Support social justice and environmental activist Marie Mason!
Below are the guidelines for writing character letters to the Judge for Marie’s sentencing. Please send them to Marie’s attorney John (Contact listed below) either to his physical address or his email address. Please do not write the judge directly. We are trying to get them all in by Dec. 15 so please the sooner you submit your letter the better.
Struggle,
Got Your Back
www.freemarie.org
Funds for Marie are dangerously low. We need to ensure money is kept in Marie’s commissary at all times. Marie is a long time dedicated Vegan and does not receive adequate vegan food from the jail. What little she can purchase from commissary she literally needs to survive. Collect phone calls from the jail cost Marie’s 70 year old mother $18 for 3 minutes. She has already racked up a $300 phone bill. These calls are important to maintain the bond between Marie and her teenage daughter. There is also the need for funds for gas money to ensure Marie’s family can make the 2+ hr drive one way visit her while she is in County jail.
Talking with Marie’s attorney we still will need to hire a physiologist for the pre sentencing report, cover the mitigation experts expenses, and pay her attorney fees.
Marie’s family has absorbed the majority of these costs up until now to the best of their ability but can not shoulder this financial burden any longer. The situation is quickly spiraling to one of desperation. If you are able please consider donating to Marie’s support fund or purchasing some of the support merch found here.
We are asking folks to support Marie in one (or more) of the below following ways.
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At this time please DO NOT send Marie any radical/revolutionary literature or discuss her case or the Green Scare in general. Letters are read by authorities and can be used against her at sentencing. Again DO NOT attempt to discuss or bring up her case, co defendants, the Green Scare or any illegal acts with her. To do so will be putting her at risk..
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Marie is a long time dedicated Vegan and is unlikely to be able to sustain herself on a standard jail house meal.
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If you would like to donate to Marie’s jail commissary account so that she can purchase the necessities she needs while at Clinton County Jail you can find info to do so below. If you prefer you can donate directly to Marie’s support Crew and we will ensure funds are spent where Marie needs them most. For more info on how to donate directly to Marie’s support Crew check out here and here.
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Money in the form of cash or a money order can be brought directly into the jail and deposited into the inmates account the or or mailed in for an inmate, and will be put into that inmate’s account.
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All mailed money must be in the form of a money order, (Personal checks and credit or debit cards are not accepted.) Please write Marie to let her know if you sent her any funds (funds can be sent with a letter to Marie).
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The mailing address is:
Inmate’s Name
1347 E Townsend Rd.
Saint Johns, MI 48879
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We are encouraging folks to write Marie while she is incarcerated. Letters from the outside will serve as a lifeline and help keep her spirits up.
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Letters of support must have a complete return address and must be addressed exactly as below for them to be accepted. Further mail rules and restrictions for Newaygo County Jail are listed below.
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If you send Marie a letter and it gets returned to you, please let us know about it so we can add any other restrictions to the guideline list.
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All letters must have a return address on the envelope. Also put a return address on the letter itself, as prisoners are almost never given the envelopes. Avoid using white-out, stickers, tape, colored ink/paper or glitter. Written correspondence and drawings may be in pencil, standard ink pen, typewritten, or computer generated. No felt pens, markers, crayon, or colored pencil, etc. All personal artwork must be in black & white, copied pages can be in color. Most facilities do not allow torn pages from books, magazine or newspaper clippings. Photocopies, however, are accepted. Keep in mind that all mail is read by authorities. Again, DO NOT bring up or attempt to discuss Marie’s case, her co defendants, illegal acts, or the Green Scare when writing her. Please remember that, even if unsolicited, mail can still result in sanctions against a prisoner.
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Send letters of support to -
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Marie can only receive one 30 minute visit per week of up to 4 visitors total with 2 visitors able to see Marie at a time. All visitors must show a government issued photo ID before being allowed to visit Marie. Priority for visits will go to her family.
We are compiling a list of non family friends and supporters that are able and would like to visit her in Clinton County Jail in the case a family member cannot make it that week. If you would like to be put on this list please email freemarie@riseup.net with a your complete name, phone number and general idea of your availability to visit Marie. (example - I could go see Marie at a moments notice or I would need at least a weeks advance notice in order to see Marie.)
Though we appreciate people wanting to visit Marie please do not show up to visit her without contacting us first. We have already had an incident where someone visited Marie without contacting us and her daughter made a trip only to be denied seeing her mother because Marie had already had a visit that week.
Last Updated - 11/04/08
In a movement wide show of unity and Solidarity. We are encouraging groups, collectives and individuals to sign on to the statement in support of Marie Mason. Please forward sign ons to freemarie@riseup.net. Feel free to include your location/title.
On September 8, marie mason accepted a non-cooperating plea agreement which requires her to plead guilty to three out of four charges leveled against her by the US Attorney’s Office relating to E.L.F. activity. We are aware that marie was facing several consecutive life sentences had she taken her case to trial and been convicted. She was also facing the threat of additional indictments in other districts. Within the wording of marie’s plea agreement, she stipulates to the involvement of confirmed snitch and government informant, Frank Ambrose, in the actions she plead guilty to. Frank Ambrose has already plead guilty and admitted his involvement in these actions in his own plea agreement. We have all reviewed a full and un-redacted copy of marie’s agreement. There are no other names mentioned in the plea agreement, rather the terminology ‘others’ is used. Furthermore, her plea agreement does not require her to provide information about other individuals, testify against others, or provide any further information to law enforcement.
Frank Ambrose has been a paid informant for the FBI since April 2007. Along with numerous debriefs with federal agents concerning multiple actions and individuals, Ambrose traveled the country “wearing a wire” - visiting old friends and attempting to make new ones - in an effort to incriminate these people, thereby assisting the FBI in securing additional indictments. There are hundreds of hours of recordings of Frank in conversations with his ‘friends’ and ‘allies,’ prodding and digging for information to use against those individuals and other activists. marie was arrested along with Aaron Burthwick and Stephanie Fultz – these arrests stemmed directly from the information and cooperation Ambrose provided to the FBI. Ambrose not only cooperated fully with the FBI but actively assisted the investigation, going so far as to pursue information on other unrelated groups and individuals involved in legal, above-ground activism.
We believe wholeheartedly in the principle of non-cooperation. We also believe that the idea of expecting someone to face several consecutive life sentences to protect a confirmed snitch – one who has already plead guilty to the charges – follows not only flawed reasoning, but is simply insane.
marie mason has faced calculated betrayal and continued to fight when the deck was so clearly stacked against her. Throughout this, she has acted completely “above board” and has carried herself admirably. She has shown incredible courage and integrity throughout this case, always putting the safety of others above her own. Despite threats and risks to their personal safety, those involved in marie’s case worked diligently to get information about Ambrose to the rest of us. marie refused to even look at a cooperating plea agreement and has refused for weeks to sign the current non-cooperating plea agreement because Ambrose, the very person who turned her over to the Feds, was named in the agreement. It was not until several movement activists and movement attorneys gave their support to the agreement that marie accepted the plea.
Too much has been lost to informants, and Ambrose truly is among the worst of them. marie strikes us all as a courageous and compassionate woman - full of integrity and concern for how her actions might affect others. While her plea agreement does not include specific text protecting her from future subpoenas or interrogations, marie’s conduct thus far serves as a good measure of the actions she would take should she find herself in that kind of situation. marie’s agreement absolutely falls into the non-cooperating category. We are throwing our full support behind her and all prisoners who have maintained their integrity in the face of such incredible oppression. We ask that the rest of you do the same and help us help marie get through the next 15 to 20 years of her life – the horrid sentence being sought by the US District Attorney’s office.
To date the above statement is endorsed by the following -
Groups and Collectives
Ecoprisoners.org
Earth First! Journal
Peace Center Collective of Kalamazoo, MI
East Bay Prisoner Support Collective
Chicago Anarchist Black Cross
Got Your Back Collective
Earth Warriors Are OK! (EWOK!) Eco Prisoner support collective of Twin Cities, MN
Liberation Projects of Lexington, KY
Shoelacetown Anarchist Black Cross of Paramus, NJ
Asheville Rising Tide
Peace Center Collective of Kalamazoo, MI
Burning River Anarchist Black Cross of Cleveland, OH
Animas SDS ( Occupied Ute Territories)
Milwaukee Anarchist Black Cross
Agência de Notícias Anarquistas-ANA of São Paulo-Brazil
Individual sign ons
Derrick Jensen
Arthur J. Miller Co editor Bayou La Rose
Khalil Dalton
Craig Rosebrough
Janet Staiger - Tumwater, WA
Andrew Cart
Gail Francis
Jessica LaBumbard
Peter Solenberger - Ypsilanti, MI
Vitor Rego Moraes
Luciana Raposo - São Paulo - Brazil
Hector Ricardo Urrutia - Denver, CO
Skipper Hammond
Matt Siegfried
Ric Urrutia
Ileana Cortez
Dawn Ramey
Brett Ward, UAW local 1700
Rosilene M. E. Tauscheck - Brasil
Michael David Sasson - Oakland, CA
Cara Graninger
Fred Chase
Paul Lefrak - Mérida, Venezuela
Ted McTaggart, Ypsilanti, MI
Ron Lare
Carmen Regalado
Melissa Hornaday Lansing, MI
Jeff Melton
Megan Gallagher, Detroit, MI
Jon Hiesfelter - Seattle, WA, member of Solidarity and CWA 37083
Dianne Feeley, UAW Local 235 - Detroit, MI
Priscilla Dziubek - Detroit, MI
Lou Novak, Chair, Wayne County Green Party Committee - Detroit, MI
Elin O’Hara Slavick, Professor of Art, UNC, - Chapel Hill, NC
We just got word that Federal Marshals picked up Marie from Kent County jail this morning (10/01/08) and have confirmed with jail staff that as of 8pm Eastern time she is being held at the Newaygo County Jail.
For a brief 2 weeks after Marie’s change of plea it appeared that she would remain free on bond under house arrest until sentencing in February. That illusion was shattered today (9/30/08) when the US Attorneys office filed a motion for remand pending sentencing with the Court.
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Before Marie’s attorney was even able to formally respond, the Governments Motion was granted, an arrest warrant was issued and Marie was being taken into custody by Federal Marshals.
Marie Mason’s sentencing has been set for February 5, 2009 at the Federal Building 315 W. Allegan St., Lansing, MI. Courtroom #128.
One of the things Marie told us after her initial arrest back in March was how cold and depressing all the faces were at her arrangement as almost no family/supporters were able to attend. Lets make sure that that doesn’t happen again and that Marie is surrounded by supporters, friends and Family throughout this difficult time. We are encouraging people to attend these dates and support Marie.
Be sure to arrive early, dress well for court and please behave during the proceedings.
Its all about the Struggle,
Got Your Back Collective
www.freemarie.org
Below is Marie Masons unredacted plea agreement that was filed with the court today (9/11/08). A date for sentencing is yet determined. We will keep folks updated.
At the change of plea hearing Marie had the twice weekly out of the house agreement revoked. She had previously been allowed out of her home confinement for a predetermined amount of time twice a week and is now under 24/7 house arrest. We would love to hear a report back from folks that were able to attend today’s change of plea . Please send any report backs to freemarie@riseup.net.
Marie is thankful for all the support. Please keep Marie and her family in your hearts and minds over the coming coming days. If you haven’t recently now would be an excellent opportunity to channel some energy and write a letter of support to a Green Scare prisoner.
We are encouraging people to come out and support Marie at her change of plea hearing which is scheduled for Sept. 11, 2008 at 11am before Magistrate Carmody at the Federal Building located at 666 Federal Bldg 110 Michigan St NW Grand Rapids MI 49503. Be sure to arrive early and dress appropriately for court. We expect sentencing to take place at a later date before Judge Paul L. Maloney in Kalamazoo, MI.
Lets show Marie and her family she is not alone during these difficult times.
We apologize for the lack of updates lately. Marie’s attorney and the US Attorney have been in negotiations for the majority of the summer. After months of soul searching, reflection, and consideration Marie has entered into a tentative agreement with the US Attorney plead guilty to three of the four charges she was originally charged with. The US Attorney has agreed to drop the remaining count. Her plea agreement calls for a prison sentence between 15 and 20 years.
WE NEED YOUR SUPPORT TO PRINT MABON 2008!
