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April 2, 2009
State Not Going Easy On BLM Bid Monkey Wrencher
For those who don't know the back story, this yahoo lied on a bid application form and inserted himself into an auction for BLM land use for energy exploration all in the name of environmental extremeism. As the Tribune reports, he was hoping for some sympathy from the Obama Administration and didn't get it:
Tim DeChristopher -- the monkey-wrenching University of Utah student who caused an environmental sensation by disrupting a high-profile oil and gas lease auction -- pinned his hopes on President Barack Obama to get him out of trouble.
But shortly after a federal grand jury handed up a two-count felony indictment Wednesday against the 27-year-old economics major, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar crushed any notion of help from Washington.
The Bureau of Land Management, Salazar warned, "will not tolerate future conduct which undermines the integrity of the bid process."
It's a rare day that I agree with Ken Salazar, but this is one of them. No DeChristopher is looking at going inside for all day:
DeChristopher faces up to 10 years in prison and $750,000 in fines under charges he organized and participated in a scheme to "defeat" federal law and made a fraudulent statement when he registered as a bidder at the BLM's Dec. 19 lease sale in Salt Lake City.
U.S. Attorney for Utah Brett Tolman said that, while he recognized people may have deeply held views on government behavior, they should express them lawfully.
"Rather than follow the rule of law, this defendant has, in his own words, repeatedly said he intended to disrupt the lease-bidding process," Tolman said. "Today's indictment is our response to his decision."
On the day of the auction, DeChristopher signed a bidder-registration form that warned it is a federal crime to "knowingly and willfully make any false, fictitious or fraudulent statements" and cited the maximum penalties: up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
This is a slam dunk case and I hope that he gets everything coming to him.
Posted by Jonathan at April 2, 2009 9:25 AM
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