Five activists lost their civil disobedience case in a Seattle courtroom today. The environmental activists, who blocked railway tracks used by oil trains, were convicted of misdemeanor trespassing. But the “Delta 5,” as they have been called, were given praise by Judge Anthony E. Howard during his ruling.
“Frankly the court is convinced that the defendants are far from the problem and are part of the solution to the problem of climate change,” Howard said from the bench. But, he added: “I am bound by legal precedent, no matter what my personal beliefs might be.”
The case is an important one as climate change activists have been attempting, unsuccessfully for years now, to defend these types of charges under the umbrella of civil disobedience with something called the “necessity defense.” The idea is that, while stopping one train or two will not reverse the ill effects of climate change, we are in such dire straits that any attempts to thwart these dangers are justifiable. In most cases these court proceedings end pretty quickly, with judges refusing to even entertain the witnesses defendants want to call to the stand (i.e. climate scientists).
Having opened the door to testimony from climate scientists, Judge Howard also appeared inclined to allow expansive testimony from the defendants. He has permitted each defendant to testify to their personal history as activists, mapping their development from idealistic voters to frustrated believers in the necessity of civil disobedience.
“It felt like projects were being rubber-stamped no matter what we did,” Brockway said of her years spent writing letters to officials and testifying at hearings on environmental issues. “Before I switched to direct action, I felt I worked within the system as much as I could.”
This is important, even if it just ends up being a bit of theater. I’d rather hear scientists talk about climate issues than idiots with snowballs.