Yes, it’s Steve Donziger, of taking-it-to-Chevron fame, with a $9.5billion judgement by the Ecuadorian court (since overturned on appeal), currently being countersued by Chevron in the United States for alleged contempt. He spoke with my good friend, former bandmate, social media guru, and performance coach to the stars, Robert Galinsky on May 13th. Watch the archived video.
Among other things he discusses his experiences with the American legal system that doesn’t like its corporate friends caught with their pants down, and his current travails at the hands of a vindictive judge. Since then, that judge, Judge Lewis Kaplan, Senior District Judge of the District Court for the Southern District of New York, has further bent the rule of law into a weapon, serving the interests of corporate vindictiveness by continuing to keep Mr. Donziger under house arrest and electronic surveillance longer than any member of the NY bar in history and without so much as a hearing.
Don’t take my word for it, with permission, hear it from Steve in the May 13 interview (before the latest judgement), and in an official statement, released after Friday’s (May 22) developments in the case:
(PS: Save the date of September 9, if you live in or near New York City, come to court and support a good guy standing up for the environment, and to bear witness to corporate judicial abuse)
Dear Friends,
I write to provide a quick update: this week New York trial Judge Loretta Preska -- appointed by Judge Kaplan to prosecute his contempt case -- shockingly denied my release from house arrest. I have now been in detention almost ten months when the maximum sentence if I were to be convicted is 6 months. And this is after the regular prosecutor already rejected the contempt charges, forcing Judge Kaplan to appoint a private law firm to try to detain me in the name of the U.S. government. The law firm, Seward & Kissel, then hid the fact Chevron was a private client for months while pushing for my detention.
Judge Preska also denied me a jury of impartial fact finders and delayed the trial until September 9 on account of the COVID pandemic. (I also was denied a jury in the earlier civil RICO case conducted by Judge Kaplan.) Judge Preska in the current case also was appointed after Judge Kaplan violated local rules requiring random assignment of cases.
I believe these decisions are not only wrong on the law and unprecedented in our nation's history; they also feel cruel and vengeful, driven largely by Judge Kaplan's and Chevron's fury over my role in holding the company accountable for the world's worst oil-related disaster in the Amazon. Distinguished civil rights attorney Marty Garbus described the decision to deny my release as "jaw-dropping to anybody who believes in the rule of law." Garbus also describes this unfolding travesty as Kafkaesque. Denying me a jury and an impartial tribunal is a violation of international law and universal human rights, but it is one way to get a conviction when you lack evidence.
One good thing is that this obvious injustice is igniting significant support across the globe. As you know, 29 Nobel laureates issued a statement demanding my release and that Chevron clean up its "Chernobyl" disaster in Ecuador; Roger Waters and Alec Baldwin have put out videos; Sting put out a statement of support; the President of the Ford Foundation has offered public support; a former speechwriter for the Clinton Administration is drafting op-eds; and Nobel peace winner Jody Williams will be confronting Chevron's CEO about my situation at the Chevron shareholder meeting next week. Finally, my recent interview with the famed Chapo Trap House podcast has received 171,000 downloads.
Of course, these incredible displays of support are encouraging. They lift my spirits hugely. But they obviously are no substitute for a real environmental clean-up of Chevron's toxic dumping in Ecuador -- a clean-up that has been won legitimately in court by the affected communities after an eight-year trial. That's why we must and will keep growing this campaign.
Here are some new materials for those who want more information:
- Letter signed by 475 lawyers and organizations around the world demanding both my release and an investigation of Judge Kaplan.
- New article from The Intercept reporting on this week's court decision prolonging my detention.
- Our press release explaining developments, including the addition of four prominent trial lawyers to my defense team.
Within days, we plan to file an emergency appeal demanding both my release and a dismissal of the charges given the prosecutor's gobsmacking financial relationship with Chevron. If the trial indeed happens on September 9, please try to attend as I need the public to bear witness. In fact, I am convinced public support is the only way to stop this travesty of justice from continuing.
To those in the United States, have a wonderful holiday weekend. Know that myself, my wife Laura, and my son Matthew are deeply appreciative of your support. We know the "game" of Chevron and the entire fossil fuel industry is to get people like us to give up so that the true guardians of the forest will never get justice. I can assure you we will fight on.
Hugs to everybody and thanks for the messages of solidarity and support -- they are vital.
Steven Donziger
p.s. I know times are tough, but for those able to help the easiest way to do so is to donate to my legal defense fund at the Friedman Rubin law firm. My costs are rising as I approach trial and the detention has cut off my income; this important work simply cannot be done effectively without financial support.
Contact:
Steven Donziger, sdonziger@donzigerandassociates.com
917-566-2526 (cell)
Our mailing address is:
Law Offices of Steven R. Donziger
245 W. 104th Street
New York, NY 10025
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