SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/251828_terror13.html
Detectives track terrorists by Starlight
Drama puts Web, math, software to work fighting threat
Tuesday, December 13, 2005
By TOM PAULSON
SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER REPORTER
The terrorists were already in Seattle, but Dave Thurman and his cybersecurity team of
techno-detectives at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory didn't know it yet.
All they had were a few anomalies in the massive amount of information they were
monitoring -- a spike in radiation from a ground-based detector in Pakistan, an
unexplained outbreak of plague in India investigated by the World Health Organization
nine months ago and a disturbing convergence of travel plans among some suspected
terrorists.
"I'll pull up Starlight to see what kind of relationships I can find," said team member Alex
Donaldson, referring to one of the lab's sophisticated software programs.
It was all part of a techno-drama, an exercise performed in Seattle on Monday before
military and government officials as part of a real effort to demonstrate how information
technology -- software, the Web and complex mathematics -- can be used to combat
terrorism.
The Starlight program, for example, is software that can rapidly sort and categorize large
amounts of random information such as social and business connections, travel histories
and the like.
Donaldson's large multiple earrings, curly hair and youthful good looks suggested to
onlookers they were watching one of those hip Web wizards or scientists on the Fox
television show "24" -- in which Kiefer Sutherland and his techno-squad also fight
terrorists in a weekly battle against time and the threat of catastrophe.
"The only difference is that (the TV show) uses real actors and fake technology," said
Douglas Lemon, producer of the scenario and chief of the homeland security initiative at
the lab, which is part of the U.S. Department of Energy. "We use real technology, and our
actors ... well, they're doing their best."
Monday's performance, before an audience including representatives of the Coast Guard
and Naval Station Everett, began with one of Thurman's analysts mentioning the detected
spike in radiation. A map of its location (using Google Earth) was correlated with the
wind patterns from that time and known terrorist cells in the area.
Donaldson used the Starlight program to scan all available information on individual
members of these groups, accumulating initially random data that began to reveal links.
Patterns of association emerged, but the techno-detectives knew that such patterns are
often misleading. There was not enough yet to draw any conclusions.
It was a six-day scenario compressed into an hourlong exercise. Moving into the
scenario's second day, team member Jessica Sandusky took the names of the associated
individuals identified by Starlight and plugged them into a database containing recent
immigration reports.
"One of them entered Seattle," said Sandusky. She quickly added upon further analysis:
"I have six individuals but only five are still in the country. ... One left for Canada after a
two-day stay."
Thurman told his team to focus their tools on these individuals. Where are they now?
What's going on here?
On Day 3, team member Ann Lesperance discovered that one of the suspects is a biology
professor at a university in India near where the plague broke out. And King County
water quality monitoring reveals an insignificant amount of Y. pestis (the bacteria that
cause bubonic plague) in a sewer line on the east side of Lake Union.
Thurman decided this was enough information to justify contacting the FBI's Joint
Terrorism Task Force. The agent on the phone sounded dubious but agreed to accompany
a team equipped with the lab's biodetectors to check out the sewage lines.
The scenario was further time-compressed (just like TV) and the team rapidly identified a
Seattle "hot spot" with large amounts of Y. pestis. Law enforcement authorities entered
the building and arrested one of the individuals identified through Starlight.
Meanwhile, others on the team started digging into different information sources. They
discovered a report from a Canadian hospital of unaccounted for radioactive isotopes as
well as the theft of a decommissioned artillery shell from the Umatilla Chemical Depot
that contains sarin gas, a chemical weapon. Other databases were pulled into the search,
including information on employees at the Umatilla facility.
"We're dealing with U.S. citizens here, so we need to be careful," said Thurman, who at
this point pretended to call a colleague at the lab to discuss how to protect privacy while
advancing the investigation.
After a somewhat forced attempt to work this into the event scenario, his colleague on the
other end of the line simply advised Thurman: "I'd recommend you consult your
attorney."
Chuckles rippled through the audience as Thurman did so. The audience seemed amused
that, under imminent threat by terrorists, the team decided to call in the lawyers. But the
point was made. Privacy is a concern.
Ultimately, the system connected the dots, and two other terrorists were thwarted from
setting off a dirty bomb and sarin gas explosion on a ferry. Lemon congratulated his team
on a job well done.
"It shows the complexity of managing all this data," said spectator Larry Morgan, a
physicist who works in the science and technology division of the Department of
Homeland Security.
Wednesday, Thurman's team will perform their scenario again in Seattle for Charles
McQueary, Homeland Security's undersecretary for science and technology.
"The process felt real," said Capt. Stephen Metruck, sector commander for the Coast
Guard in Seattle. "We're already doing some of this. The key is always to look for the
anomalies."
Naval Station Everett's executive officer, Cmdr. Steve McLaughlin, said the
demonstration had a futuristic feel to it but much of the technology is already available or
under development.
"A lot of this we can do now," said McLaughlin, a terrorism expert. "We just need to get
more buy-in from everyone to support development of this kind of a coordinated, systems
approach."
That's precisely what Lemon and his Tri-Cities techno-team of terrorism trackers hope to
accomplish.
"We started this right after 9/11, to see what our scientists had to offer," said Lemon,
adding that the project is a natural extension of the lab's decades of work aimed at
improving the tools for managing large amounts of data.
He said he hopes the demonstrations will stimulate more interest, and more government
funding, to make this a reality show.
P-I reporter Tom Paulson can be reached at 206-448-8318 or
tompaulson@seattlepi.com.
© 1998-2005 Seattle Post-Intelligencer
SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/251809_orcas13.html
Efforts to protect orcas may have wide impact
Public urged to comment on the conservation plan
Tuesday, December 13, 2005
By ROBERT MCCLURE
SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER REPORTER
What do chemicals you wash down the drain, Navy ships, a proposed Maury Island
gravel mine and an international treaty have in common?
Each could be affected by the recent protection of Puget Sound killer whales under the
Endangered Species Act.
Early next year comes the first step in determining how much punch the "endangered"
label will carry for the oft-ogled orcas. Federal officials are asking the public to speak up
in the next few weeks.
The National Marine Fisheries Service, which has released a proposed conservation plan,
hopes the new listing will lead to better safeguards against oil spills -- the biggest single
extinction threat for the orca. The agency is also raising the prospect of tighter controls
on development in sensitive areas and restrictions on emerging chemical threats.
But the agency isn't likely to do anything soon about an expanding whale-watching fleet,
and what orca advocates call a growing underwater cacophony of boat noise hobbling the
whales' ability to find prey and communicate.
Orca advocates want all that dealt with under the new endangered designation, but that's
unlikely, according to Fisheries Service spokesman Brian Gorman.
"There was some concern there would be draconian regulations," he said, "but I'm of the
opinion that ... there isn't going to be a heck of a lot of difference in how federal agencies
do business in the Sound."
Environmentalists, who had to sue the Fisheries Services to force the endangered species
listing, say that's exactly what they're afraid of.
"The question is, how seriously do they take this?" said Michael Jasny of the Natural
Resources Defense Council. "Are they going to come up with a recovery plan that's
merely aspirational?"
The resident orca population plunged by nearly one-fifth during the 1990s, to 80. It has
now rebuilt to 90. Government scientists identify the chief threats to orcas as pollution,
reduced salmon runs, increasing boat traffic and noise, oil spills and disease.
Fisheries Service officials have no direct authority over oil spill prevention, and they
don't regulate toxic chemicals, either -- although emboldened environmentalists are now
pushing for a hastened cleanup of pollution hot spots around the Sound.
The Coast Guard should also rethink the way ships are routed to be friendlier to orcas that
are increasingly viewed by researchers as sensitive to underwater sound, said Patti
Goldman of the Earthjustice law firm.
Environmentalists want stronger curbs on use of high-powered Navy sonar for training in
waters frequented by orcas. They cite the agitation suffered by orcas and other marine
mammals when a Navy guided-missile destroyer, the USS Shoup, conducted sonartraining exercises near the San Juan Islands in 2003.
The Navy says it already takes precautions, such as checking nearby waters for orcas
before using sonar. "For now, we're going to proceed as we always have," said Navy
spokeswoman Sheila Murray.
An early test of how much difference an Endangered Species Act designation will make
is the controversial effort to expand a Maury Island gravel mine. The noise from barges
being loaded and tugs pulling loads of gravel, orca advocates fear, would harm whales
from one family group that tend to show up there in winter and early spring. Often, they
have calves in tow -- with ravenous appetites.
"They might stop going around Vashon Island, which is a big part of the area they use
this time of year," said David Bain, a University of Washington researcher who has
studied noise effects on killer whales. "You'd be making it harder for the whale to find
food at the time of year they need it most."
Killer whales communicate with each other through a series of sounds that can be
drowned out by some boat motors. Bain found that orcas expend additional energy when
whale-watch boats are nearby.
"It's a small effect, but for a population that's in trouble, it's big enough we need to worry
about it," he said.
Whale Watch Operators Association Northwest, the industry trade group, isn't concerned.
President Shane Aggergard points to guidelines that seek to minimize disturbance of the
orcas. Members who go astray quickly hear about it from their colleagues, she said.
"To somebody who says that's just self-regulation, well, yeah, it is. And it works pretty
well," Aggergard said.
Although the Fisheries Service conservation plan says "additional management measures
may be necessary" to curb whale watchers, Gorman said none are planned for now.
The Sound's chinook salmon, a major prey of killer whales, is already protected under the
Endangered Species Act. Salmon are also the subject of massive habitat-restoration
efforts.
But environmentalists want to see orcas thrive, not just hold their own, and they now
have two federal laws to wield: the Endangered Species Act and the Marine Mammal
Protection Act.
In Florida, where manatees also are protected by both laws and are often harmed by
collisions with boats, that translated into a series of areas where boat speed limits are set
quite low and strictly enforced, said Eric Glitzenstein, a lawyer who represented
environmentalists.
Similarly, pollock-fishing vessels based in Seattle that visit Alaskan waters have seen
close-to-shore fishing areas strictly limited because pollock are eaten by Steller sea lions,
another endangered marine mammal.
Other issues likely to be raised:
 Rebuilding habitat for orcas and their prey, which the Fisheries Service says requires
"expansion of local land-use planning and control, including management of future
growth and development."
 The adequacy of the region's sewage-treatment plants, and the dumping of treated
sewage by cruise ships into the orcas' environment.
 The Pacific Salmon Treaty between the United States and Canada, which governs how
much salmon can be caught on both sides of the border. A major food source for the
Sound's orcas is the Fraser River sockeye run.
 The city of Victoria's continued dumping of raw sewage south of the Vancouver
Island.
 The threat posed by long-banned polychlorinated biphenyls, or PCBs, that continue to
cycle through the food chain and have accumulated in the orcas' blubber at alarming
levels.
The public has until Jan. 3 to comment on the conservation plan. After that, the agency
will embark on a key task -- determining what makes up "critical habitat" for the whales.
"You don't just need swimming space. You have to have the ingredients of life,"
including lots of salmon, said Kathy Fletcher of People for Puget Sound, an
environmental group. "You're basically looking at the whole Puget Sound ecosystem."
Gorman, of the Fisheries Service, says a lot of what happens will be determined by
environmentalists' lawsuits seeking to prod the agency. "There will be a fair amount of
litigation around this listing, but how it will shake out is anyone's guess," he said.
At the Pacific Legal Foundation, senior attorney Rob Rivett expects a slew of lawsuits.
"It's probably limitless," he said, "limited only by the creative thinking of folks."
CONSERVING ORCAS
Public comments are due Jan. 3 for the National Marine Fisheries Service's proposed
conservation plan for Puget Sound's resident orcas.
 For information, visit tinyurl.com/a4yff.
 Write to Chief, Protected Resources Division, 1201 N.E. Lloyd Blvd., Suite 1100,
Portland, OR 97232; or e-mail orca.plan@noaa.gov.
P-I reporter Robert McClure can be reached at 206-448-8092 or
robertmcclure@seattlepi.com.
© 1998-2005 Seattle Post-Intelligencer
Tuesday, December 13, 2005 - 12:00 AM
Permission to reprint or copy this article or photo, other than personal use, must be
obtained from The Seattle Times. Call 206-464-3113 or e-mail resale@seattletimes.com
with your request.
Immigration booming
By The Associated Press
WASHINGTON — Immigration, both legal and illegal, has accelerated, pushing the
percentage of the U.S. population born in other countries to the highest point in nearly a
century.
There are 35.2 million foreign-born people living in the U.S. — about 12.1 percent of the
population, according to a report Monday by the Center for Immigration Studies.
The report comes as the House prepares to take up a bill to curb illegal immigration by
boosting border security and requiring workplace enforcement of immigration laws.
About 7.9 million people moved to the United States in the past five years, the highest
five-year period of immigration on record, according to the report, which is based on the
Census Bureau's Current Population Survey from March.
If the trend continues, immigrants will soon make up an even larger portion of the
population than they did during the last immigration boom, at the beginning of the 20th
century, the report said.
"The 35.2 million immigrants living in the country in March 2005 is the highest number
ever recorded — two-and-a-half times the 13.5 million during the peak of the last great
immigration wave in 1910," said the report by Steven Camarota of the center, which
advocates tougher policies on illegal immigration and favors attracting immigrants with
needed job skills.
The report estimates 9.7 million illegal immigrants are living in the United States. Other
estimates range from 9 million to 13 million.
Mexico is the largest source of immigrants to the United States, followed by East Asia,
Europe, the Caribbean, Central America and South America, according to the report.
The House Judiciary Committee approved a bill last week that would enlist military
support in border surveillance and set new mandatory minimum sentences on smugglers
and people convicted of re-entry after removal. Illegal presence in the country, now a
civil offense, would become a federal crime.
The full House is expected to take up the measure this week.
Also Monday, a federal judge in San Diego lifted the final legal barrier to completing a
border fence meant to thwart illegal immigrants in the southwestern corner of the U.S.
The project comprises 14 miles of additional fencing in San Diego. In September,
Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff waived all laws and legal challenges to
building the final 3 ½-mile portion of the fence, through coastal wetlands to the Pacific
Ocean.
The Sierra Club and other environmental groups had argued that Chertoff lacked the
authority to do what he did. But U.S. District Judge Larry Burns said Congress delegated
such authority to Chertoff in June.
Copyright © 2005 The Seattle Times Company
Tuesday, December 13, 2005 - 12:00 AM
Permission to reprint or copy this article or photo, other than personal use, must be
obtained from The Seattle Times. Call 206-464-3113 or e-mail resale@seattletimes.com
with your request.
Guest columnist
A Muslim in America
By Jafar Siddiqui
Special to The Times
How does it feel to be a Muslim in America these days?
I am frequently asked this question. Sometimes I am asked by people who want to hear
how grateful I am to be a part of this free nation, this land of opportunity. Sometimes by
people who wish to join me in condemning the party in power — but almost never by
people who wish to help get us all back on the track of high moral standards.
How does it feel to be a Muslim in America today?
Our world is very insecure. Sheikh Ibrahim, who is a prominent and respected Somali
Muslim leader, was taken away late in November as he was at Sea-Tac International
Airport, returning home from Texas. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) took
him away on grounds of irregularities on his immigration forms; the Joint Terrorism Task
Force, having orchestrated the whole charade, was sniffing close by.
More recently, a Microsoft employee was also "disappeared" by the authorities. (These
days, it's hard to say who the moving force is behind such actions.) Nobody seems to
know why, except the poor fellow is believed to be a Muslim of Syrian descent.
Ever since 9/11, the authorities have taken away well over 14,000 Arabs and Muslims in
the U.S., none of whom have been charged with any crime but whose lives were
destroyed based on paper irregularities and visa violations. Most have been forced back
to their countries of origin, even if they were not born there.
Many are still in American jails without charges, while a precious few have been sent to
third countries where they have been tortured under the active observation, if nor
supervision, of the FBI, CIA, Homeland Security Department, National Security Agency
or other governmental organization. Some have simply disappeared into the ether of
ghost prisons whose existence is only now being revealed.
Muslims have been making these charges for years but continuously have been
dismissed. Now the facts are coming out — but the government is investigating how the
facts leaked out, not the facts themselves.
How should I feel about being a Muslim or an Arab in my own country?
When we try to draw attention to the fact that it is open hunting season on Arabs and
Muslims in this country, Americans jump to the defense of the country — my country.
They tell me Arabs and Muslims brought about9/11. Never mind that the people trying to
bring ground-to-air missiles into this country to use against airlines were not Muslims,
nor were the people who were caught with 180 cyanide bombs to use in this country.
They were members of other faiths. But 9/11 is rubbed in the collective faces of Arabs
and Muslims.
Then I am told to go back where I came from.
If America continues on its current path of persecuting Arabs and Muslims, then my
daughter and son can never hope to attain positions of trust in America. Ask FBI or
Secret Service agents or the military men and women who have been hounded out of
their jobs because they are Muslim.
My Congress is of no help. Members of Congress continue to rubber-stamp the growing
list of horrors against Arabs and Muslims and then shed crocodile tears when they sit
before their Arab and Muslim constituents. Like membes of all rubber-stamp legislatures,
they cower and acquiesce rather than risk being seen as opposing the "strength" of the
president. They help redefine terms like "torture" and "terrorism," they sign off on
repressive laws and immoral invasions and they distance themselves from Arabs and
Muslims (one senator avoids making appointments to meet with us). Democrats then
criticize the things that they signed off on earlier while Republicans shrug and say
sacrifices must be made for national security. So sorry it has to be Arabs and Muslims!
Unspoken distinctions are made between "real" citizens and non-citizens (non-Arab, nonMuslim), and barely tolerated citizens/non-citizens (Arabs or Muslims). The first group is
what America is all about; the second class is a begrudged minority that is growing to
dangerous proportions and whose non-citizens don't even qualify for the protections
available to animals in this country.
How would you feel if you were an Arab or a Muslim in America?
It is time for people of good will in this country to drop their traditional party loyalties
and to stand against politicians who cannot defend even the equal-protection clauses of
our Constitution. Make them accountable not for the pork they bring or how they protect
industry, but how they defend us, the people.
The "winnable" candidate who helps America get closer to fascism is not the right
candidate. Uppermost in our minds should be the moral standards that helped create this
nation, not the fleeting considerations of the wallet or party fancies.
Forget parties in the elections of 2006 and look for somebody with courage, find
somebody better; get my country and my Constitution back for me and for my children.
Jafar Siddiqui is an American Muslim, human-rights activist and member of American
Muslims of Puget Sound. E-mail him at jeffsiddiqui@msn.com
Copyright © 2005 The Seattle Times Company
Monday, December 12, 2005 - 12:00 AM
Permission to reprint or copy this article or photo, other than personal use, must be
obtained from The Seattle Times. Call 206-464-3113 or e-mail resale@seattletimes.com
with your request.
Federal judge clears way for construction of border
fence
By ELLIOT SPAGAT
The Associated Press
SAN DIEGO – A federal judge on Monday lifted the final legal barrier to building a
triple fence in the southwestern corner of the United States.
The Sierra Club and other environmental groups argued that Homeland Security
Secretary Michael Chertoff lacked authority to waive environmental and other laws that
have delayed completion of 14 miles of additional fencing in San Diego.
In September, Chertoff waived all laws and legal challenges to building the final 31/2mile leg through coastal wetlands to the Pacific Ocean.
U.S. District Judge Larry Burns said Congress clearly delegated the authority to Chertoff
in June. He noted that the executive branch already had significant jurisdiction over
national security and immigration policy.
Cory Briggs, an attorney representing the environmental groups, said he was undecided
whether to appeal.
"I'm not surprised," Briggs said. "If I were a judge, I would have great problems
declaring a law unconstitutional."
Litigation has stalled the project since it was approved by Congress in 1996. Last year,
the California Coastal Commission refused to grant permits, saying damage to sensitive
habitats outweighed security benefits.
The Sierra Club lawsuit, filed in February 2004, said the project threatened the Tijuana
River estuary, home to more than 370 migratory and native birds, six of them
endangered.
The final leg of the fence would cross steep, rugged canyons including "Smuggler's
Gulch," a maze of trails long overrun by illegal border crossers. The federal government
launched a crackdown in 1994, erecting a steel wall made of surplus Navy landing mats,
adding patrols and installing lights and motion sensors.
Known as Operation Gatekeeper, the effort forced smugglers and migrants inland to
sparsely populated highlands and deserts.
The 2006 Homeland Security budget includes $35 million to cover most of the work.
The project would require crews to move 2.1 million cubic yards of dirt in Smuggler's
Gulch alone, or enough to fill about 300,000 dump trucks.
Rep. Duncan Hunter, R-El Cajon, introduced legislation last month that calls for a 2,000mile fence from the Pacific Ocean to the Gulf of Mexico.
Copyright © 2005 The Seattle Times Company
To get this press release in DOC format click here.
Ground Zero Center for Nonviolent Action
16159 Clear Creek Road NW Poulsbo, WA 98370
Website: www.gzcenter.org E-mail: info@gzcenter.org
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Seattle area peace activist on trial by Coast Guard
regarding U.S. Navy fleet arrival at Seafair festival
Contact: Glen Milner (206) 365-7865
Mary Gleysteen (360) 297-3894
http://www.gzcenter.org/articles/ground_zero_press_release_peace_fleet_skipper_on_tria
l_nov_05a.htm
On December 13, 2005, Glen Milner, a Seattle area peace activist will be on
trial by the U.S. Coast Guard. The charge is for the alleged violation of a 500yard naval vessel protection zone around U.S. Navy warships at the Seattle
Seafair festival on August 5, 2004.
When: Tuesday, December 13, 2005 at 8 am (open to the public)
Where: Jackson Federal Building, Room 514, 915 Second Ave., Seattle
Milner is being charged with a civil penalty, allowing the Coast Guard to try the political
activist in a Coast Guard hearing by a single Coast Guard hearing officer. Coast Guard
District Thirteen in Seattle had originally requested a $32,500 fine, the maximum fine for the
offense. A Coast Guard Hearing Officer in Virginia later lowered the fine sought by the Coast
Guard to $10,000.
On August 5, 2004, Glen Milner, in a vessel owned by the Ground Zero Center for Nonviolent
Action was cited by the Coast Guard while protesting against the deployment of radioactive
depleted uranium munitions on U.S. Navy vessels and the glorification of weapons of war at
the Seattle Seafair festival. Milner had an earth flag displayed on the 11 foot inflatable Ground
Zero vessel and one passenger aboard. A total of three “protest” or Peace Fleet vessels with 12
Peace sailors had met the Navy in Elliott Bay on August 5, 2004 for the demonstration. It was the
third year that Navy vessels had been met by nonviolent activists in Elliott Bay.
On August 5, 2004 Milner and skippers of the two other Peace Fleet vessels had been stopped
repeatedly by the Coast Guard. Two of the three vessels had been boarded by the Coast Guard.
The vessel owned by the Ground Zero Center for Nonviolent Action was boarded twice and
its voyage was terminated by the Coast Guard during the U.S. Navy fleet arrival at Seafair.
Milner and his passenger, Mike McCormick, were held at armed guard at Bell Harbor
Marina in downtown Seattle while the Coast Guard considered their arrest.
Milner received notice of a $10,000 fine and 44 pages of documents from the Coast Guard
on April 6, 2005, over seven months after the demonstration. He was given 30 days to respond to
the charges or be found guilty.
Milner, in his opening written statement to the Coast Guard on May 18, 2005 stated, “I am the
target of a conspiracy by the U.S. Coast Guard and U.S. Navy to purposefully violate and
restrict my civil liberties for political speech in Elliott Bay. It appears that the Coast Guard,
having realized that officers had acted on August 5, 2004 without justification, decided to press
charges against me as a way of covering up their own improper and illegal behavior.”
Please see attached Fact Sheet regarding the Coast Guard trial--
Fact Sheet-- Seattle area peace activist on trial by Coast Guard
Regarding the Coast Guard case against Milner, Coast Guard Activity No. 2220407:
--July 31, 2003, the American Civil Liberties Union of Washington received 18 pages from the
FBI in September 2005 regarding the Peace Fleet at Seafair in 2003. Messages, dated July 31,
2003, showed an investigation by the Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF) and the Northwest Joint
Analytical Center (NWJAC). One statement said, “The Maritime Working Group (consisting of
the maritime members of the NWJAC and JTTF) have been developing information for past three
weeks regarding this event. Two weeks ago they gathered information that the four identified
groups: 1. GROUND ZERO, 2. SNOW, 3. NOT IN MY NAME(sic) (NION), and 4. PEACE
ACTION OF SNOHOMISH COUNTY, were planning some sort of demonstration when the navy
ships came into Elliott Bay on July 30.” The statement continued, “The groups had been in
contact with both the USCG and the USN, advising them of their intentions to launch a ‘peace
navy’ to meet the fleet when it entered Elliott Bay.” The FBI record released in September 2005
shows that a government agent had actually watched two Peace Fleet vessels being launched in
West Seattle in 2003. The FBI record concluded, “All of the boats remained outside the security
zone and conducted a peaceful protest in accordance with their stated intent. There were no
incidents reported.”
--The Port of Seattle Police Seafair 2004 Operations Plan, available to the Coast Guard before
August 5, 2004, stated, “There are no specific threats of violence and no information relating to
Seafair that would indicate an increased threat level.” The section titled Protest Activities stated:
a. There is no information to indicate that any protest groups will engage in any violent protests
or in acts of civil disobedience. b. The “Ground Zero Center for Nonviolent Activity(sic)” has
published a notice of a waterborne protest (Peace Fleet) set to greet the Seafair Fleet when it
arrives in Elliott Bay on Thursday, August 5. A similar protest effort was mounted last year. The
protest did not create problems for the fleet or police patrols.
--July 22, 2004, Milner called Commander Sellers, of Navy Region Northwest, to inform her that
he would be protesting the U.S. Navy fleet arrival at Seafair. Milner stated that as skippers of
Peace Fleet vessels had done the year before, they would obey the law and stay 500 yards from
naval vessels.
-- August 2, 2004, Mr. Jim Dyment, of the Field Intelligence Support Team of the Coast Guard,
called Milner at his home and attempted to persuade him not to demonstrate at the Seafair fleet
arrival in Elliott Bay. Milner told Mr. Dyment that Peace Fleet vessels had intended to obey all
laws while coming in with the U.S. Navy fleet as they had before in 2003 and tried to do in 2000.
Mr. Dyment indicated the Peace Fleet might not be well received by some Coast Guard personnel
who had recently returned from the Persian Gulf.
--August 5, 2004, Mr. Dyment called Milner in the morning to try to talk him out of going into
Elliott Bay again. Mr. Dyment asked for descriptions and names of Peace Fleet vessels.
--August 5, 2004, Peace Fleet vessels were stopped on numerous occasions by the Coast Guard.
All skippers of Peace Fleet vessels were improperly told that the naval vessel protection zones
applied to all Coast Guard vessels that were present that day (USCGC Cuttyhunk and the
small Coast Guard MSST vessels). The Ground Zero Center for Nonviolent Action vessel was
first boarded around 1:30 pm in Elliott Bay while the crew was eating lunch, with the motor off.
The boarding officer stated in his report that the vessel at the time was outside of the 500 yard
security zone. The vessel’s voyage was terminated and Milner was ordered to return to where the
inflatable was launched at Shilshole Bay. On the way out of Elliott Bay, the USCGC Cuttyhunk
and a different Coast Guard MSST boat stopped Milner and ordered his vessel to Bell Harbor
Marina. There, Milner and his passenger, Mike McCormick of Seattle, were held at armed-guard
while Coast Guard legal officers discussed their possible arrest. Milner was told he could receive
a $250,000 fine and six years in jail for violating a naval vessel protection zone. Milner and
McCormick were later released and ordered to leave the vessel in Bell Harbor Marina. Milner
was only cited for having the incorrect spacing between numbers and letters on his vessel and no
sound-making device.
--August 5, 2004, the Coast Guard boarded a second Peace Fleet vessel as it was leaving Elliott
Bay. Passengers were improperly asked for identification against their wishes. No citations were
issued. The third Peace Fleet vessel left Elliott Bay without being boarded.
--August 7, 2004, the handling of demonstrators at Seafair by Coast Guard District Thirteen was
the leading issue in the USCG Operational Summary for August 7, 2004 for the Commandant of
the Coast Guard. Vice Admiral Harvey Johnson, in an e-mail message congratulating Rear
Admiral Jeffrey Garrett of Coast Guard District Thirteen, stated, "Great Coast Guard Day...great
performance by your team."
--October 27, 2004, Mary Gleysteen and three other Peace Fleet sailors filed a complaint with the
Coast Guard regarding violations of their civil liberties.
--November 7, 2004, Milner filed a complaint with the ACLU of Washington regarding
violations of civil liberties by Coast Guard personnel at Seafair.
--December 16, 2004, the ACLU of Washington filed a Freedom of Information Act request to
the Coast Guard and subsequent FOIA requests to other investigative agencies regarding the U.S.
Navy fleet arrival at Seafair.
--December 22, 2004 and December 23, 2004, Milner filed Freedom of Information Act requests
to the Coast Guard VTS office in Seattle and Coast Guard District Thirteen for records
concerning August 5, 2004, including voice recordings and radar records. Milner continued to file
subsequent Freedom of Information Act requests to the Coast Guard without success.
-- February 2005, recent correspondence between the Coast Guard Hearing Officer, Milner and
Coast Guard District Thirteen revealed that the Coast Guard vessel voice recordings in Elliott Bay
were improperly destroyed by the Coast Guard approximately the first week in February 2005,
about six weeks after the specific records were requested by Milner through the Freedom of
Information Act. Currently, the Coast Guard is insisting that radar records have never existed for
August 5, 2004.
--April 6, 2005, Milner received the notice from the Coast Guard of a $10,000 fine, over seven
months after the August 5, 2004 Seafair event. Milner is charged with a violation of 33 CFR
165.2030. The law was first established as a temporary rule on September 14, 2001, for the
protection of naval vessels and to prevent and attack on a U.S. naval vessel, such as the attack on
the USS COLE in Aden, Yemen on October 12, 2000. The Coast Guard claims that Milner was
directed to remain at least 500 yards away from the USS BONHOMME RICHARD and other
naval vessels, and failed to comply with the direction.
--The case record against Milner contains only seven statements by Coast Guard personnel. LT
James D. Stoffer, commander of the USCGC Cuttyhunk stated that the 11 foot inflatable,
operated by Milner, had come within 100 yards of the 840 foot USS BONHOMME RICHARD.
No photographs, radar records, voice recordings, video tape or other factual records, however,
were presented with the charges. A statement included with the charges, by the security officer
for the USS BONHOMME RICHARD, stated there were no records of anyone seeing the 11 foot
Ground Zero Center for Nonviolent Action inflatable from the USS BONHOMME RICHARD
that day. There are many discrepancies in the case record by Coast Guard personnel, including
the number of protest vessels, description of the Ground Zero Center for Nonviolent Action
vessel, orders given by the Coast Guard, etc.
--April 16, 2005, Milner requested a time extension to allow for responses from the Coast Guard
for numerous Freedom of Information Act requests.
--May 6, 2005, the first Hearing Officer, Lt. Commander Shelton in Virginia, denied Milner a
time extension to obtain evidence for his defense.
--May 18, 2005, a series of statements were sent by Milner to Lt. Commander Shelton refuting
statements made by Coast Guard personnel. Milner’s statement to the Coast Guard dated May 18,
2005 also stated, “Evidence shows that the Coast Guard knew in advance that I planned to obey
the law in Elliott Bay on August 5, 2004. It is clear that the Coast Guard also tried to convince
me not to go into Elliott Bay to demonstrate against the U.S. Navy fleet arrival at the Seattle
Seafair festival. When I went into Elliott Bay, legally exercising my right of freedom of
expression, I was punished by the Coast Guard. The fine and subsequent hearing process are a
continuation of the Coast Guard’s efforts to silence my opposition to the presence of U.S. Navy
warships carrying depleted uranium munitions at Seafair.”
--July 14, 2005, L.I. McClelland was assigned as the new Coast Guard Hearing Officer on the
case.
--August 3, 2005, 12 activists in 4 Peace Fleet vessels met the U.S. Navy Fleet arrival at Seafair
in Elliott Bay. The first vessel to put out peace signs was immediately boarded by the Coast
Guard in downtown Seattle. No citations were issued.
--November 10, 2005, L.I. McClelland decided to allow no more time for the case even though
the Coast Guard was withholding information for Milner’s defense.
--November 18, 2005, date of the trial was established by L.I. McClelland for December 13,
2005.
--November 25, 2005, L.I. McClelland ruled against video taping the hearing. Coast Guard
District Thirteen had requested that neither video taping nor audio taping be allowed.
--December 13, 2005, date for trial of Milner by L.I. McClelland.
--The vessel operated by Milner was never searched by the Coast Guard. The passenger of this
vessel, Mike McCormick, was required to show identification and threatened with arrest.
--Should Milner be found guilty, his only recourse is an appeal to the same Coast Guard hearing
officer who will rule on his case, L.I. McClelland.
--All five warships in Seattle for Seafair in 2004 had two Close-In Weapons System gun systems
on board, each capable of firing 20mm depleted uranium rounds at a rate of 4,500 bullets per
minute. This is the gun system, according to Navy documents released to Glen Milner in
December 2002, used to fire radioactive depleted uranium rounds into prime fishing waters off
the Washington State coast. The gun must be fired twice a month for testing and calibration
purposes.
-- Documents released to Glen Milner in 2003, through the Freedom of Information Act, show
gross negligence by the U.S. Navy in handling depleted uranium rounds. In August 2001 the
Navy mistakenly shipped 20mm depleted uranium rounds instead of tungsten rounds to the U.S.
Coast Guard in Seattle. The Coast Guard received and stored 1,700 radioactive rounds at Pier 36
in downtown Seattle and loaded it on the USCGC Mellon. When Coast Guard personnel realized
they had depleted uranium on their vessel, they turned it over to the Navy’s weapons storage
depot at Indian Island. The Coast Guard is not licensed by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory
Commission to handle depleted uranium munitions.
-- The next planned direct action by the Ground Zero Center for Nonviolent Action is at the
Trident submarine base at Bangor in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. on January 15, 2006.
--The next scheduled event for the Puget Sound Peace Fleet will be in Port Townsend in January
or February 2006 for the arrival of the Trident submarine, USS Ohio, at the ammunition depot at
Indian Island.
End