Los Angeles Catholic Worker

David remains in U.S. Penitentiary - Atlanta, but can be, and is expected to be transferred at any time. If you write to him, please send your correspondence to the LACW, 632 N. Brittania St., Los Angeles, CA 90033-1722 and we will forward it until he arrives at his final destination. Below are letters he has written to the community.

December 5th

December 7th

December 16th-19th

Please continue your prayers!

For those of you who have asked about sending money, here are the directions. They must be followed carefully as prison bureaucracy is strict.

Inmates’ families and friends choosing to send inmates funds through the mail must send those funds to the following address and in accordance with the directions provided below:

The sender’s name and return address must appear on the upper left-hand corner of the envelope to ensure that the funds can be returned to the sender in the event that they cannot be posted to the inmate’s account. The deposit envelope must not contain any items intended for delivery to the inmate. The Bureau of Prisons shall dispose of all items included with the funds.

Christmas is one of the few times each year, that there are an abundance of meals being served to the homeless on Skid Row. We at the LACW are taking this opportunity, and will be closed on Christmas Day. We will resume our regular schedule on Tuesday the 28th. Thanks!

Monday, December 13, 2010: The federal criminal trial of five veteran peace activists that began December 7 ended today after the jury found them guilty on all counts. The five defendants, called the Disarm Now! Plowshares, challenged the legality and morality of the U.S. storage and use of thermonuclear missiles by Trident nuclear submarines at the Kitsap-Bangor Naval Base outside Bremerton Washington.

In their defense the peace activists argued three points: the nuclear missiles at Bangor are weapons of mass destruction; those weapons are both illegal and immoral; and that all citizens have the right and duty to try to stop international war crimes from being committed by these weapons of mass destruction.

The five were charged with trespass, felony damage to federal property, felony injury to property and felony conspiracy to damage property. Each defendant faces sentences of up to ten years in prison.

On trial were: Anne Montgomery, 83, a Sacred Heart sister from New York; Bill Bischel, SJ, 81, a Jesuit priest from Tacoma Washington; Susan Crane, 67, a member of the Jonah House community in Baltimore, Maryland; Lynne Greenwald, 60, a nurse from Bremerton Washington; and Steve Kelly, SJ, 60, a Jesuit priest from Oakland California. Bill Bischel and Lynne Greenwald are active members of the Ground Zero Center for Nonviolent Action, a community resisting Trident nuclear weapons since 1977.

After the verdict was read and Judge Settle was about to dismiss the jury, Fr. Steve Kelly stood and announced that the defendants would like to bless the jury. Steve and all of his co-defendants stood with their hands raised in blessing as he said, “May you go in peace and have a safe, happy holiday.”

Sentencing is scheduled for March 28, 2011 at 9:00 am.

For more information on the trial and the Plowshares peace activists please see the site for Disarm Now! Plowshares \ or Ground Zero Center for Nonviolent Action

Contact: Leonard Eiger, Media & Outreach Coordinator Ground Zero Center for Nonviolent Action (425) 445-2190 – e-mail: subversivepeacemaking@comcast.net

David has been transferred to another prison, we aren’t sure where yet. For now letters can be sent to the LACW and we will forward them when we have more information.

632 N. Brittania St.
Los Angeles CA 90033

Your prayers are appreciated!

Here’s the December issue of the Catholic Agitator.

In this issue:

• A Sign of Peace by Toni Flynn
• Dental Hero! by Faustino Cruz
• Testimony to Obama ad Interview with David Omondi
• Catholic Worker Bible Study: Returning to the Source by Sarah Fuller
• A Change of Lens by Theo Kayser
• We Are Pharaoh by Alecia Stuchlik
• Real Hope Is About Doing Something by Chris Hedges

A big thank you from all of us to the students of St. Paul and Bosco Tech High Schools and the St. Steven’s Church Youth Group for walking in the cold and rain to end hunger!

Dr. Rich Meehan, who worked in our Skid Row dental clinic for nearly 20 years, has decided to retire in order to concentrate on spending more time with his wife Pat, as together they battle the debilitating effects of her Alzheimer’s. Dr. Rich has been the major force in providing much-needed dental services for our indigent friends, especially for those who suffer from addiction, mental illness, of the lack of proper immigration documentation, who would have had very few other opportunities for proper dental treatment. He will be greatly missed!