From Democracy Now!  October 20, 2016

Actress Shailene Woodley pleaded not guilty on charges related to the resistance to the $3.8 billion Dakota Access pipeline on Wednesday. She was arrested along with 27 others in North Dakota on October 10 during actions to mark Indigenous Peoples’ Day. 

Woodley was strip-searched and then put in an orange jump suit in the Morton County jail, which appears to be a common practice even for low-level misdemeanor charges. Woodley told Democracy Now!, “Never did it cross my mind that while trying to protect clean water, trying to ensure a future where our children have access to an element essential for human survival, would I be strip-searched. I was just shocked.”

 Standing Rock Sioux Tribal Chair Dave Archambault II and others have also been strip-searched after being arrested for nonviolent civil disobedience against the pipeline.

http://m.democracynow.org/web_exclusives/3041

By Marie Cusick/ StateImpact Pennsylvania, October 21, 2016

PHOTO: Mark Clatterbuck of the group, Lancaster Against Pipelines, carries woods from the site of what pipeline opponents are calling ‘The Stand.’

Opponents of the Atlantic Sunrise interstate natural gas pipeline are building a wooden structure in southern Lancaster County, in an attempt to block the pipeline’s construction. Mark Clatterbuck of the group, Lancaster Against Pipelines, says they were inspired by Native American groups’ opposition to the Dakota Access oil pipeline earlier this year. He says the structure will serve as a place for people to come together.

“Our whole point is to say, ‘We’re not going to let you come through,’” he says. “This is a blockade for the project. We want to derail the project.” Nicknamed “The Stand,” the structure is located on a farm in Conestoga, in the path of a proposed route. The group plans to hold a dedication ceremony Saturday.

The $3 billion Atlantic Sunrise pipeline, proposed by Williams Partners LP, has not yet received final approval from federal regulators. It’s designed to move natural gas from northeastern Pennsylvania southward to markets along the eastern seaboard. Clatterbuck says protesters plan to occupy the structure if and when pipeline construction commences.

“We understand there are individuals who have expressed concerns about the project,” says Williams spokesman Chris Stockton in an email. “We’ve also heard from thousands of individuals and groups who support the project because they recognize the important role it will play in growing the state’s natural gas industry, creating consumer access to an abundant supply of clean, affordable energy while delivering significant state and local economic benefits.”

In recent years there has been a big push to expand the region’s network of pipelines, as Pennsylvania gas producers face record low prices and infrastructure related supply constraints. More gas is also needed for electric power generation, as coal-fired plants retire.

A final decision on the Atlantic Sunrise is expected from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) in the spring. The project has already received preliminary approval. In May, the commission issued a draft environmental impact statement saying the pipeline would not create significant adverse impacts.

FERC was supposed to issue its final environmental impact statement October 21, but said Thursday it would delay the release and extend public comment. The final EIS is now expected December 30. The move follows a minor route change request by Williams. Some Lancaster County residents have also asked to have the route moved back to the original plan, closer to existing utility right-of-ways.

https://stateimpact.npr.org/pennsylvania/2016/10/21/opponents-build-wooden-structure-to-block-atlantic-sunrise-pipeline/

PHOTO:  Lindsey Grayzel, an independent film-maker from Portland, Oregon, was arrested and jailed on 11 October while filming at a pipeline protest in Washington state.

From an Article by Sam Levin, The Guardian, October 20, 2016

San Francisco – Two documentary film-makers are facing decades in prison for recording US oil pipeline protests, with serious felony charges that first amendment advocates say are part of a growing number of attacks on freedom of the press.

The controversial prosecutions of Deia Schlosberg and Lindsey Grayzel are moving forward after a judge in North Dakota rejected “riot” charges filed against Democracy Now! host Amy Goodman for her high-profile reporting at the Dakota Access pipeline protests.

But authorities in other parts of North Dakota and in Washington state have continued to target other film-makers over their recent reporting on similar demonstrations, raising concerns that the lesser-known journalists are not getting the same kind of public support and national attention.

Schlosberg, a New York-based film-maker, is facing three felony conspiracy charges for filming protesters on 11 October at a TransCanada Keystone Pipeline site in Pembina County in North Dakota, with prosecutors alleging that she was “recruited to record the criminal activity”.

The 36-year-old – who is producing a documentary called How to Let Go of the World and Love All the Things Climate Can’t Change – could face 45 years in prison. US whistleblower Edward Snowden recently tweeted his support of Schlosberg, writing: “This reporter is being prosecuted for covering the North Dakota oil protests. For reference, I face a mere 30 years.”

Edward Snowden (@Snowden), October 14, 2016 – This reporter is being prosecuted for covering the North Dakota oil protests. For reference, I face a mere 30 years. https://t.co/GzMbwCVV40

Grayzel, an independent film-maker from Portland, Oregon, was also arrested and jailed on 11 October while filming at a separate pipeline protest in Skagit County, Washington. She and her cinematographer, Carl Davis, had their footage and equipment seized and were kept behind bars for a day.

The two were filming activist Ken Ward attempting to shut down the Trans Mountain pipeline, and they now face 30 years in prison for a felony burglary charge, a felony “criminal sabotage” charge and a misdemeanor trespass offense. There were a series of pipeline protests across the US on 11 October.

“Everyone needs to be afraid when our first amendment rights are in jeopardy,” Grayzel, 41, told the Guardian on Thursday before her criminal arraignment. “This is not just about me. This is not just about Carl. This is not about Amy Goodman … This is about the public’s right to know what is going on in this country.”

Free-speech advocates said that both cases are unusual and troubling given that prosecutors have admitted that the defendants were acting as film-makers and are still pursuing aggressive felony cases.

While it’s not uncommon for journalists to face arrest and misdemeanor charges for trespassing or disorderly conduct while reporting at controversial protests, conspiracy, burglary and sabotage offenses are rare for members of the media.

“It’s outrageous. It’s an assault on the first amendment,” said Neil Fox, one of Grayzel’s attorneys. “It’s shocking, but it is the kind of climate that we’re living in right now.”

Fox cast blame on the Republican presidential candidate, Donald Trump, who has made vicious attacks on the media a cornerstone of his campaign. “This is certainly the result of the toxic language that Trump brings to the election.”

Although Ward, a climate activist, had gained access to a fenced enclosure owned by the Trans Mountain Pipeline, the Skagit County sheriff’s report noted that Grayzel and her cinematographer were “just outside the enclosure … taking photographs and video”. The report said they confiscated the film-makers’ phone and “assorted camera equipment”, actions that have raised further concerns about press intimidation and free speech violations.

Washington prosecutors are relying on laws that were passed in the early 20th century to target labor rights’ protesters, Fox added. “There’s been a revival in the state of Washington of the use of these statutes against labor activists and against environmental activists.”

In Goodman’s case, a judge forced prosecutors to drop a serious “riot” charge, which was centered on Goodman’s viral coverage of the intense Native American-led protests. But prosecutors and sheriff’s officials said they may continue to pursue other charges against the critically acclaimed journalist.

In Schlosberg’s charges, North Dakota prosecutors have alleged that she was part of a conspiracy, claiming she traveled with protesters “with the objective of diverting the flow of oil”.

“I was surprised at the conspiracy charges. I never thought that would ever happen,” her attorney Robert Woods told the Guardian. “All she was doing was her job of being a journalist and covering the story.”

Prosecutors in both cases declined to comment.

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2016/oct/20/north-dakota-oil-pipeline-protest-film-makers-face-prison

From KFYR-TV, Bismark, ND, October 18, 2016

CANNON BALL, N.D. – Standing Rock Sioux Tribal Councilman Joe Dunn has written the following statement regarding Morton County Sheriff Kyle Kirchmeier’s comments about road blocks affecting people’s rights:

I would like to respond to the comments that were made by Morton County Sheriff Kyle Kirchmeier on KFYR television on October 17, 2016. The Sheriff says that blocking roads “affects people’s rights.” I would remind Sheriff Kirchmeier that the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe are “people” as well and deserve to have our rights upheld.

These roadblocks are literally dividing our communities and eroding the good relations that our tribal and non-tribal residents have formed.

While the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and the other tribal nations make great contributions to the state of North Dakota, these significant contributions are often underplayed and overlooked. We have to go through a road block that we help pay for every time we travel on highway 1806 to and from the Bismarck and Mandan area. We are questioned, “Where are you coming from?” and “Where are you going?”

We have been detoured for no justifiable reason. The road block south of the Fort Lincoln Cemetery has been a huge waste of taxpayers’ money while accomplishing nothing more than disrupting innocent citizens daily lives and also creating racial tensions and division between our communities.

These road blocks also put people at risk. Medical patients who are in need of care, are stopped on their way to the medical facilities in Bismarck. Commuters have been detoured many miles based on the color of their skin. Our children from Standing Rock and also those who attend Bismarck-Mandan schools are being subjected to the same racial profiling and bullying that we have seen modeled by the Morton County Sheriff’s office.

Sheriff Kirchmeier, do you think that Native people’s rights are being “affected” by this roadblock? I should not have to remind you that we live in the United States of America governed by a Constitution where equal protection of law is afforded to all citizens, not just those of your choosing.

I am very disappointed with the State Government of North Dakota for allowing this to happen. I myself have served with pride while participating in the Electric Coop industry, and have worked faithfully for many years advocating to strengthening relationships with the State. After working to build those relationships that took decades, it is discouraging and disheartening to see that the state has so easily discounted everything we have accomplished as good neighbors and has aligned its efforts and resources with a Texas-owned corporation.

http://www.kfyrtv.com/content/news/Standing-Rock-Sioux-Tribe-responds-to-Morton-County-County-Sheriffs-comments-on-road-blocks-affecting-rights-397503271.html

From KFYR – TV, Bismark, ND, October 19, 2016

CALHOUN COUNTY, IA – Typically we’ve seen Dakota Access Pipeline protesters arrested for trespassing on other people’s land, but in Iowa over the weekend one landowner was arrested on her own property.

Cyndy Coppola was arrested on Saturday on her family’s farm in Calhoun County Iowa.

She says Dakota Access gained rights to be on her property against her and her family’s will. They used condemnation court and eminent domain to get easements to the property. On Saturday Coppola and friend Ed Fallon were arrested after they attempted to block trucks carrying pipeline across her farm.

Coppola says it’s hard to see someone else take control of your property.

“It was very frustrating, and when I first saw that topsoil piled up when they started digging, my first reaction was to cry, because we’ve tried everything,” says Coppola.

Coppola and her family are part of a lawsuit brought by nine Iowa farms against Dakota Access for using eminent domain to gain easements, which they say is against Iowa state law.