Two Catholic Priests Arrested Protesting Torture Training at Ft. Huachuca, AZ

ABOUT THE ACTION

Jesuit Fr. Steve Kelly and Franciscan Fr. Louis Vitale were arrested as they approached the Fort Huachuca gatehouse on November 19, 2006, as they sought entry to speak with enlisted personnel and deliver a letter denouncing torture (see letter here) and the Military Commissions Act of 2006 to Major General Barbara Fast, then commander at the post and a key figure in the torture scandal at Abu Ghraib Prison in Iraq. When they were not allowed to pass, they knelt in prayer, and were soon arrested. They both received a federal citation for trespass and were released a couple of hours later.

More than 120 people, from Arizona, New Mexico, California and Mexico, gathered that day outside Fort Huachuca in Sierra Vista, Arizona to protest military intelligence training there that fosters torture.

The demonstration took place in conjunction with the annual vigil at Fort Benning, Georgia (see coverage here), calling for closing the infamous School of the Americas (now called the Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation). Dozens of Latin American military leaders who trained at the "School of Assassins" have since been convicted of torture, murder, and other heinous crimes in their own countries.

ABOUT THE ARRAIGNMENT

Frs. Kelly and Vitale received a summons in the mail to appear for arraignment on February 13, 2007 in Greeley Hall at Ft. Huachuca. Accompanied by 5 supporters, they appeared there only to learn that they would not in fact be arraigned. Instead, Capt. Evan Simone, acting on behalf of the U.S. attorney's office, wanted to discuss a plea agreement. Believing they are not guilty of a crime, the priests declined any pre-trial agreements. Before they departed, they were given a second charge -- an Arizona state charge for "failure to comply with a police officer" -- and were told to appear for their arraignment on April 3 in federal court in Tucson.

On April 3, about 30 supporters attended the morning hearing. U.S. District Court Magistrate Hector Estrada refused to grant a military prosecutor's repeated plea to jail the two Roman Catholic priests until their trial. Army Capt. and military prosecutor Mikel J. Weir asked Magistrate Estrada to consider Kelly's and Vitale's long history of protest and arrest. Magistrate Estrada asked if anyone was injured and if any property was damaged by Fr. Kelly and Fr. Vitale on November 19, and was told no.

Fr. Vitale's attorney, Loyola University-New Orleans law professor Bill Quigley, told the court there was no reason to grant the government's motion, because the men's actions were nonviolent and they do not pose a flight risk, having returned to Arizona now twice voluntarily for court dates since their arrest.

Magistrate Estrada declined the government's request for pre-trial detention.

Fr. Kelly informed Magistrate Estrada that he will be representing himself in court. Both he and Fr. Vitale refused to sign standard release agreements promising to commit no crimes while free pending trial, but the judge simply declared that it was his order, whether they signed or not.

ABOUT THE PRE-TRIAL HEARINGS

June 6, 2007
A trial date was originally set for June 6. On May 31, the defendants learned that the trial had been postponed. They were instead told to appear in court on June 6 for a status conference, when pre-trial motions would be considered. On June 6, U.S. Magistrate Hector Estrada asked for oral arguments on the motion in limine, and scheduled a continuance of pre-trial proceedings. He said he would issue a ruling after hearing arguments on August 13th and 14th. Estrada said he would also issue a ruling later on the defendants' request for a jury trial.

On the matter of Fr. Kelly's petition to represent himself in court, Estrada convened the required Faretta hearing by asking the defendant priest to stand before the court and swear to tell the truth. Kelly declined to stand, citing principles of his religious faith, but declared his willingness to affirm that he would tell the truth from his position seated at the defense table, in front of the court's microphone. The magistrate said he would not proceed until Kelly obeyed his order to stand, and therefore, Kelly would continue to be represented by the federal public defender assigned to his case. Kelly then asked that Bill Quigley, Fr. Louis Vitale's attorney, represent him, instead of the public defender, and Mr. Quigley agreed to represent both priests. In addition to the federal charge of trespass (18 USC 1382), the trial will incorporate prosecution on the additional Arizona state charge of "failure to comply with a police officer" (ARS 28-622), under terms of the Federal Assimilative Crimes Act.

August 13, 2007
At the pre-trial hearing on August 13, Bill Quigley argued for dismissal of the charges, and against the prosecution motion in limine to prohibit certain testimony at the trial (about torture, international law, etc.). He cited at length from government and other reports that describe the torture suffered by military detainees since 9/11 at the hands of military intelligence personnel and others. Army Judge Advocate General Capt. Evan Seamone, representing the government, told the court that his witnesses would testify that military interrogators are trained at the base to operate in strict accord with the Geneva Conventions and U.S. law, and are prohibited from using torture. He said the hundreds of abused prisoners documented in the reports cited by Quigley were the result of aberrant behavior by a few criminals in uniform, or by the CIA or persons other than military intelligence.

During the hearing, Magistrate Estrada learned that Fr. Vitale had received a citation for joining a Nagasaki Day line-crossing at the Nevada nuclear weapons test site. He ordered Fr. Vitale to report for an evaluation by pre-trial services. At the April arraignment, the magistrate had ordered Frs. Vitale and Kelly to not break any local, state or federal laws.

On September 5, Magistrate Estrada ruled on the pre-trial motions. He denied the defense requests for a jury trial and dismissal of the charges against the two priests. He also denied the government's motion to use Fr. Vitale's prior arrests and convictions as prima facie evidence of trespass.

In a significant order that effectively gags the defense, Estrada granted the government's motion in limine to preclude defenses. The gag order forbids the defendants from introducing evidence at trial, either documentary or testimonial, about: the defenses of duress, justification, necessity, or self-defense; the morality or immorality of the government's use of interrogation techniques, training of soldiers in interrogation techniques; the legality of the wars in Iraq or Afghanistan; any military actions to support interrogations in any foreign countries; the legality of the Military Commission Act of 2006; the defense of international law; or the wisdom of any political question or government policy.

September 21, 2007
Magistrate Estrada also ordered Fr. Vitale to report to court on September 21 for a hearing on his conditions of pre-trial release. On that day, Bill Quigley told the court that because Fr. Vitale's sister is in poor health and Vitale will be spending time with her in the coming weeks, the priest would agree to follow the court's restrictions until trial - not to be arrested at a federal military or nuclear installation and to restrict his travel to California and Arizona.

In mid-September, the trial date for Frs. Kelly and Vitale was set for Wednesday, October 17. Because the approval of the motion in limine has stripped them of their defense, Frs. Vitale and Kelly intend on that day to change their plea from "not guilty" to "no contest". A no contest plea is treated by the court as a guilty plea, without the defendants admitting guilt. They have also requested that the magistrate sentence them on October 17. The pair are facing a maximum ten month prison sentence for both charges.

ABOUT THE SENTENCING
October 17, 2007--First Anniversary of the Signing of the Military Commissions Act

Accompanied by supporters who filled the courtroom of Magistrate Hector Estrada, Fr. Louis Vitale and Fr. Stephen Kelly were sentenced to five months in prison for their act of conscience. They received three months in prison for the federal trespass conviction, plus two months for the state "failure to comply with an officer" conviction, to be served consecutively. At the beginning of the hearing, the men changed their pleas to no contest, and later told the court they could not accept any sentence that included supervision, a fine, or compulsory community service.

Their attorney, Bill Quigley, asked the magistrate to send a message to our children and grandchildren by giving his clients a sentence of time served, for the 2 hours they spent in custody at Ft. Huachuca when arrested in November of 2006. Quigley stated, "The real crime here has always been torture."

The priests were taken into custody immediately after sentencing.

Before entering the courthouse, Fr. Kelly told supporters gathered outside, "We will keep trying to stop the teaching and practice of torture whether we are sent to jail or out. We have done our part. Now it is up to every woman and man of conscience to do their part to stop the injustice of torture."

After court, a dozen supporters drove to Sierra Vista, Arizona, to hold signs and banners opposing torture outside the main gate of Ft. Huachuca.



PRE-TRIAL MOTIONS

--Motion for Discovery
--Motion for Jury Trial
--Prosecution's Motion in Limine
--Opposition to Government Motion in Limine to Prevent Raising Defenses
--Attachments to Motions: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11
--Court Order
--Response to Defense Reply
--Memorandum in Support of Motion to Dismiss Prosecution of Non-Violent
First Amendment Protest Against Illegal Torture
--Motion for Dismissal of Prosecution
--Government Response to Defense Motion for Dismissal of Prosecution
   Exhibit 1
   Exhibit 2
   Exhibit 3
--Government's Reply to Defense Response to Government Motin In Limine to Admit Res Gestae Evidence of other Acts of Fr. Louis Vitale
--Government Notice of Witnesses for Pretrial hearing (July 25)
   Request for Official Information and Testimony at a Judicial Proceeding
   Request for Official Information and Testimony at a Judicial Proceeding
   Request for Official Information and Order to Testify at a Judicial Proceeding
   Request for Official Information and Order to Testify at a Judicial Proceeding
   Order to Testify at a Judicial Proceeding
Torture Reports for USA v Vitale and Kelly--13 August 2007
Order Denying Defense Motions--5 September, 2007


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