Eric Schatz Headcam Footage, 4-10-03, Part 2
Part 2 of 5, violent extraction by Maxxam/Pacific Lumber hired climbers, in the Freshwater Creek watershed, Greenwood Heights Rd, in a tree named "Allah." These extraction climbers are not officers of the law, nor are they deputized, yet the Humboldt Co. Sheriff's Dept. allows this to go on; the local District Attorney, Paul Gallegos, even pressed felony assault charges on the activist, and none on the climbers! You decide!
Formats available: MPEG4 Video (.mp4), Flash Video (.flv)
posted by Shunka Wakan @ 4:37 PM
14 comments
14 Comments:
After what you have been through, Shunka, I would have thought you would have learned something. I'm Disappointed in you here.
What I mean by that is - you are using footage that has been edited from the original, which was never given to you, but rather was given to the courts as evidence by Schatz, and was then taken out of the court system by Remedy aka Jeny card, and her cohorts, heavily edited to suit her purposes, and used to smear Schatz. You use of it - and your characterization of it is disgraceful and harmful
But the funny thing is, I don't think this little show helps your cause a bit. In its day, it may have, but we have all seen the antics of the "Don't taze me, bro" guy on national TV, and we all know how one can play for the camera, which you know is what is going on here.
I'm gonna go ahead and link to you blog anyway, but my sympathy is rapidly drying up.
I'm sorry you feel that way, Rose, I was glad to have connected with you on the Trees Foundation issue. Just so you know, this is unedited footage, so people can make up their own minds as to what was going on. I do feel that Maxxam/PL shouldn't be able to use people who are not officers of the law to physically apprehend people, and I think that it's really messed up that Paul Gallegos blew off a meeting with community members to go climbing with Schatz. Many people thought that was very strange, yet hoped that something good would come out of it; much to our horror, our friend, Phoenix (the activist featured in the video), was charged with FELONY assualt for this incident, while Climber Ox got nothing.
I'm focusing more on the fact that the Humboldt Co. Sheriff's Dept., even (especially?)under Gallegos, has turned a blind eye to the law when it comes to extractions. We, as citizens, have the right to only be arrested by officers of the law; anything less is the equivalent of hiring mercenaries to do your bidding, all under the color of law.
Officers of the law are supposed to go through extensive training to learn how to safely apprehend people; we haven't seen the most shining examples of that in Humboldt lately, yet that's the system, and that's how things are supposed to be handled, in this "civil society."
My focus in on how Maxxam/PL is allowed to circumvent the law, and also to further exemplify the dynamic of "turn the tables and blame the victim," which has applied to many cases throughout North Coast Earth First! history.
It's hard to say what helps or hurts our cause, because different people will respond in various ways to a multitude of media. I'm documenting the history of our movement, for better or for worse, and I think you know where I stand.
Let's not let a few videos burn any bridges, ok?
Yeah. I am not particularly interested in burning any bridges with you. I do not equate you with the bad side of Earth First! (except when you do something like perpetuate this attack on Schatz.)
But you have been left behind, as the virulent side has created a new, more powerful weapon; using the court system as a panzer unit. And the powers that be have left you in the dust because you, in their mind, are no longer useful. They used you, and many others like you, with high ideals and youthful passion. They put you in the forefront, and used you to garner publicity and power.
Treesits and treesitters are no longer fashionable, they are messy and clunky. The newer litigious terminator model is all sleek and streamlined, and vastly more profitable.
Why comment moderation? Let the conversation flow, good, bad or indifferent, it's better that way.
The video is aimed more at the system that allows non-deputized individuals, such as Schatz and "Ox," to carry out arrests, on behalf of Maxxam/PL and the Humboldt Co. Sheriff's Dept. Hopefully everyone can see how dangerous it can be, for everyone, when people who are not professionally trained to make an arrest attempt to do so on an unwilling arrestee.
I have also been on the receiving end of being "arrested" by PL employees, and I was also scratched up and put in a headlock, which could have broken my neck or crushed my larnyx.
It's also an expose on Paul Gallegos, who failed to press any charges against the climbers, in this incident, yet relentlessly pursued felony assault charges against "Phoenix." The judge had to reduce the charges to misdemeanors, since there was no evidence of any assault on the climber by Phoenix.
I've set this blog to moderated status so that I'll be notified when someone tries to post on here. I don't want spam on here, and I'd rather have the chance to weed out complete garbage rather than have to delete it later. Don't worry, I believe in free speech, and will approve most messages. I just want to make sure that it doesn't get loaded down with spam, and I like to be notified when people post.
Thanks for participating, and I hope you see my intentions in the way I present this video.
I don't think anything could be said about Climber Eric that isn't deserved. Why would anybody who cares for tree or human life stand up for him? He once apparently told a (female) activist, about to bring her down from a tree, "See those deputies on the ground? If you resist or make even the slightest move against me, they'll shoot you." He also told her, "When you get down, to celebrate, you should get yourself a pearl necklace" (sounds like sexual harassment to me). Finally, he told her that he and the cops on the ground had an agreement that if she fell, they'd all say she committed suicide by jumping.
-from Endgame by Derrick Jensen
And Shunka's getting shit for posting a video of Climber Eric's criminal torture and abuse? Wow.
The difference is, anonymous, I have met with Schatz, I have talked with him and with people who know him.
There is a completely different side of the story. And if some of the activists told you the truth about their interactions with him and deputies when the cameras weren't on and when their friends were out of earshot - you would find acts of kindness and even empathy.
They recognized that these were just kids.
Kids, I might add, who were being used, cynically, by those who have now abandoned people like Shunka in favor of more profitable activities.
Now they won't even give money for socks - and they are rolling in money.
How much? Go to activistcash.com and read about the BIG MONEY - and the new activist business model.
The hypocrites.
Shunka - I know you. I know Schatz, and I have seen the film. What you have IS edited.
The only editing I did was to put the intro/outro titles on it, and split it into parts. Other than that, I have not done any editing to the content itself.
If PL edited it, they weren't supposed to, as this was footage submitted as evidence, and any editing would constitute tampering.
What does "Shunka" stand for ?
And I am interested in your comments about how citizens have the right to be arested by officers. Is that a Constitutional right or some other right? Does this mean that when a store employee arrests a shoplifter that the employee is violating the thief's rights ?
Could you enlighten me?
"Shunka"s the first part of a spirit name I was given, on the Cheyenne River Lakota Reservation, about 13 years ago, on the night of my first sweat lodge ceremony. The full name means, "the humble man called 'horse.'"
As for citizen's arrest laws, a citizen may restrain another citizen only if one witnesses another committing a felony.
Grocery store workers can grab onto a coat, and if the thief assaults/batters the worker, then that's another charge. Yes, a thief can sue you if you happen to injure them during a citizen's arrest, especially if excessive force can be proven. This is why it's usually recommended that a citizen calls the authorities, and can sign a citizen's arrest form if a crime has been witnessed by a non-officer (citizen).
These laws are designed to discourage vigilantism, while still allowing for exceptions, so that brave citizens can legally attempt to stop heinous crimes.
Rose, I'm guessing you don't know that ActivistCash.com is a project of the Center for Consumer Freedom, an industry-funded propaganda group that gets big bucks from tobacco and meat companies and restaurants. They have fought against animal cruelty legislation, tobacco legislation, and Mothers Against Drunk Driving, to name a few. They've tried to demonstrate how obesity and smoking are not related to disease. They are not the kind of people you want to be getting your information from. While maybe the sentiment can sometimes be somewhat accurate, take Activist Cash with a HUGE grain of salt.
Howdy.
Just websurfed by while looking at videos of this type tonight. In an earlier reply, I noticed reference to an "Ox" which I suspect might be "Oxman" - very possibly Michael Oxman.
If so ... I find the whole scenerio of extraction to be possibly a hypocritical form of contracting.
There is a video on Google videos of Recreational Climbing:
Recreational Climbers in RocRockefeller Forest
In viewing, it has a look like illegal climbing of Humboldt County redwoods. Note the TABS for other videos by the "user". One other video is a poplar removal, and in it's TAB for DETAILS is:
treedr.net
I suspect that the video, the treedr.net and the recreational climbing video are all related. The treedr.net looks like Michael Oxman's website.
So putting all these pieces together, I really scratch my head about the motives of the extractors and why they choose to get involved in this kind of activity. It seems like a good way to get backlash for "the system" - including the people dishing out the payment.
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