Statement of #IndependentTrialMonitors
On Verdict in #GreenpeaceUSA Trial:

"It is our collective assessment that the jury verdict against Greenpeace in #NorthDakota reflects a deeply flawed trial with multiple due process violations that denied Greenpeace the ability to present anything close to a full defense. Attorneys on our team monitored every minute of the proceedings and found multiple violations of #DueProcess that denied Greenpeace its right to a fair trial. The problems included a jury that was patently biased in favor of #EnergyTransfer, with many members working in the #FossilFuel industry; a judge who lacked the requisite experience and legal knowledge to rule properly on the complex #FirstAmendment and other evidentiary issues at the center of the case; and incendiary and prejudicial statements by lawyers for Energy Transfer that tried to criminalize Greenpeace and by extension the entire #ClimateMovement by attacking constitutionally-protected advocacy.

"Our fear that this was an illegitimate #corporate-funded #SLAPP harassment case was confirmed by our observations.

"We will be issuing a full report documenting these violations and larger flaws in the case in the coming weeks.

"While the trial court verdict is in, the case is far from over. Greenpeace has a right to appeal to the North Dakota Supreme Court and ultimately to the #USSupremeCourt. Our committee will continue its work monitoring this critically important case that raises troubling concerns for all advocates in the country."

— #MartyGarbus | #NataliSegovia | #JeanneMirer | #TerryCollingsworth | #StevenDonziger | #NadiaAhmad | #ScottWilsonBadenochJr. | #PaulPazYMiño | #AyishaSiddiqa | #WadeMcMullen | #KipHale | #SimonTaylor

Read individual statements:
https://www.trialmonitors.org/statement-of-independent-trial-monitors-on-verdict-in-greenpeace-trial
#NorthDakota #EnergyTransferPartners #StandWithStandingRock #NoDAPL #SLAPPs #ViewerSupportedNews #GreenpeaceUSA #SLAPPsLawsuits #CriminalizingDissent #NorthDakota #StandingRockSiouxTribe #StandingRockReservation #CorporateColonialism #BigOilAndGas #EnvironmentalRacism #WaterIsLife #KelcyWarren #ArrestKelcyWarren #ErikPrince #Blackwater #ACAB #FreeSpeech

#CriminalizingDissent: #Greenpeace Ordered to Pay $667M to #DakotaAccessPipeline Firm over #Protests

#DemocracyNow, March 20, 2025

"A jury in #NorthDakota has ordered Greenpeace to pay more than $660 million in damages for defaming #EnergyTransferPartners, the corporation behind the Dakota Access Pipeline. The Texas-based pipeline company accused Greenpeace of orchestrating criminal behavior by training and providing funds to the #Indigenous-led protests at #StandingRock. Greenpeace and its supporters, including other #nonprofits and #advocacy groups, argued that the lawsuit is part of a conspicuous attempt by #corporations to destroy the right to #FreeSpeech. Longtime #HumanRights and #environmental lawyer #StevenDonziger, who was part of the independent trial monitoring team observing the trial, says it was purposely held in a region of the country with deep ties to the #FossilFuel industry. Donziger said most of the jurors in the case were connected to the industry and were 'predisposed' to rule in favor of Energy Transfer despite the 'false narratives' presented at the trial. Greenpeace plans to appeal the ruling."

Watch / listen / read transcript:
https://www.democracynow.org/2025/3/20/greenpeace_lawsuit_north_dakota_pipeline
#StandWithStandingRock #NoDAPL #SLAPPs #ViewerSupportedNews #GreenpeaceUSA #SLAPPsLawsuits #CriminalizingDissent #NorthDakota #StandingRockSiouxTribe #StandingRockReservation #CorporateColonialism #BigOilAndGas #EnvironmentalRacism #WaterIsLife #KelcyWarren #ArrestKelcyWarren #ErikPrince #Blackwater #ACAB

A gruesome example of how the information war has been adopted by private organisations to sway public opinion, win court cases and make even more profit:

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/mar/19/greenpeace-lawsuit-energy-transfer-dakota-pipeline?CMP=Share_AndroidApp_Other

Boo hiss...! Jury Finds #Greenpeace at Fault, Awards #Pipeline Developer Hundreds of Millions

By Mary Steurer, North Dakota Monitor, via #CensoredNews

"Breaking news from the courtroom
A Morton County jury on Wednesday ordered Greenpeace to pay hundreds of millions of dollars to the developer of the #DakotaAccessPipeline, finding that the #environmental group incited illegal
behavior by anti-pipeline #protesters and defamed the company in the late 2010s.

"During closing arguments on Monday, the lead attorney representing #EnergyTransfer told jurors that Greenpeace’s actions caused between $265 million and $340 million in damages to the company. He asked the jury to award Energy Transfer that amount plus additional punitive damages.

"The nine-person jury delivered a verdict in favor of Energy Transfer on most counts. The verdict brought to a close a more than three-week trial in Mandan.

"The jury began deliberating Monday afternoon after hearing testimony from dozens of witnesses, including current and former Greenpeace employees, #IndigenousActivists, Energy Transfer representatives and law enforcement.

"This story will be updated.

"Thank you to the non-profit media #NorthDakotaMonitor for sharing their coverage with other media."

https://bsnorrell.blogspot.com/2025/03/jury-finds-greenpeace-at-fault-awards.html
#StandWithStandingRock #GreenpeaceUSA #SLAPPs #SLAPPsLawsuits #SilencingDissent #CriminalizingDissent #NorthDakota #StandingRockSiouxTribe #StandingRockReservation #BigOil #CorporateColonialism #BigOilAndGas #EnvironmentalRacism #StandingRock #SLAPPs #NoDAPL #WaterIsLife #UnicornRiot #ACAB #Blackwater #ErikPrince

#BrendaNorrell, #CensoredNews, March 11, 2025:

"While the bizarre court case continues in #MandanND, #EnergyTransfer v #Greenpeace, our most viewed articles include this one from the medics at #StandingRock, who were targeted and
attacked as the medics were treating water protectors on Oct. 27, 2016 -- a tactic that was used in #Palestine when medics were targeted and assassinated during the past two years. At Standing Rock, law enforcement had silencers on their weapons. 'Why do they have silencers if they are here for peace,' a medic said, who was fired on by law enforcement using shotguns loaded with lead-filled bean bags. According to the #GenevaConvention, knowingly firing at a medic wearing clear insignia is
a #warcrime."

From 2016: #MortonCountySheriff and the Violent Gang of #Police Targeted and Arrested #Medics while they were Treating Patients

Read more:
https://bsnorrell.blogspot.com/2016/10/standing-rock-medics-shot-by-police-and.html
#ReaderSupportedNews #ACAB #StandWithStandingRock #GreenpeaceUSA #SLAPPs #SLAPPsLawsuits #SilencingDissent #CriminalizingDissent #NorthDakota #StandingRockSiouxTribe #StandingRockReservation #BigOil #CorporateColonialism

#Greenpeace on Trial: $300M Lawsuit over #StandingRock #Protests Could Shutter Group & Chill #FreeSpeech

#DemocracyNow, March 04, 2025

"A closely watched civil trial that began in #NorthDakota last week could bankrupt Greenpeace and chill #EnvironmentalActivism as the climate crisis continues to deepen. The multimillion-dollar lawsuit by #EnergyTransfer, the oil corporation behind the #DakotaAccessPipeline, claims Greenpeace organized the mass protests and encampment at Standing Rock between 2016 and 2017 aimed at stopping construction of the project.

"Although the uprising at Standing Rock was led by #Indigenous #WaterDefenders, Energy Transfer is instead going after Greenpeace for $300 million in damages — an amount that could effectively shutter the group’s U.S. operations. 'This case is not just an obvious and blatant erasure of #IndigenousLeadership, of #IndigenousResistance,' says Deepa Padmanabha, a senior legal adviser for #GreenpeaceUSA. 'It is an attack on the broader movement and all of our First Amendment rights to free speech and #PeacefulProtest.'"

Watch / listen / read transcript:
https://www.democracynow.org/2025/3/4/greenpeace
#ViewerSupportedNews #StandWithStandingRock #WaterIsLife #NoDAPL #KelcyWarren #Trump #BigOil #CorporateColonialism #BigOilAndGas #EnvironmentalRacism #StandingRock #SLAPPs #NoDAPL #WaterIsLife #SLAPPsLawsuits #SilencingDissent #ACAB #EnergyTransfer #UnicornRiot #CriminalizingDissent #ACAB #Blackwater #ErikPrince