Project E.L.F.

Demonstrators gathered at the remote Wisconsin northwoods home of Project E.L.F. to honor Dr. King on January 23, at the conclusion of a weekend conference sponsored by the Peace Club of Northland College and Nukewatch. Activists from six states and two Canadian provinces carried Dr. King's message of peaceful direct action directly to the gates of the Navy transmitter that sends messages to submerged missile-firing submarines around the world. Eight who climbed over the fence and seven who remained on the ground were all issued trespass citations by Ashland County Sheriff's deputies.

Five people pleaded not guilty; four resisters will face trial April 4, and the other at a later date. Most of the other 11 arrested either pleaded no contest or guilty and were fined about $200. Some apparently ignored the charge. Previously, nonpayment of fines in Wisconsin courts usually resulted in the loss of a driver's license. This sanction in no longer permitted, so the likely penalty for non-payment is not yet known.

Their judge in Ashland County District Court will be Robert Eaton, who a few days before the January arrests presided over the case of two Duluth Catholic Workers, Molly Mechtenberg and Reba Mathern-Jacobson, who were arrested last October 10 at Project ELF.

Mathern-Jacobson opened her and Mechtenberg's defense requesting a dismissal of the charge. She said, "This trespass charge is a smoke screen for the real crime of the existence of ELF. The World Court in The Hague on July 8, 1996 declared that the possession or threatened use of nuclear weapons is a violation of international law. Whereas ELF is the trigger for launching Trident nuclear missiles, I move that this case be dismissed so that we can go about prosecuting the real crime which is the possession and threatened use of nuclear weapons."

Judge Eaton declined, and in the end convicted the women and fined them $209. Both refused, explaining that they live in voluntary poverty and were opposed on principle to paying the fine. He then ordered the two to pay $5 per month beginning within 60 days. "Frankly," Judge Eaton said, "the jail is full of people who need to be there. And these people don't need to be there."

Before imposing sentence, Judge Eaton said, "It's not surprising that people disagree with the existence of ELF and want to close it. The arguments today have been eloquent, but the government has not seen fit to close the ELF facility and I don't have the authority to close it.

"It's not surprising to me that people make pilgrimages to ELF to seek its closure. Prayer is hugely important. We can't directly see the direct effects of prayer, that for example, a prayer today saves the life of someone tomorrow." The Judge said he was cheered to read in the paper that a prayer vigil took place January 1 at the ELF site which did not involve arrests.