PEACE ON TRIAL!

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LET'S DEMILITARISE SHANNON AIRPORT TOGETHER!

The conscience of the Irish community has acquitted us. Thank you all for your solidarity and friendship. Let's continue our nonviolent resistance at Shannon!

For Trial Coverage Click www.indymedia.ie/article/77460

Audio and Video from RTE, Ireland

News At One: Fran McNulty details the charges that the five peace activists faced

Nine News: Barry Cummins reports that the five admitted attacking a US military plane at Shannon but said they had a lawful excuse

Six One News: Barry Cummins reports on the five people who were found not guilty of causing unlawful criminal damage to a US military plane

One News: Barry Cummins reports on the not guilty verdict returned by a jury in the trial of five people accused of causing unlawful damage to a US navy plane in Shannon in February 2003

Coverage of Previous Trials

Oct '05 Trial Collapses - Judge MacDonagh attended Bush Inauguration

March '05 Trial Collapses on Day Six

Pit Stop Ploughshares outside the Four Courts with Kathy Kelly and Mairead Corrigan Maguire, Nobel Peace Prize Laureate

They're on Trial for Us!

Before the illegal invasion & bombing of Iraq, five members of the pacifist Catholic Worker movement made their way into Shannon Airport and non-violently disarmed a U.S. Navy war plane in the early hours of February 3rd 2003. Their actions were inspired by the vision of Isaiah 2:4 to 'beat swords into ploughshares.

The Pit Stop Ploughshares Deirdre Clancy, Nuin Dunlop, Karen Fallon, Ciaron O'Reilly & Damien Moran then spent 4 to 11 weeks in Limerick Prison. They went to trial in Dublin circuit criminal court in March and October 2005 on two counts of Criminal Damage, €100 and $U.S. 2.5 million. Penalties, if convicted, would have carried a maximum of ten years imprisonment.

The March '05 trial collapsed on the 6th day when Judge O'Donnell agreed with Defence counsel arguments that his adjudication was tainted with a 'perception of bias' which was undermining the defendant's right to a presumption of innocence. The judge agreed, called a mistrial, dismissed the jury, and instructed the media not to report on the reasons for the mistrial.

The October '05 re-trial collapsed on the 10th day, after Judge Donagh MacDonagh agreed with Defence counsel that his attendance at the Bush inauguration in 2001 (amongst other meetings with Bush) was grounds for his removal from the case, in that his role was tainted with a 'perception of bias'.

The 3rd trial of the Pitstop Ploughshares trial started on July 10th 2006 and resulted in an unanimous 'Not Guilty' verdict on both charges after 12 days of testimony and legal argument. Judge Miriam Anderson had agreed on Day 9 of proceedings with Defence Counsel after extensive submissions and legal argument on the applicability of the statutory 'lawful excuse' defence.

After 4 1/2 hours of deliberation the Dublin jury of seven women and five men returned and gave their decision that all the accused should be acquitted as they honestly believed they were acting to save lives and property in Iraq and Ireland, and that their disarmament action was reasonable taking into consideration all the circumstances.

Tears and applause flowed spontaneously from the Ploughshares 5 and their supporters after the conscience of Ireland had spoken loud and clear - Demilitarise Shannon Now!

Over 100 international & numerous Irish anti-war activists converged on Dublin for both trials. They were occasions for public witness against the war, with evenings of celebration of the disarmament and public meetings concerning ongoing Irish involvement in the war on Iraq.