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Culture Change print magazine issues: 20  19  18  17  16  15  14  13  12  11  10  9  8  index

Pedal Power solutions to petroleum dependence and polluting vehicles: Arcata Library Bikes, Pedal Power Produce, and more!

CAOE - Committee Against Oil Exploration - stop offshore oil drilling to protect sensitive habitats and cut petroleum dependence.

Culture Change through music! The Depavers eco-rock!

Take our Pledge for Climate Protection and learn about the Global Warming Crisis Council.

SEI hometown action!
Arcata city council's proclamation against war on Iraq and Kyoto Protocol proclamation.

Overpopulation has become a reality.  Overpopulation Resources and News Tidbits

Sail Transport Network

Fact Sheets
Interviews
Press Releases
APM
Links

Long Distance


U.S. Domestic Torture is Important for "Harvesting" Ancient Trees

Newsflash! Plaintiffs victorious third time around.  

for interviews by Jan Lundberg of pepperspray victims and one of the plaintiffs' lawyers, plus relevant music, visit Steppin' Out of Babylon (suesupriano.com)

The second Federal Trial in San Francisco with a new judge took place.  The jury was deadlocked and a mistrial declared Sept. 22.  Read our on-the-scene report (Sept. 19).

People rising up: protest and jury-vote confirmation

Spring: "So you still want to do this to people?"

Former Sheriff Lewis: "I'm retired."

Spring: "You're a defendant."

Second Trial background
The retrial of the pepper-spray via Q-tip torture case began with its new judge Sept. 8.  A mistrial was declared on September 22, 2004.

Defendants Humboldt County, former Sheriff Dennis Lewis, former Chief Deputy and current Sheriff Gary Philp and the city of Eureka had earlier requested the U.S. Supreme court to overturn a ruling by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which found the original trial Judge Vaughn Walkerís ìcourtís actions reveal an appearance of an absence of impartiality sufficient to warrant reassigning this case.î

The plaintiffs got a writ of mandamus, reassigning the case to another judge, and restoring the case to San Francisco for trial. 

The case was dismissed in 1998 after the jury deadlocked 4-4, and the successful appeal brought the retrial before the same judge who wanted the re-trial held in Eureka--bad for the plaintiffs to get a fair trial.  The Appeals Court sided with plaintiffs in finding that "Eureka and Humboldt County are known for their strong ties to the logging industry and that there have been many incidents of hostility directed toward environmental activists in Eureka and its environs."  The U.S. Supreme Court has backed up the Ninth Circuit in determining the officers used unconstitutional, excessive force, and that the Sheriff and chief Deputy Sheriff are liable for damages.  For more info, see nopepperspray.org

See Depavers songs on pepper spray event.

Pepperspray Case from Humboldt County (1998 report)

by Jan Lundberg

Clinton and his kinder, gentler police state announced in December that the executive branch and some of the judicial accept the pepper spraying of nonviolent protesters.  The feds must have figured that the publicís uproar on police torture of the forest defenders was not going to rematerialize.  ìToo good to turn downî must have been the temptation, when central authority wants to control its citizens who may exercise their ìConstitutional rights.î

Not to trade on the family connection, this magazineís Editor has scarcely mentioned his daughterís  participation in one of the pepper-spray sit-ins, televised internationally on Halloween of 1997.  But an Auto-Free Times interview, with her and one of her fellow torture victims (co-plaintiffs in a civil rights court case), covering topics such as roadsí role in deforestation, protests tactics, is in the making.  The state of their case is an appeal of a federal judgeís nonsensical decision that no reasonable juror would find the pepper spraying to be excessive force. Four jurors out of eight had said it was.

"

To make tax-deductible donations to support the pepper-spray plaintiff's legal fight online, click here or send a check to: The Trees Foundation, Pepper Spray Legal Fund, P.O. Box 2202, Redway, CA 95560 USA. E-mail: trees@treesfoundation.org Telephone: 707-923-4377

To see plaintiff Spring Lundberg playing with The Depavers, Culture Change's in- house band, click here.

Read Spring Lundberg's Declaration of Oct. 29, 1997

 

Are you ready for the FALL OF PETROLEUM CIVILIZATION?

Articles of interest:
Measuring and controlling the actions of governments 


Anti-globalization protest grows, with tangible results. 
WTO protests page

Tax fossil-fuel energy easily
by Peter Salonius 

UK leader calls War on Terror "bogus"

Argentina bleeds toward healing by Raul Riutor

The oil industry has plans for you: blow-back by Jan Lundberg

It's not a war for oil? by Adam Khan

How to create a pedestrian mall by Michelle Wallar

The Cuban bike revolution

How GM destroyed the U.S. rail system excerpts from the film "Taken for a Ride".

"Iraqi oil not enough for US: Last days of America?"

Depaving the world by Richard Register

Roadkill: Driving animals to their graves by Mark Matthew Braunstein

The Hydrogen fuel cell technofix: Spencer Abraham's hydrogen dream.

 

Ancient Forest Protection in Northern California. Forest defenders climb trees to save them.

Daniel Quinn's thoughts on this website.

A case study in unsustainable development is the ongoing crisis in Palestine and Israel.

Renewable and alternative energy information.

Conserving energy at home (Calif. Title 24)


Culture Change mailing address: P.O. Box 3387 , Santa Cruz , California 95063 USA
  Telephone 1-215-243-3144 (and fax)
Web: http://www.culturechange.org
E-Mail info@culturechange.org

Culture Change was founded by Sustainable Energy Institute (formerly Fossil Fuels Policy Action), a nonprofit organization.