KURTZ UPDATE

FBI continues harassment of art activist Dr. Steven Kurtz, a member of the Critical Arts Ensemble, has been charged with four counts of mail and wire fraud, each carrying up to 20 years in prison. The FBI was earlier pursuing bioterrorism charges against him, based on campaigning materials which included some harmelss bacteria and a DNA extraction kit.

Dr. Steven Kurtz, Associate Professor of Art at the University of Buffalo, was arraigned and charged in Federal District Court in Buffalo today on four counts of mail and wire fraud, which each carry a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. Kurtz was detained on May 11, after police stumbled across some test tubes and petri dishes in the house (see report at http://www.corporatewatch.org/news/patroit_act.htm). Kurtz is a member of the Critical Art Ensemble (CAE), an internationally-acclaimed artists' collective that produces artwork to educate the public about the politics of biotechnology. The equipment seized by the FBI consisted mainly of CAE's most recent project, “Free Range Grains”. This is a mobile DNA extraction laboratory to test store-bought food for possible contamination by genetically modified grains and organisms. Such equipment can be found in any university's basic biology lab and even in many high schools. Kurtz was also in the midst of researching the issue of biological warfare and bioterrorism. He had many books on the subject and had legally acquired three harmless types of bacteria commonly used as educational tools in schools and biology departments: bacillus globigii, serratia marcenscens and a benign strain of e.coli. CAE had intended to use the bacteria concerned in a project critiquing the history of US involvement in germ warfare experiments, including the Bush administration's earmarking of hundreds of millions of dollars to erect high-security laboratories around the country. Many eminent scientists likewise view these plans as a recipe for catastrophe.

Along with Kurtz, charges were also brought against Robert Ferrell, head of the Department of Genetics at the University of Pittsburgh's School of Public Health. The charges concern technicalities of how Ferrell helped Kurtz to obtain $256 worth of the harmless bacteria for his projects. The laws under which the indictments were obtained are normally used against those defrauding others of money or property, as in telemarketing schemes. Historically, these laws have been used when the government could not prove other criminal charges. To make a federal case out of such minor allegations, the District Attorney will have the burden of proving criminal intent. “There was very obviously no criminal intent”, said Kurtz's attorney Paul Cambria, “The intent was to educate and enlighten. If the University of Pittsburgh feels that there was a contract breach, then their remedy is to sue Steve for $256 in a civil court”.Many believe the attempt to cast the technicality as a public health and safety issue is a face-saving measure by the government, which has already expended an enormous amount of time and money in their fruitless pursuit of this case. Although the original bioterrorism charges are now completely off the table, the trial still promises to be financially and psychologically draining for the defendants. The international support of the defendants by artists, scientists and other citizens has been remarkable. Preeminent science magazine Nature has called on scientists to support Kurtz. "As with the prosecution of some scientists in recent years, it seems that government lawyers are singling Kurtz out as a warning to the broader artistic community...Art and science are forms of human enquiry that can be illuminating and controversial, and the freedom of both must be preserved as part of a healthy democracy - as must a sense of proportion”, wrote the journal. Innumerable other scientists, artists, institutions, and others have written letters of support for Kurtz and Ferrell.

Organizers and supporters of the defense committee have pledged to continue their information, education, and protest activities. Several campuses have already organized teach-ins on the case in the fall, and fund-raisers and speak-outs are scheduled in Chicago, London, New York, and other cities throughout July and August. CAE activists are asking for support to continue “as the government extends this outrageous and wasteful persecution into a gruelling trial”.
For more details and how to help see http://www.caedefensefund.org/