Scottish Catholic Observer

An 84-year-old nun has been sentenced to almost three years in jail by a US judge for breaking into a Tennessee defence facility that stores uranium for nuclear bombs.

Sr Megan Rice of the Society of the Holy Child Jesus was sentenced to 35 months for breaking into and causing damage to the Y-12 National Security Complex in Oak Ridge in July 2012. Sr Megan and two others—Michael Walli and Greg Boertje-Obed—were convicted on May 8 last year, and received their sentences this week.

At her sentencing, Sr Megan (above) had asked the court to ‘please have no leniency with me.’ While testifying, all three perpetrators said, according to The Associated Press, that they have no remorse for their act and were pleased to have reached such a secure part of the security complex.

“My regret was I waited 70 years,” Sr Megan said. “It is manufacturing that can only cause death.”

Sr Mary Ann Buckley, leader of the American Province of the Society of the Holy Child Jesus, said that the order is ‘deeply saddened’ by the length of Sr Megan’s sentence.

“While the society respects the judicial process and the court’s decision, we had hoped and prayed that Sr Megan’s age, health, and decades of service would have been considered.”

Sr Mary Ann added that her colleague has ‘dedicated her life to helping others and working towards a more just, compassionate and harmonious world.’

On July 28, 2012, the three protestors cut through security fences to enter the Y-12 National Security Complex, which enriches and stores uranium for nuclear weapons. They hung banners and crime-scene tape, and hammered small chunks off a wall, spending about two hours in the complex before being approached by a guard.

They also sprayed baby bottles, filled with human blood, on the wall of the facility.

“Sr Megan and two others engaged in a peaceful protest, offering prayer for the thousands who have lost their lives as a result of nuclear weapons,” Sr Mary Ann wrote in her statement.

“The order has a history of standing up for those in need,” she added. “We are committed to helping women, children and families by providing educational, spiritual, and social programmes across four continents.”

Mr Boertje-Obed said the human blood they sprayed on the facility was symbolic of ‘the blood of children (that) is spilled by these weapons.’

Mr Walli and Mr Boertje-Obed were sentenced to more than five years in prison, as they had longer criminal histories.