Begin forwarded message:
> From: CAE Legal Defense Fund <[email protected]>
> Date: May 26, 2004 3:58:47 AM EDT
> To: "rachel-rhizome.org" <[email protected]>
> Subject: FBI ADBDUCTS ARTIST, SEIZES ART - HELP URGENTLY NEEDED
>
> May 25, 2004
> FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
>
> FBI ABDUCTS ARTIST, SEIZES ART
> Feds Unable to Distinguish Art from Bioterrorism
> Grieving Artist Denied Access to Deceased Wife's Body
>
> DEFENSE FUND ESTABLISHED - HELP URGENTLY NEEDED
>
> Steve Kurtz was already suffering from one tragedy when he called 911
> early in the morning to tell them his wife had suffered a cardiac
> arrest
> and died in her sleep. The police arrived and, cranked up on the
> rhetoric
> of the "War on Terror," decided Kurtz's art supplies were actually
> bioterrorism weapons.
>
> Thus began an Orwellian stream of events in which FBI agents abducted
> Kurtz without charges, sealed off his entire block, and confiscated his
> computers, manuscripts, art supplies… and even his wife's body.
>
> Like the case of Brandon Mayfield, the Muslim lawyer from Portland
> imprisoned for two weeks on the flimsiest of false evidence, Kurtz's
> case
> amply demonstrates the dangers posed by the USA PATRIOT Act coupled
> with
> government-nurtured terrorism hysteria.
>
> Kurtz's case is ongoing, and, on top of everything else, Kurtz is
> facing a
> mountain of legal fees. Donations to his legal defense can be made at
> http://www.rtmark.com/CAEdefense/
>
> FEAR RUN AMOK
>
> Steve Kurtz is Associate Professor in the Department of Art at the
> State
> University of New York's University at Buffalo, and a member of the
> internationally-acclaimed Critical Art Ensemble.
>
> Kurtz's wife, Hope Kurtz, died in her sleep of cardiac arrest in the
> early
> morning hours of May 11. Police arrived, became suspicious of Kurtz's
> art
> supplies and called the FBI.
>
> Within hours, FBI agents had "detained" Kurtz as a suspected
> bioterrorist
> and cordoned off the entire block around his house. (Kurtz walked away
> the
> next day on the advice of a lawyer, his "detention" having proved to be
> illegal.) Over the next few days, dozens of agents in hazmat suits,
> from a
> number of law enforcement agencies, sifted through Kurtz's work,
> analyzing
> it on-site and impounding computers, manuscripts, books, equipment, and
> even his wife's body for further analysis. Meanwhile, the Buffalo
> Health
> Department condemned his house as a health risk.
>
> Kurtz, a member of the Critical Art Ensemble, makes art which addresses
> the politics of biotechnology. "Free Range Grains," CAE's latest
> project,
> included a mobile DNA extraction laboratory for testing food products
> for
> possible transgenic contamination. It was this equipment which
> triggered
> the Kafkaesque chain of events.
>
> FBI field and laboratory tests have shown that Kurtz's equipment was
> not
> used for any illegal purpose. In fact, it is not even _possible_ to use
> this equipment for the production or weaponization of dangerous germs.
> Furthermore, any person in the US may legally obtain and possess such
> equipment.
>
> "Today, there is no legal way to stop huge corporations from putting
> genetically altered material in our food," said Defense Fund
> spokeswoman
> Carla Mendes. "Yet owning the equipment required to test for the
> presence
> of 'Frankenfood' will get you accused of 'terrorism.' You can be
> illegally
> detained by shadowy government agents, lose access to your home, work,
> and
> belongings, and find that your recently deceased spouse's body has been
> taken away for 'analysis.'"
>
> Though Kurtz has finally been able to return to his home and recover
> his
> wife's body, the FBI has still not returned any of his equipment,
> computers or manuscripts, nor given any indication of when they will.
> The
> case remains open.
>
> HELP URGENTLY NEEDED
>
> A small fortune has already been spent on lawyers for Kurtz and other
> Critical Art Ensemble members. A defense fund has been established at
> http://www.rtmark.com/CAEdefense/ to help defray the legal costs which
> will continue to mount so long as the investigation continues.
> Donations
> go directly to the legal defense of Kurtz and other Critical Art
> Ensemble
> members. Should the funds raised exceed the cost of the legal defense,
> any
> remaining money will be used to help other artists in need.
>
> To make a donation, please visit http://www.rtmark.com/CAEdefense/
>
> For more information on the Critical Art Ensemble, please visit
> http://www.critical-art.net/
>
> Articles about the case:
> http://www.rtmark.com/CAEdefense/news-WKBW-2.html
> http://www.rtmark.com/CAEdefense/news-WKBW.html
>
> On advice of counsel, Steve Kurtz is unable to answer questions
> regarding
> his case. Please direct questions or comments to Carla Mendes
> <[email protected]>.
>
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