devastation. People took out frustration from being ignored for years and beaten down when they speak out by ransacking a police station, an agency of Vinci (dealer airport project) group, but also broke several storefronts, any agency of Nantes transport or agency Nouvelles Frontières. At least two construction equipment vehicles and a barricade were also burned.

Objects were thrown at the SNCF catenary to block the movement of trains one source said. As for police, they made use of a large amount of tear gas, stun grenades and water cannons.

Protesters moved away blinded by tear gas while several hundred others continued to face the police, referring new projectiles bottles, or even own grenades forces.

“No matter what tell the prefecture, for all of you it is a great success,” provided at the end of the event Julien Durand.

via @Le Télégramme

via @Le Télégramme

le-centre-ville-de-nantes-devaste_1
“An unnecessary and expensive project”
The demonstration had started in a friendly atmosphere. “No thank you Ayraultport”, “No to Ayrault pork”, “Ayrault also emerges Vinci”, “Ni or airport metropolis, the city is ours” we heard in the procession.

le-centre-ville-de-nantes-devaste_2“The mobilization is great here. We are here to show our determination to abandon this useless and expensive at this time of shortage project,” said AFP Eva Joly MEP EELV.

Given the anti-capitalist component of the event and clashes that have marked previous events, the prefecture on Friday adopted a modification of the route so that it avoids the downtown core.

The event is organized two months after the publication of prefectural ordinances authorizing the start of pre-construction of the airport. Appeals were filed against these orders but do not have suspensive effect. However, work has still not started.

via @youranonnews

via @youranonnews

The inauguration of the future Grand Ouest Airport, originally scheduled for 2017, is now considered only “2019 or 2020″ by supporters of the transfer. According to an Ifop poll published Saturday, a majority of French (56%) are opposed to the future airport, 24% being positive and 20% were undecided.

This survey was conducted on behalf of Acting for the environment, Attac and ACIPA, the leading association of opponents to the project. The project of public utility in 2008, is justified by its supporters, PS as the UMP, including the risk of saturation of the current airport Nantes Atlantique.

One of several damaged buildings. via Franck Dubray

One of several damaged buildings. via Franck Dubray

4371784_3_30e7_des-participants-ont-de-leur-cote-tire-des_50fcca11781d5d65cec75cfac3d520184371782_3_64a4_la-police-et-les-gendarmes-mobiles-ont-fait_837cd27ae257218eb7fd601d0ed442d4

 

STEPHANE MAHE / REUTERS

STEPHANE MAHE / REUTERS

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STEPHANE MAHE / REUTERS

STEPHANE MAHE / REUTERS

STEPHANE MAHE / REUTERS

STEPHANE MAHE / REUTERS

 

STEPHANE MAHE / REUTERS

STEPHANE MAHE / REUTERS

34497153449847Sources
http://t.co/RS8wSS9yRB” target=”_blank”>FranceTVinfo
Lemonde
7sur7

Earth First! Direct Action Manual Is Ready for Print

Cover for Direct Action Manual

Cover for Direct Action Manual

Earth First! Direct Action Manual. To support this publication, preorder your copy or donate today.

After several years in development, the Earth First! Direct Action Manual is ready to go to press. A group of frontline activists has assembled over 300 pages of diagrams, descriptions of techniques and a comprehensive overview of the role direct action plays in our campaigns in defense of the Earth.

We are now in a three-week fundraising campaign to ensure that this critical book gets out to people who can use it. You can preorder your copy and get some extra thank you gifts for your early endorsement by donating today. More importantly, though, we have offered a chance for you to help us spread this knowledge. Every donation over $50 gives you the chance to send a free copy of the manual to a campaign of your choice. The more you give, the more manuals we can put in the mail.

The manual will be printed in the coming month with longtime Earth First! partner, The Gloo Factory. This community-minded, union print shop has supplied Earth First! and its affiliates with stickers and merchandise for decades and remains committed to using a high standard for recycled and reclaimed material, as well as supportive worker conditions.

The manual was first printed nearly two decades ago and has been out of print since its initial dissemination. Though many of the considerations for civil disobedience and intervention have remained tried and true, new elements have altered the ways we put these tactics into action. The Earth First! Direct Action Manual will continue the role of safe and effective actions in stopping the destruction of the planet.

Support this effort today!

Reclaim the Power gathering 8-9 February

After an incredible day of idea generation and visioning at the last gathering, it’s time for concrete proposals and decisions about our next steps.


Location: Oxford
Time: Saturday 8th February 11am ­­– Sunday 9th 4pm

Address: TBC
Crash Space/Social: Provided. Further details TBC.
Meals: Provided, donation cost TBC
Travel Pool: Available. Please book travel tickets in advance so that this can support the most people.
Notes from Manchester Visioning Day are here: http://bit.ly/1lQ0Yd3

In early December a large number of people came together to discuss the radical visions they had for the future – visions that Reclaim the Power, as a network, could help bring about.

It was a very open day of discussion with a clear structure, but with no pre-planned agenda. Everything we talked about was generated by participants, and a huge number of different ideas were placed on the table.

So what next? Well, the idea is that all of that discussion feeds into a month of creative proposal making before the next gathering. This will be a space for short and medium-term decision making where we work out what we’re doing in the next few months – and how this fits in with long term visions.

Rough proposal area groups formed at the December gathering, including:

1. How to challenge corporate power
2. Movement and diversity
3. Energy and fossil fuels
4. Positive solutions

If you would like to link up with these groups and input into proposals for next steps, just contact info@nodashforgas.org.uk and you will be put in touch with a group contact.

This said, all proposals are welcome! If you’re working on your own, outside these groups, then great. The more ideas the better.

The proposal deadline is the 31st January 2014. Please try and follow this rough four point list when writing them, as it is essential that all the proposals be considered on an equal footing.

1. What is it?
2. How does it link to long-term strategic aims?
3. Timeline?
4. Resources needed? (inc, people, costs, skills)

Specific venue and agenda details to follow soon. In the meanwhile, please check http://bit.ly/1lQ0Yd3 to see the discussions and outcomes of the last agenda.

See you soon,

RTP Gatherings Team

info@nodashforgas.org.uk

 

Earth First! Winter Moot 7-9 March 2014: programme up

A weekend gathering for people involved or want to know more about ecological direct action around the UK including fighting opencast coal, fracking, GM, nuclear power, new road building and quarries with discussions and campaign planning – emphasis on the tactics and strategies, community solidarity and sustainable activism.

A weekend gathering for people involved or want to know more about ecological direct action around the UK including fighting opencast coal, fracking, GM, nuclear power, new road building and quarries with discussions and campaign planning – emphasis on the tactics and strategies, community solidarity and sustainable activism.

Evening Friday 7th – afternoon Sunday 9th March 2014, Nottingham

Cost scale £20 to £30. This includes full vegan meals and accommodation.

It will be an indoor floor sleeping space so bring a warm sleeping bag and mat. Train to Nottingham then tram to Beaconsfield street– walk to the end turn right on to Gladstone St — 245 Gladstone St, Nottingham NG7 6HX — www.earthfirst.org.uk

Full map/travel details

For offers of help or questions email themiddle@earthfirst.org.uk

 

Programme

Friday

16.30-17.30 Security Workshop
17.30-18.30 Film

18.30 Dinner

20.00 Benefit Gig

Saturday

8.30-9.30 Breakfast
9.30-10.45 Intro go round of campaigns

10.45-11.00 Break

11.00-12.00 Future of Earth First Part 1
12.00-13.00 Security Workshop

13.00-14.00 Lunch

14.00-14.30 Lush/fundraising workshop
14.30-18.15 Campaign Workshops (timings to be finalised to include Fracking, Nuclear, Roads and Coal)
18.15-18.30 Summer Gathering handover

18.30 Dinner
20.00 DJ??

Sunday

9.00-10.00 Breakfast fry up
10.00-10.30 Tidy up of venue
10.30-11.30 Feedback go round
11.30-12.30 Future of Earth First Part 2
12.30-14.00 Summer Gathering Planning (and time of other workshops to run in parallel)

14.00-15.00 Lunch
15.00 End

Anti-Highway Protester Faces Eight Year Sentence

Will Parrish in the wick drain stitcher. January 22nd From June 20th to July 1st, locally well-known journalist and activist Will Parrish lived 50 feet above ground in a wick drain &l

Will Parrish in the wick drain stitcher. January 22nd From June 20th to July 1st, locally well-known journalist and activist Will Parrish lived 50 feet above ground in a wick drain “stitcher” in the northern Little Lake Valley (ie, Willits Valley) wetlands, where the California Department of Transportation (CalTrans) is building an unnecessary and environmentally destructive freeway bypass.

By putting his body inside the framework of this destructive equipment, which is in the process of installing roughly 55,000 80-foot drainage tubes into the Little Lake wetlands, Will blocked it from operating and brought nationwide attention to the harm CalTrans is causing the Little Lake Valley watershed.  This harm includes destroying the largest Northern California wetlands area of any project in over 50 years.

As punishment for Will’s more than 11 day stand on behalf of the Valley’s land and people, Mendocino County District Attorney David Eyster is charging him with 16 misdemeanors (14 counts of “unlawful entry” and two of “resisting arrest”), with a maximum eight-year jail sentence.  He also wants Will to pay Caltrans a mind-boggling $490,002 in restitution. This is an unheard of move by a district attorney in Mendocino and Humboldt Counties, which each have a rich tradition of struggle for social justice and the natural environment.  If the DA and Caltrans have their way, Will would spend the rest of his life paying off these absurd penalties.

About The Case

When Mendocino County DA David Eyster first filed a complaint against Will on July 2nd, the charges consisted of three infractions corresponding to each of Will’s three non-violent arrests protesting the Bypass.  This complaint included a requirement to pay undisclosed restitution fees.

Under an infraction, the defendant’s case is presided over by a judge rather than a jury.  Will was unwilling to accept the uncapped restitution stipulation and was also adamant about his right to receive a jury trial, so his attorney (Omar Figueroa of Sebastopol) asked that Eyster re-file the charges as misdemeanors.  Will understood and accepted that the infractions would become misdemeanors, and would include the possibility of jail time, but was not prepared for Eyster’s arbitrary decision to add thirteen additional counts for misdemeanor violations.

Notably, Will already endured a form of house arrest in the wick drain stitcher and was deprived of food, water and medical attention by the CHP (at the behest of CalTrans). The CHP even arrested six people who attempted to bring him supplies.  Will went for almost six days with no food, survived partially on rain water, and was bitterly cold after being drenched by more than two days of unseasonal rain.

Why Will Is Pursuing a Jury Trial

This part of the case bears repeating. There is a common misconception that Will is seeking a jury trial because he wants to leverage his case for maximum publicity.  This claim has been repeated in numerous media accounts of the case.  But it is largely untrue.  While Will is indeed interested in maximum publicity for his case, he is exercising his Constitutional right to a jury trial primarily because of DA Eyster’s draconian insistence that he pay criminal restitution to Caltrans.

Will believes a jury trial provides the best opportunity for him to oppose the criminal restitution stipulation.

Will adamantly opposes this harsh criminalization of environmental activism on principal, particularly when the real criminals in this case are those who preside over Caltrans’ Willits Bypass construction.  Criminal restitution has not been pursued against direct action protesters in Northern California in recent memory.  Thus, the imposition of restitution would also have a chilling effect against future activism.  Besides not wanting to be in a position of paying off Caltrans for the rest of his life, Will is dead set against seeing people who stand on their rights to defend the earth from illegal plunder be persecuted for it. He is willing to risk a jail sentence to oppose this dangerous precedent.

Bath – arson at car showroom

8th of January – incendiary device on delay left at Kia car showroom, Lower Bristol Road, Bath. Damage to the building facade. A brand new 4-x-4 and three cars also consumed by the flames. A direct attack on exploitative manufacturing industries who profit from choking our world, who also make status symbols for our class enemies.

8th of January – incendiary device on delay left at Kia car showroom, Lower Bristol Road, Bath. Damage to the building facade. A brand new 4-x-4 and three cars also consumed by the flames. A direct attack on exploitative manufacturing industries who profit from choking our world, who also make status symbols for our class enemies. This section of the Earth Liberation Front and Informal Anarchist Federation has them in our sights.

With the cops cleared of the execution of Mark Duggan that started the riots of 2011, as good a time as ever to re-ignite the streets.

Unfortunately for the enemy, the 32 year old man arrested for the action has no relation to our group.

Active solidarity with:
– the stirrings of new struggle against road building programs in the UK (traces of which we saw in Combe Haven), specifically with the ones who won't take the path of liberals and pacifists next time
– Swiss anarchist Marco Camenish (who is on hunger strike and refusing work since the 30th of December) and also informal anarchist prisoners Alfredo Cospito and Nicola Gai in Italy
– Henry Zegarrundo (who we recognise as a kindred spirit through his letters) targeted by the Bolivian prosecutors, those on the run, and the anarchist and indigenous peoples still fighting the highway development

Perennial Resistance ELF-FAI

Bristol – Toluca – Jakarta – Moscow – Buenos Aires – Melbourne – keep the fires burning