Convicted are the peacemakers

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May 2003

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Convicted are the peacemakers
Friends and supporters are hoping for a light sentence, but three nuns convicted of sabotage and malicious destruction of property during a peace protest at a U.S. nuclear missile silo say they are prepared for the worst. "If we have to spend the rest of our lives in prison, we will," Sister Ardeth Platte told the Associated Press. Platte, 66, Jackie Hudson, 68, and Carol Gilbert, 55—all Dominicans—face a jail sentence of up to 30 years and fines of up to $250,000 for interfering with the nation’s defense and causing property damage of more than $1,000. They were convicted by a Denver jury April 7.

Critics have accused the government of "overcharging" the nun-protesters, arguing that their actions were symbolic and never threatened truly national security. The nuns' legal defense team unsuccessfully tried to use the so-called Nuremberg law, which argues that citizens are called to violate a domestic law to prevent a crime against humanity. They argued that the nuns were trying to draw attention to the United States' capability to launch a first-strike nuclear attack, a violation of international law. U.S. District Judge Robert Blackburn, however, ruled the international law defense could not be used.

The three nuns were arrested after cutting through a fence and breaking into a Minuteman III missile silo in northern Colorado on Oct. 6—the anniversary of the start of the war in Afghanistan. Dressed in matching white jumpsuits emblazoned with the words "Disarmament Specialists" on the front and the acronym "CWIT" (Citizens Weapons Inspections Team) on the back, they drew crosses with their own blood on the wall of the silo. After nearly an hour, military security responded and arrested the women at gunpoint.

The nuns said they were obeying President George W. Bush’s call to dismantle weapons of mass destruction and felt compelled to act because the United States has never promised not to use nuclear weapons. All three have been in and out of jail for civil disobedience and are members of the Plowshares Movement, which promotes nonviolent disarmament. Gilbert and Platte live at Jonah House, a communal residence in Baltimore founded by the late peace activist Philip Berrigan. Hudson belongs to a similar group in Washington State.

A Denver Post editorial called for the judge to give the sisters a punishment of the nine months they will have already served by their sentencing on July 25. The nuns declined to be released on their own recognizance because they would have had to agree to avoid future demonstrations. Even the federal prosecutor has said he didn’t enjoy this particular trial experience. In an e-mail made public by the nuns’ supporters, U.S. Deputy Attorney Robert Brown wrote, "I take no personal pleasure in achieving a conviction of these women."—Heidi Schlumpf

For more information:
Plowshares

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