Water Protector Released from Custody After Issuance of Unlawful Warrant
(Aitkin County, MN) On Monday, March 22nd, Michele Naar-Obed, one of the four necessity valve turners, was released from the Aitkin County jail after spending three nights in custody. Naar-Obed had responded to an unjustified warrant for her arrest by turning herself in to authorities and demanding to see a judge. The jail released Naar-Obed after a judge ruled that the warrant was unlawful and she was not in violation of her conditions. This is the latest occurrence in the escalating legal repression facing the movement to stop the Line 3 Pipeline. Since construction began in December, more than 200 water protectors have been cited or arrested for participating in peaceful protests.
The warrant issued for Naar-Obed’s arrest claimed that she had violated her conditions of release for an outstanding charge related to Line 3 Pipeline protest activity. She was accused of violating a condition to remain law abiding by receiving a citation at a public rally on March 3rd. However, she has not yet had her first hearing or been found guilty of the second charge. As she turned herself in, Naar-Obed asked “In this country, aren’t we still presumed innocent until proven guilty? I’m being accused of breaking the law for participating in first amendment activities. I haven’t been given the opportunity to defend myself, yet I’m being asked to pay a $500 bond or surrender my freedom.”
Dozens of water protectors gathered outside the Aitkin County jail as Naar-Obed turned herself in, expressing that they would not be intimidated by state repression. Winona LaDuke of Honor the Earth decried the issuance of the warrant, stating “This is an intimidation tactic, another way that local law enforcement and the judicial system are attempting to suppress resistance to the Line 3 tar sands pipeline.”
Naar-Obed is a lifelong activist and one of the valve turners that made news in 2019 for stopping the flow of oil through Enbridge’s existing Line 3 and Line 4 pipelines. As she entered the jail last week, she said to the assembled crowd, “This is not just about me, it is about all of us. We know our rights and our responsibilities. We are committed to protecting water and honoring treaties in prayerful nonviolent resistance.”