The National Lawyers Guild has called the FBI’s “Operation Backfire” unconstitutional, and part of an orchestrated campaign to silence dissent. The group’s press release issued Monday is the first time I’ve seen the guild, which prides itself on liberal-to-leftie politics, come out against these witch hunts. It’s a great step in the right direction, and hopefully it signals the start of a coordinated legal campaign by the guild and other to shift from defense to offense.
“In the past few years, the Guild has witnessed a disturbing trend of targeting protesters engaged in dissent, and in imposing draconian sentences for expressing such dissent. Life sentences for property damage offenses where the actor has no intent to harm an individual are simply unconstitutional—the punishment does not fit the crime,†said Heidi Boghosian, Executive Director of the National Lawyers Guild.
Also worth noting, the National Lawyers Guild will start a hotline for individuals arrested or subpoenaed for offenses related to environmental or animal activism.
1-888-NLG-ECOLAW will be active June 26, 2006.