Letter from Senator Leahy to Attorney General Ashcroft

The Honorable John Ashcroft
Attorney General
United States Department of Justice
950 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20530

Dear Attorney General Ashcroft:

I am writing to express my concern over the decision by the United States Attorney in Miami, Florida, to prosecute the environmental organization, Greenpeace USA, for acts of civil disobedience taken by Greenpeace members.

On April 12th, 2002, six activists from Greenpeace were arrested on federal misdemeanor charges stemming from their acts to protest what they claimed was an illegal shipment of mahogany from Brazil. At least three miles offshore Miami, Greenpeace activists boarded the ship, the APL Jade, carrying a banner designed to spur federal authorities to search the ship. The activists were arrested by the Coast Guard. They were charged with misdemeanors, convicted, and sentenced to time served. While I respect these activists’ First Amendment rights, I believe they should be held accountable for their acts.

However, I am concerned that fifteen months after the incident, Greenpeace itself was indicted for the very same acts for which its members had already been penalized. It is my understanding that prosecuting an advocacy group for the activities of its members is highly unusual. Several other advocacy organizations, such as the NAACP, American Friends Service Committee, People for the American Way, Natural Resources Defense Council and others, have raised serious concerns about the prosecution of Greenpeace as an organization because of its potential to deter free speech activities.

This case is even more unusual in that one of your U.S. Attorneys used an obscure law that was originally intended to be used to prevent the boarding of ships for the purpose of soliciting illegal activity. Not only does this appear to be an awkward and distorted application of the 1872 law, but it clearly does not lend itself to application to a worldwide organization where a small number of members involved in the incident have already been punished. One has to question the purpose of using the government’s limited prosecutorial resources in this fashion, particularly in this case, where APL Jade was in fact carrying illegal cargo.

Exercising prosecutorial discretion to bring a federal criminal case against Greenpeace appears overzealous and raises the specter of selective prosecution. Many other advocacy groups' members engage in civil disobedience, suffering the consequences of such acts as individuals, without the advocacy group itself being prosecuted. This has been true even in the same judicial district in Florida.

Prosecuting public interest organizations sends a strong message to other advocacy groups that the actions of their members could jeopardize their tax-exempt status and lead to government oversight of their activities, which could have a chilling effect on free speech and activism of all kinds. The practical implications to Greenpeace alone are also severe: its tax-exempt status is being jeopardized and its public reputation tainted.

I request that you review this case personally and respond to my concerns at the earliest possible date.

Sincerely,

PATRICK LEAHY
United States Senator