Press Release

Peace Activists Deserve Leniency; Their Actions Exposed Dangerous Security Flaws

Statement of Danielle Brian, Executive Director, Project On Government Oversight:

If justice is served Tuesday, a federal judge will exercise leniency when he sentences Sister Megan Rice, Greg Boertje-Obed, and Michael Walli for their non-violent protest at the Y-12 nuclear facility in Oak Ridge, Tenn., in July 2012.

The three peace activists did much more to raise awareness about the security gaps at Y-12 than any harm committed when they breached the compound’s outer fence.

Important lessons were learned about the nuclear weapons complex’s security failings and, more importantly, the failings were discovered through non-violent methods.

We hope the court will take into account that the only real impact their protest had was to expose the extremely flawed and dangerous security at Y-12.

For background on the case, follow the link.