Tim DeChristopher Sentence: 2 Years in Federal Prison and $10,000 Fine
Tim DeChristopher was sentenced to two years in federal prison on Tuesday July 26, 2011 as well as a $10,000 fine.
From The Salt Lake Tribune:
Tim DeChristopher will face prison time for disrupting a federal oil and gas lease auction, a federal judge has ruled.
DeChristopher, the 29-year-old climate activist turned environmental folk hero, was sentenced Tuesday to spend two years in prison. He also will face a $10,000 fine.
The sentence — handed down as a somber crowd of supporters gathered outside the courthouse in downtown Salt Lake City — follows DeChristopher’s high-profile spoiling of a federal auction in late 2008.
DeChristopher was immediately taken into custody.
Much like after his trial, the activist community has rallied in support of DeChristopher and his actions.
"2 years 2 much. Tim's shown courage, the rest of us need to.http://t.co/gDflubQ #bidder70," Bill McKibben posted on Twitter.
"Heartbroken and outraged that Tim DeChristopher will spend next 2 years in prison, democracy is in chains today. #bidder70" Naomi Klein posted on Twitter.
There have been several poignant op-eds written regarding the sentencing, including one by Peter Yarrow, of Peter, Paul and Mary, in The Los Angeles Times.
There is a massive complicity in America today between the corporations that fund elections and the officeholders they elect. Actions like Tim's are aimed at disrupting that complicity. For our children, for our country and for the world, we should honor his courage and self-sacrifice and pledge to follow in his footsteps, each in our own way.
You can find more news about and responses to the sentence by following #bidder70 on Twitter.
What are your reactions to the sentence?
