Tim DeChristopher is pursuing a new line of defense.
The federal government, his attorneys say, may have been "discriminatory" when it chose to charge DeChristopher even though many others have placed oil and gas lease bids and failed to pay without facing prosecution.
DeChristopher, charged with two felonies for placing bogus bids totaling $1.8 million at a 2008 lease auction, has filed a motion seeking evidence from the Justice Department, Bureau of Land Management and Interior Department to support a claim of "selective prosecution."
The 28-year-old University of Utah student has said his false bids for 14 parcels near Arches and Canyonlands national parks were an act of civil disobedience aimed at fighting global warming. But U.S. District Judge Dee Benson ruled in November that DeChristopher cannot claim the "necessity" of thwarting a climate crisis in his defense.
So DeChristopher's attorneys instead have asked the court to order federal agencies to produce all documents showing policies about the prosecution of such offenses and all communications about the case against DeChristopher.
"I want to see what the facts are," Ron Yengich, an attorney for DeChristopher, said Tuesday. "The facts are contained -- we believe -- in Department of Justice files around the country where they've refused to prosecute people under similar circumstances."
In the past five years, 35 bidders have defaulted on 152 parcels for an estimated loss of $3.4 million, according to an August 2009 Interior Department report. But only two of those bids -- including DeChristopher's -- were made with the intention not to pay, the report states.
If DeChristopher's motion yields evidence that shows he was treated unfairly, that could be used to push for dismissal of the charges or as defense in his March 15 trial.
Melodie Rydalch, spokeswoman for the U.S. attorney for Utah, said the prosecution will file a response to the motion in the next few weeks.
"We will make our argument to the court," she said.
DeChristopher said Tuesday he "absolutely" feels like he was singled out.
"There's a long list of people who had won leases before [and not paid]," he said. "I'm looking forward to going to trial and getting all this information out in front of a jury."
Auction » Tim DeChristopher disrupted a U.S. Bureau of Land Management oil and gas lease auction Dec. 19, 2008, in Salt Lake City.
$1.8 million in bids » After he bid $1.8 million to win bids on 14 parcels near Arches and Canyonlands national parks and drove up bidding on several others, BLM agents removed him from the auction room for questioning.
Civil disobedience » The University of Utah economics major, who has become a folk hero to many since the lease sale, admitted to his false bidding, saying it was an act of civil disobedience in protest of Bush administration policies that worsened the global climate crisis and threatened the health of everyone on the planet.
Leases shelved » On Feb. 4, 2009, Ken Salazar, President Barack Obama's Interior secretary, shelved 77 contested lease parcels, including the ones DeChristopher won, and scolded the Bush team for rushing reviews of the disputed sites.
Indictment » On April 1, a federal grand jury handed up a two-count felony indictment against DeChristopher for violating the terms of the auction he promised to observe when he signed up to bid. He pleaded not guilty April 28.
Defense denied » On Nov. 16, a federal judge refused to let DeChristopher argue in court that he tried to sabotage the auction to combat the climate-change crisis.
Trial set » A jury trial has been scheduled for March 15-17.
