by Trace Christenson / Battle Creek Enquirer
Photo: Trace Christenson/Enquirer file
An Enbridge pipeline protester—now a candidate for U.S. Senate—will stand trial over his daylong occupation of the under-construction pipeline in June 2013.
The Michigan Supreme Court said Tuesday it will not hear an appeal from Christopher Wahmhoff and sent his case back to Calhoun County Circuit Court for a trial.
“As always, I expected they would do what they can to throw us in jail,” Wahmhoff said, “because we are fighting a corporation. I say bring the fight.”
Wahmhoff, 36, of Kalamazoo, is charged with resisting police when he refused to exit a section of an oil pipeline being built near Marshall on June 24, 2013.
He spent about 9 hours on his 35th birthday inside the pipe near Division Drive and 16-Mile Road in Fredonia Township.
Enbridge was building the pipeline to replace the line that broke four years ago near Marshall, spilling more than 800,000 gallons of crude oil into Talmadge Creek and the Kalamazoo River. The company has spent more than $1 billion to remove the oil and continues to work on the river.
Wahmhoff used a skateboard to slide into the pipeline; he said he was there to protest the spill and continuing pollution.
He told officers at the scene that he would leave the pipe at 5 p.m. after a full day of stopping construction.
When Wahmhoff came out he was arrested.
His case was sent from district court to circuit court and Wahmhoff faced up to two years in prison if convicted.
But Judge James Kingsley agreed in January with a motion to dismiss the case made by Wahmhoff’s attorney, John Royal of Detroit, who said that his client couldn’t be charged because there was no testimony that Wahmhoff was ordered by deputies from the Calhoun County Sheriff Department to leave the pipe.
After that hearing Wahmhoff announced he would be an independent candidate for the U.S. Senate seat now held by Democrat Carl Levin. He has continued his campaign.
“There was never an unequivocal order that you come out forthwith,” Royal argued at the time. “He was not ordered out of the pipe at all. (The deputy) only requested him to come out.”
In February Judge Kingsley affirmed his earlier decision. When prosecutors appealed, the Michigan Court of Appeals agreed the case should be reinstated and returned to circuit court for trial.
That ruling was appealed by Royal, who asked the Michigan Supreme Court to consider the case.
On Tuesday the high court said it would not take the case, “because we are not persuaded that the question presented should be reviewed by this Court.”
Both Calhoun County Prosecutor David Gilbert and Royal said after learning of the high court’s decision on Tuesday they will begin preparing for trial.
And Royal said he already is considering pre-trial motions.
“I intend to bring in some experts about climate change,” Royal said. “The defense is that it was a necessity because global climate change has reached a degree to harm to humans and all living species and that people like Chris Wahmhoff have to take action to bring this to a stop.”
Royal said the government is not doing anything about climate change and to save the planet something has to be done.
“That is the message that Chris wanted to send,” Royal said.
And Wahmhoff said he was ready for the court case.
“I don’t think Enbridge will come into Battle Creek and get a charge on me. And I think it will help the campaign because it is showing corporate favoritism by the Michigan state government.”
Meanwhile Marshall police are seeking trespassing and littering charges against Wahmhoff after an employee of Enbridge at 333 S. Kalamazoo Ave. alleged Wahmhoff dumped river rocks, grass and some plastic materials on the front steps of the office on Aug. 18 and left a note complaining about the materials dumped into the Kalamazoo River by the spill.
Wahmhoff said he did put the material on the steps and said it included some of the chemicals used by the company during the river clean-up.
“I am looking for a fight with Enbridge,” he said.
The warrant request was sent to Gilbert, who said Tuesday it likely will be returned to the Marshall city attorney for consideration.
[Earth First! Newswire Editor's Note: Find out more about resistance to the Enbridge 6B pipeline project at michigancats.org]