Today, Sisters Ardeth Platte, Carol Gilbert and Jackie Hudson were sentenced for breaking into a federal missile silo in Colorado, smearing it with their own blood and pounding on it with hammers. The Dominican nuns said the act symbolized that they would rather pour out their own blood than have U.S. weapons take the blood of another.
The day began in Colorado with a press conference in front of the Federal building at which the nuns read their pre-sentencing statements; they would not read them in court. Instead, in solidarity with women around the world, they decided to dress as Women in Black and remain mute in the courtroom. It proceeded with the Judge deciding to consolidate the sentencings - despite his prior refusal of that motion.
Once in court, arguments were made by both sides on the length of sentence. The prosecutor and the probation office requested sentences ranging from 5 to 10 years in prison. The nuns' attorneys argued that when the guidelines for sabotage were set to mandate lengthy sentences, the actions defined under "sabotage" in no way included what the nuns did. The legal precedent is that of Daniel Sicken and Sachio Ko Yin who, some years back, were sentenced in the same court for a similar action. Their judge - Judge Miller - granted downward departure at sentencing saying: "There is sabotage and then there is sabotage!" The prosecution appealed the judge's decision and lost; the 10th circuit court of appeals upheld the judge's decision. The damage in the prior case was far more substantial than that of which the nuns are convicted.
Sr. Jackie Hudson was sentenced to 30 months in prison
Sr. Carol Gilbert was sentenced to 33 months in prison
Sr. Ardeth Platte was sentenced to 41 months in prison.
In addition, a period of 3 years supervised release follows their prison sentences; no fines were imposed but restitution of $3,081.04 was. They were ordered to self-surrender but refused and were taken immediately into custody. Supporters in the packed courtroom chanted: "Close the silos; free the nuns!" and the courtroom was cleared.
The day began in Baltimore with reading and reflecting on the scripture passages for today. The passage from 2 Corinthians 4: 8ff was a gift for today; it reminded us that the nuns (and through and in solidarity with them, we ourselves) are afflicted, but not constrained; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed.
We are grieved that the nuns will have to serve that kind of time for an action that was totally symbolic; but we are relieved that it is not the 8 - 10 years that the prosecution was demanding. The nuns were and are prepared to accept prison, however much they - and we - believe that they committed no crime, certainly no major crime. "We had no criminal intent at any level," said Sr. Ardeth Platte, a member, with Sr. Carol Gilbert, of Jonah House. "We accept the consequences of our actions joyfully…I know it will be a long journey, but we're not afraid." Platte said.
The sisters believe nuclear weapons are the "taproot" of social and economic injustice because the billions of dollars spent on them could go to programs for the poor and needy. Standing against militarism, they say, is a way to challenge skewed priorities that cause orphanages and soup kitchens to exist in the first place.
The Nuns' "crimes" revealed that we in the U.S. accept rule by our own "evil tyrants who threaten and use weapons of mass destruction and ignore international law." Even more shocking to the current "might makes right" school of "law," the Nuns showed that together we could nonviolently accomplish complete nuclear disarmament one weapon at a time starting with open declaration and inspection.
We have no news yet of where the nuns will be taken. We expect they will spend some time in a local or transitory facility before being taken to the federal prisons where they will serve their time. We will be in touch when we have an address for them.
Below are the statements Carol and Ardeth made this morning in front of the courthouse, having determined not to speak in court.