Feds reportedly drop probe of Camp Dodge protesters

Federal officials have reportedly dropped an inquiry into a November protest at Camp Dodge that involved four peace activists. Brian Terrill, one of the protesters who’d been subpoenaed to testify before a grand jury, told supporters gathered at a rally outside the federal courthouse in Des Moines that the subpoenas against the four protesters were dropped today. Terrill says the protesters won.Terrill says the protesters “made them want to stop” and he says they “have to make them not want to do this again.” Terrill and the others protested at Camp Dodge on November 16th, and federal officials say their investigation centered on whether there was “unlawful entry” onto military property. The protesters charged they were being improperly accused of being terrorists because they’d attended an antiwar conference at Drake University. Terrill says a U.S. Justice Department’s grand jury investigation is the most brutal weapon the government can use against those who speak out against the war. Terrill says he and the three other Iowa peace activists received messages of “solidarity” from around the globe. Terrill says a Catholic Parish in El Salvador passed a statement of support, saying they knew what government persecution was like. Terrill says he and the other peace activists will not be silenced by the U.S. Government. “Stop the occupation; bring the Guard home,” Terrill told the two dozen people who’d gathered for the noon-time peace rally. Federal officials released a statement last night, saying their probe was focused solely on whether the protesters tried to breach a security fence at Camp Dodge.