On August 4, Sanderson Beck, author of many books about peace, justice, ethics, and nonviolence, was sent to federal prison for his attempts to stop the U.S.-led assault on Iraq. Dr. Beck, PhD, and a gentle peace activist, took three months incarceration rather than comply with a two-year probation intended to humiliate and break the will of dissent. Dr. Beck, a long-time peace activist in California and nationally was re-sentenced by Judge Magistrate Walsh in L.A. federal court. Police arrested him three times at protests on so-called federal property as the U.S. bombs began to pummel Iraq into submission.

Dr. Beck was arrested first at VAFB (Vandenberg Air Force Base) on March 22 as the United States Air Force was raining "shock and awe" on the people of Iraq in the illegal pre-emptive attack on Iraq, a country already weakened by 12 years of economic sanctions and air strikes by the U.S. and U.K.

He went onto the base peacefully and in front of witnesses to ask the personnel to stop participating in war crimes. VAFB is the global targeting and surveillance center for US military air strikes and ground troop movements using the satellite network. This "military high ground" in space gives the "unparalleled perspective and very rapid access to Earth’s surface " (Jay Kelley, Lt. General USAF)

Two days later, with the bombs raining upon the Iraqi people, he returned to the base to demand that they stop via the authority of the Nuremberg Principles and International Law; he then "got abducted" by the local law a second time. On the way to his arraignment in Los Angeles court a week later, he joined war protesters at an L.A. federal building and again faced arrest for trespass on "federal property." The feds tossed him into jail for 30 days and then "released" him with two-year’s probation. Consistent with his deeply held life-long belief in non-violent resistance to authority that demands submission, he did not comply with the terms of probation.

Monday morning, 08/04, several activists traveled in support with Dr. Beck to the L.A. federal court. We held a peace vigil in front of the courthouse until his re-sentencing at 3 pm. We sat in rapt attention for one hour, as reckless authority took away an innocent’s freedom. Great awareness replaced it.

Judge Magistrate Walsh entered the courtroom and almost immediately stated his intention to punish with the maximum possible penalty of five months in prison followed by two years of probation. The harsh, albeit preliminary penalty, shocked us, though Dr. Beck did expect that brisk, feckless mean-spirit.

He pointed out to Judge Walsh that by the sentencing guidelines, which are backed by law, a judge cannot apply both the maximum custody for trespass (a misdemeanor) and its maximum probation. In fact, the probation officer assigned to the case and the state prosecutor agreed with the defendant’s assertion. The judge conceded by saying " Dr. Beck you have won your point," and then reduced his sentence to "the five months remaining on the maximum six months for trespass without probation."

Speaking in his defense, Dr. Beck spoke eloquently and passionately about the criminal immorality of the U.S.-led "war" and his many attempts to stop it.

"Your honor you are a federal judge sworn to uphold the Constitution. The Judicial branch of government is separate from the Executive and Congress to ensure that they uphold the Constitution and other law. Criminals have taken over our Executive branch and then launched an illegal war in violation of existing treaties and International Law.I did my duty as a citizen by trying to stop that crime. If you punish me for that, you become complicit with the war crime and immorality. You become a war criminal and accountable in the future and before God. You know in your soul that it is true."

The state’s prosecutor asked that the judge give Dr. Beck the maximum (five months since he had already served one month) because "he was a ‘one of the worst’ of the trespassers at the base because he had crossed the line twice." The public defender Michael Tanaka made a clear argument that "This activist should not be compared to Vandenberg trespassers but all trespassers, many of which are during burglary or other crimes, and so he should not get the maximum penalty." The judge then reduced his sentence to three months, which is, counting time-served, four months total. As federal marshals took him away, we said our loving good-byes.

If you want to support Sanderson Beck, please buy and read his wonderful books on justice, peace, ethics, and non-violence. Online book orders at: www.worldpeacebooks.org/News.html

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