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<h1><b>Animal rights activist pleads guilty to lesser
charge</b></h1><font size=3>
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Animal rights activist pleads guilty to lesser charge</a> <br><br>
<a href="http://qctimes.com/search/?l=50&sd=desc&s=start_time&f=html&byline=Brian%20Wellner">
Brian Wellner </a>The Quad-City Times | Posted: Monday, September 13,
2010 5:09 pm |
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A Minnesota man accused in connection with a 2004 University of Iowa
animal lab break-in pleaded guilty instead Monday to releasing ferrets
from a Minnesota farm.<br><br>
Scott DeMuth, 23, of Minneapolis, entered his plea in U.S. District
Court, Davenport, to a misdemeanor conspiracy charge and faces six months
in prison. He was set to go to trial Tuesday for both crimes.<br><br>
DeMuth admitted to releasing ferrets from Lakeside Ferret Inc. in
Minnesota in April 2006 and causing damage to computers and records. The
charge is a misdemeanor because the damage was less than
$10,000.<br><br>
His attorney, Michael Deutsch, said after Monday’s change of plea hearing
that prosecutors had approached the defense asking to resolve the
case.<br><br>
“I told them he wasn’t involved in the Iowa break-in,” Deutsch said.
“Unless that was taken out, I wouldn’t be agreeable to a plea.”<br><br>
DeMuth declined comment.<br><br>
Federal prosecutor Cliff Cronk had said the government had planned to
call 60 witnesses to testify during a trial that was scheduled to last
two to three weeks. <br><br>
If convicted of the felony conspiracy charge, DeMuth would have faced up
to three years in prison and a $250,000 fine.<br><br>
“I felt he was being made a scapegoat,” Deutsch said.<br><br>
DeMuth was previously ordered detained for refusing to testify before the
grand jury. He has been out on bond while awaiting trial. <br><br>
His former girlfriend, Carrie Feldman, also was detained for refusing to
testify. She was released after DeMuth was indicted and FBI agents raided
a home in Salt Lake City, Utah. One of the targets of the warrant was
Peter Young, an animal rights activist who served time in federal prison
for fur-farm raids in the 1990s, documents show.<br><br>
The FBI was called in to investigate the November 2004 vandalism and
break-in at the University of Iowa's Spence Laboratories and Seashore
Hall.<br><br>
The Animal Liberation Front, an underground animal-rights activist group,
claimed responsibility for the damage to lab equipment and the release of
88 mice and 313 rats used in psychology department experiments. The
break-in was designated as domestic terrorism.<br><br>
The ALF also claimed responsibility for the Lakeside Ferret Inc.
action.<br><br>
UI officials estimated the damage in the hundreds of thousands of dollars
and offered a $10,000 reward for tips leading to identification of the
vandals. The university also increased security at its labs after the
break-in.<br><br>
No one else has been charged in connection with the incident.<br><br>
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2010 The Quad-City Times. All rights reserved. This material may not be
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</font><h1><b>DeMuth Will Not Face Trial on Vandalism to UI
Lab</b></h1><font size=3>
<a href="http://www.kcrg.com/news/local/DeMuth-Will-Not-Face-Trial-on-Vandalism-to-UI-Lab-102815344.html" eudora="autourl">
http://www.kcrg.com/news/local/DeMuth-Will-Not-Face-Trial-on-Vandalism-to-UI-Lab-102815344.html<br>
</a>DAVENPORT - A Minnesota man accused in connection with a 2004
break-in at a University of Iowa animal lab pleaded guilty Monday to
releasing ferrets from a Minnesota farm.<br><br>
Scott DeMuth, 23, of Minneapolis, entered his plea in U.S. District
Court, Davenport, to a misdemeanor conspiracy charge and faces six months
in prison. He was set to go to trial Tuesday for both crimes.<br><br>
He will not be tried in connection with the damage to the UI’s Spence
Laboratories and Seashore Hall.<br><br>
“I told them he wasn’t involved in the Iowa break-in,” said DeMuth’s
attorney Michael Deutsch. “Unless that was taken out, I wouldn’t be
agreeable to a plea.<br><br>
“I felt he was being made a scapegoat,” Deutsch said of his
client.<br><br>
DeMuth admitted to releasing ferrets from Lakeside Ferret in Minnesota in
April 2006 and causing damage to computers and records. The charge is a
misdemeanor because the damage was less than $10,000.<br><br>
Deutsch said after Monday’s change-of-plea hearing that prosecutors had
approached the defense asking to resolve the case.<br><br>
DeMuth declined comment.<br><br>
Federal prosecutor Cliff Cronk had said the government had planned to
call 60 witnesses to testify during a trial that was scheduled to last
two to three weeks.<br><br>
If convicted of the felony conspiracy charge, DeMuth would have faced up
to three years in prison and a $250,000 fine.<br><br>
DeMuth was previously ordered detained for refusing to testify before the
grand jury. He has been out on bond while awaiting trial.<br><br>
His former girlfriend, Carrie Feldman, also was detained for refusing to
testify. She was released after DeMuth was indicted and FBI agents raided
a home in Salt Lake City, Utah.<br><br>
One of the targets of the warrant was Peter Young, an animal rights
activist who served time in federal prison for fur-farm raids in the
1990s, documents show.<br><br>
The FBI investigated the November 2004 vandalism and break-in at Spence
Labs and Seashore Hall.<br><br>
UI officials estimated the damage in the hundreds of thousands of dollars
and offered a $10,000 reward for tips leading to identification of the
vandals. The university also increased security at its labs after the
break-in.<br><br>
No one else has been charged in connection with the incident.<br><br>
The Animal Liberation Front, an underground animal-rights activist group,
claimed responsibility for the damage to lab equipment and the release of
88 mice and 313 rats used in psychology department experiments. The
break-in was designated as domestic terrorism.<br><br>
The ALF also claimed responsibility for the Lakeside Ferret action.
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