Nevada Desert Experience

Civil Resistance with The CREECH 14
Ground the Drones Lest We Reap the Whirlwind

See a message from the Creech 14 below

How It Began

Before and during the annual Sacred Peace Walk of 2009 NDE hosted a second group of people who vigilled daily at the entrance of Creech AFB. On Good Friday 2009 all the vigillers and the Sacred Peace Walkers were together. Then some of the vigillers crossed the line to share dinner with the employees of Creech AFB. But instead of sharing dinner, the pacifist group who crossed onto the AFB were arrested. All were released from jail in Vegas by Easter Sunday.

Nearly a year later, the court notified one arrestee that they would have to return to Las Vegas for arraignment. That defendant notified the others. All of "The Creech 14" pleaded "not guilty", and therefore are going to trial.

More Info On Drones | Video of arrest

What It Means

On September 14, 2010 the Creech 14 went to trial. at a Clark County courtroom (see below). Nobody knows why the court and plaintiff waited a year to prosecute. The trial included expert witnesses Ann Wright (retired Army Colonel), Ramsey Clark (retired US Attorney General under L.B. Johnson), and law teacher Bill Quigley. The Creech 14 represented themselves and the judge Jansen decided that the issues were just too important to make a quick decision. He announced that he will research more and decide by January 27th. Drone warfare is increasing, so the resistance must increase. Over time, we will understand more about lack of resistance in the USA to drone warfare. Press Release

Fact Sheet: Drones = War Crimes

Get Involved

Vigil At Creech

Friday January 28th from 6:30 to 8:00am & 3:30 to 5:00pm

View NDE's Covenant of Nonviolence

Drone Memo on international law and necessity defense
Expert Witness disclosure

News Release From Voices & NDE
Peter Ediger leads song to rejoice after non-verdict
CityLife article on the Judge's historic delay
Review Journal article on the Judge's delay of decision
Public News Service article on the Creech 14 delay
All Voices article on surprise delay
Democracy Now 33-second blurb on the trial
Vegetarianism & Militarism
OpEdNews story on the Creech 14 trial
OneIndia story on Creech 14 trial
VCNV Iowa event after Creech 14 trial
Radio Show the Night Before Trial

The Creech 14 are: John Dear, S.J.; Dennis DuVall; Renee Espeland; Judy Homanich; Kathy Kelly; Fr. Steve Kelly; Mariah Klusmire; Brad Lyttle; Libby Pappalardo; Megan Rice, SHCJ; Brian Terrell; Eve Tetaz; Fr. Louie Vitale; and Fr. Jerry Zawada.

Judge's Verdict YESTERDAY

January 27, 2011

The Judge's verdict was coincidentally timed on the same date as the 60th anniversary of nuclear testing at the Nevada National Security Site (NNSS--formerly the NTS/NPG).

Excerpted from Dave Toplikar's article for the Las Vegas Sun...

Thursday, Jan. 27, 2011, Creech Air Force Base

A Las Vegas judge on Thursday handed down a decision that got a mixed reaction from protesters of drone warfare who were arrested for trespassing nearly two years ago at Creech Air Force Base in Southern Nevada.

Judge William Jansen, in a 20-page decision, ruled that the "Creech 14" who protested April 9, 2009, at the base, were guilty of the crime of trespassing.

But the judge also decided that the defendants, who stood trial for the misdemeanor offense last September in his courtroom, would be given credit for the time they served in jail and would be free to go.

"Go in peace," were Jansen's final words to the defendants after an hour-long court proceeding this morning in Las Vegas Justice Court.

The judge also urged them to use diplomacy, rather than trespassing, in their attempts to get U.S. drone warfare policy changed.

Before handing down sentences, the judge allowed each of the defendants to make statements. Each of those who spoke said they disagreed that what they were doing wasn't out of necessity.

Photo by Homanich

Dear Friends of the Creech 14:

We were elated to be allowed to question our star witnesses in court on September 14 in front of Judge William Jansen in Las Vegas. The carefully crafted questioning of Steve Kelly and Kathy Kelly kept the objections to a minimum, and seemed to open the court to the need to consider that sometimes trespassing is relatively unimportant, maybe even pardonable. The testimony of Ramsey Clark, Ann Wright and Bill Quigley, the moving opening and closing statements, the off-putting attempts by the prosecution to discredit the experts all noticeably moved Judge Jansen from his initial limitation of the defense to matters pertaining to trespass law, to his considering if there are other serious issues that need to be weighed.

We were ecstatic that he didn't immediately rule against us saying he wanted at least three months to consider the case: a thoughtful judge. The defendants want to keep the pressure on to stop the ongoing, deadly drone attacks, but we ask that people give the judge the space to consider how he wants to rule.

It can be appropriate to write to a judge on behalf of a person already convicted concerning the sentence that the judge will impose. Many campaigns of civil resistance even encourage supporters to write to a judge about the character of those awaiting sentence and about circumstances that led to the action for which they had been arrested and convicted. In our unique case, however, it is not the sentence but our guilt or innocence that Judge Jansen is deliberating and so efforts to influence him are not appropriate or helpful at this time.

We are asking that people not write or call Judge Jansen, either to share news reports, opinion pieces, or even to thank him for his honest consideration of the case. The case we presented in court should speak for itself. Let us give him the respect he showed us and our case, and leave him to his deliberations.

Thank you for your interest, support and patience! See you in Las Vegas on January 27, 2011 (and maybe let us know if you are planning on coming or just want to be kept abreast of developments in the case.

Sincerely and gratefully yours,
The Creech 14
(Fr. John Dear, SJ; Dennis DuVall; Renee Espeland; Judy Homanich; Kathy Kelly; Fr. Steve Kelly, SJ; Mariah Klusmire; Brad Lyttle; Libby Pappalardo; Sr. Megan Rice, SHCJ; Brian Terrell; Eve Tetaz; Fr. Louie Vitale, OFM; and Fr. Jerry Zawada, OFM.)

P.S. Commondreams.org has published two fine accounts of out trial, one by Jerica Arents, and one by John Dear,