A hearing will take place on September 15, 2011 in the trial of Fr. Stephen Kelly, S.J., Fr. Louis Vitale, O.F.M. and Dennis Apel. The three were arrested and charged with trespassing at Vandenberg Air Force Base on November 3, 2010. They have submitted a Motion to Dismiss the charges and the September 15 hearing, before U.S. Magistrate Rita Coyne-Federman, will be to decide whether or not the charges will be dropped.
The hearing will be at at 1:30 pm at Federal Bankruptcy Court, located at 1415 State Street, Santa Barbara, CA 93101.

Posted: September 9th, 2011 under News, Upcoming Events.
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Vandenberg Air Force Base/Space Command has set the date for the next Minuteman
III Intercontinental Ballistic Missile test launch. It is scheduled for World Peace Day,
Wednesday, September 21.

The LGM-30 Minuteman is a U.S. land-based nuclear tipped intercontinental ballistic
missile (ICBM). As of 2010, the LGM-30G Minuteman-III is the only land-based ICBM
in service in the United States. It is one component of a nuclear triad, which is
complemented by the Trident submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) and by
nuclear weapons carried by long-range strategic bombers.

The letter “L” in “LGM” indicates that the missile is land silo-launched; the “G”
indicates that it is designed to attack ground targets; the “M” indicates that it
is a guided missile. The name “Minuteman” comes from the Revolutionary War’s
Minutemen. It also refers to its quick reaction time; the missile can be launched
in approximtely 1 minute. The Air Force plans to keep the missile in service
until at least 2030.

The current U.S. force consists solely of 450 Minuteman-III missiles in missile
silos around F.E. Warren AFB, Wyoming; Malmstrom AFB, Montana; and Minot AFB,
North Dakota.

These tests violate the spirit and intent of the Nuclear Non Proliferation
Treaty and make the world a more dangerous place. Please include a protest
against this launch in all Sept. 21 World Peace Day events.

Posted: August 26th, 2011 under News, Uncategorized.
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L to R: Theo Kayser, David Omondi, Fr. Louie Vitale, OFM, Jeff Dietrich, Jesse Lewis, Mariah Klusmire

On August 6, forty Catholic Workers and friends gathered at the front gate to commemorate the 66th anniversary of the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Near the end of the one and one-half vigil, six people, including L.A. Catholic Workers Theo Kayser, David Omondi, Jeff Dietrich, and Jesse Lewis, along with Guadalupe Catholic Worker Mariah Klusmire, and Franciscan priest, Fr. Louie Vitale OFM, crossed the line and knelt down to pray for peace and a disarmed U.S. Empire. All six were immediately arrested, taken to a building on the base, cited and released at Pioneer Park in Lompoc an hour and one-half later. All have pending court dates. See photos HERE.

Posted: August 12th, 2011 under News.
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The July 27th test missile launch by USA in violation of Non Proliferation Treaty failed!

Fr. Louie Vitale and MacGregor Eddy were arrested at 1:20 am July 27, cited, and released for trespass while protesting the launch of a nuclear weapon delivery system from Vandenberg Air Force Base. The missile was destroyed by Vandenberg Air Force Base over the Pacific Ocean because of a malfunction.

Jim Haber and Mary Lou Anderson of the Nevada Desert Experience as well as world war II veteran Bud Boothe and legal observer Kelly Gray also attended. The nuclear capable, solid fuel, high speed test missile was set to land in Kwajalein atoll, the Marshall Islands.

Posted: July 29th, 2011 under News.
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Fr Louie Vitale, O.F.M. and Dennis Apel court date was postponed until Sept 15. 2011. Fr. Louie and Dennis did appear for arraignment in Santa Barbara Federal Court on June 16. However, due to a 9th District Court ruling on a different but similar case, it was believed that the charges would be dropped. The court, however, decided to uphold the charges and the new date was set.

Posted: July 12th, 2011 under News, Upcoming Events.
Comments: 2

A Test launch of a Minuteman III ICBM (nuclear warhead delivery system) from Vandenberg Space Command to Kwajalein in the Marshall Islands is scheduled for the early morning hours of July 27. Join us to uphold the good faith of the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty.

We will gather at 11:55 pm, Tuesday, July 26, at Vandenberg Space Command main gate at the Intersection of Hwy One and Lompoc Cas Melia Rd. nine miles north of Lompoc on Highway One in Santa Barbara County.

11:45 pm – Meet for briefing at Vandenberg Village parking lot. (3734 Constellation Road, Lompoc).

See MacGregor Eddy’s blog for more info or contact MacGregor Eddy via e-mail: macgregoreddy@gmail.com or call 831-206-5043, Scott Yundt at 925-443-7148 or Jim Haber at 415-828-2506

Posted: July 12th, 2011 under News, Upcoming Events.
Comments: 1

Twelve conscientious citizens went to trial in federal court in Knoxville, Tennessee on Monday, May 9, on charges of criminal trespass for their July 5, 2010 act of nonviolent civil resistance in protest of continuing nuclear weapons production at the Y12 Nuclear Weapons Complex in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. After the three day trial, on Thursday, May 12, the jury went into deliberations for less than three hours and came back with a unanimous guilty verdict.

The defendants include: Catholic Worker Steve Baggarly of Norfolk, Virginia; Brad Lyttle of Chicago, Illinois; Jackie Hudson of Ground Zero Community in Poulsbo, Washington; Catholic Worker Fr. Bill Bichsel, S.J.  of Seattle Washington; Bonnie Urfer of Luck, Wisconsin; Mary Dennis Lentsch of Washburn, Tennessee; Beth Rosdatter of Lexington, Kentucky, Carol Gilbert and Ardeth Platte of Jonah House in Baltimore, Maryland; Catholic Worker Michael Walli of Duluth, Minnesota; Dennis DuVall of Prescott, Arizona; and Jean Gump of Bloomington, Michigan. See story here. See coverage from local newspaper Knoxville News.

Posted: May 13th, 2011 under News.
Comments: 1

Fr. Louis Vitale, OFM, Dennis Apel, and Fr Steve Kelly, SJ, are due to appear in court on June 16 at the Santa Barbara Federal Court – 1415 State St., Santa Barbara, 93101. The time will either be 9am or 1:30pm. Check back later for exact time and possible date change. This court appearance is for an arrest in November 2010. Letters of support can be sent to Vandenberg Witness, 4575 9th St, Guadalupe, CA 93434, or e-mail to info@vandenbergwitness.org

Fr. Steve Kelly will not appear because he is in prison serving a 15 month sentence for a Plowshares action at the Kitsap-Bangor Naval Base (see post below).

If you are in Northern California and would like to travel via a peace train for court support, please contact MacGregor Eddy via e-mail: macgregoreddy@gmail.com or call  831-206-5043. There are funds available from the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom if train fare is unaffordable. NOTE: The train is also an educational tour as it goes through the back area of Vandenberg and you can see the missile launch gantries and pads.

Posted: April 5th, 2011 under Upcoming Events.
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The five Disarm Now! Plowshares activists that entered the Kitsap-Bangor Navy Base on the feast of All Souls, November 2, 2009, to symbolically disarm the largest stockpile of nuclear weapons in the U.S., were sentenced on March 28 in the Tacoma, WA federal court.

Sentenced were: Sr. Anne Montgomery, 83, a Sacred Heart sister from New York – 2 mos in federal prison and 4 mos electronic home confinement; Fr. Bill Bischel, 81, a Jesuit priest and Catholic Worker from Tacoma, WA – 3 mos in prison and 6 mos electronic home confinement; Susan Crane, 67, a member of Jonah House community in Baltimore, MD – 15 mos in prison; Lynne Greenwald, 60, a nurse from Bremerton, WA – 6 mos in prison; Fr. Steve Kelly, 60, a Jesuit priest from Oakland, CA and Catholic Worker in Guadalupe, CA – 15 mos in prison. They were ordered to pay $5,300. each and serve an additional year on supervised probation. Bischel and Greenwald also are active members of Ground Zero Center for Nonviolent Action in Poulsbo, WA, a community resisting Trident nuclear weapons since 1977.

See story at: http://www.commondreams.org/view/2011/03/28-14
Keep updated about activists and Ground Zero at: http://www.gzcenter.org/
Read about the activists and action and keep updated at: http://disarmnowplowshares.wordpress.com/

Posted: April 2nd, 2011 under News.
Comments: 1

On  January 5, 2011, during the regular monthly vigil held outside the main gate in the legal protest area, Bud Boothe was warned that he was in violation of a Ban and Bar order and was given two minutes to leave or face arrest. Bud chose to remain and subsequently was arrested. During the arrest process the hand cuffs were placed on him very tightly, which caused a severe bruise to his wrist and back of hand. Throughout the process Bud repeatedly complained about the pain he was suffering, but nothing was done by the arresting guards. A photo of Bud’s hand can be seen on MacGregor Eddy’s Blog.

Posted: March 5th, 2011 under Uncategorized.
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