Scott DeMuth sentenced to six months, taken into custody today

From Davenport Grand Jury

Scott’s (temporary) mailing address

We’ve heard from Scott, who is currently in the Polk County Jail, a
facility often used in Iowa for federal inmates awaiting transfer to
whatever prison they’re going to go to. He’s going to get moved, although
we’re not sure yet where or when. We will be sending updates as we get
them. If you send Scott mail and it gets returned, resend it to his next
address!

Right now, his address is at:

Scott DeMuth
Polk County Jail
1985 – NE 51st Place
Des Moines, IA 50313-2517

All mail must have the sender’s full name and return address on the
envelope (no PO Boxes) or it will get rejected. No books, periodicals or
packages are allowed.

Scott is only allowed to have 5 photos in his possession. No photos larger
than 4×6, Polaroids, photo collages, “photos printed on stationery paper,”
or electronic cards.



From Davenport Grand Jury

This afternoon, family, friends and supporters gathered to show support
for Scott DeMuth as he was sentenced in federal court in Davenport, Iowa.
Scott was sentenced to six months imprisonment, and taken immediately into
custody. We will be posting information on how to send him mail as soon as
his location is confirmed.

Scott pleaded guilty in September to conspiracy to commit animal
enterprise terrorism in violation of the Animal Enterprise Protection
Act--a misdemeanor--for an animal liberation that took place in Minnesota
in 2006.

At issue in court was the possibility of restitution. The plea agreement
made no mention of restitution, but the pre sentence report suggested that
he pay over $20,000 to cover damages incurred by the farm going out of
business--despite the fact that it didn't go out of business until months
later. It is not actually legal to consider projected earnings in
restitution, and the prosecutor conceded that the actual damages were well
under $10,000. He cited a recent letter from farm owner Latzig in which he
claimed to have lost approximately 30 ferrets, at a cost of $75 per female
and $125 per male. This conflicts with the numbers given by Latzig in the
initial police report, when he claimed to have recovered all but ten of
his ferrets, valued at $40 each.

In the end, arguments over the amount of restitution became moot when
Judge Jarvey conceded that restitution could not be imposed because it had
not been mentioned during the plea agreement proceedings. He seemed
displeased with this outcome, and suggested that if Scott were truly
remorseful he would offer willingly to pay restitution to the farm owner.

The plea agreement made explicit that Scott would be sentenced to no less
than six months, but defense attorney Michael Deutsch requested that Scott
serve this time in either the halfway house or on house arrest. He cited
the five years since the liberation during which Scott has remained law
abiding, the numerous character letters written on his behalf, and the
space and resources that would be wasted on his incarceration.

In a surprising turn, federal judge John Jarvey ordered Scott be taken
into custody immediately at the sentencing. This is virtually unheard of
for a misdemeanor charge in which the defendant clearly poses no flight
risk or danger to the community. This decision was clearly motivated by a
desire by the judge to further punish Scott based on the political nature
of the crime, not by any legal precedent or safety concern.

Scott is currently being transferred to a local county jail to await his
placement in a federal prison. Information on how to send him books,
commissary money and letters will be posted as soon as his location is
confirmed.

For now, money for Scott's commissary can be sent to EWOK!, c/o Coldsnap
Legal Collective, p.o. box 50514 Minneapolis, MN 55405, or can be donated
online via the Paypal button on our website,
http://davenportgrandjury.wordpress.com.

Thank you to everyone who has supported Scott through this process.
Despite the stress caused by repeated postponement on his sentencing and
now the surprising turn regarding his incarceration, Scott has taken this
situation in his usual stride.

Please look out for announcements regarding how to write to Scott, and
continue to show support while he serves his time in federal prison.

With love and rage,
The Scott and Carrie Support Committee

http://davenportgrandjury.wordpress.com