Fwd: Matt DeHart named as 3rd Courage Foundation beneficiary after Edward Snowden & Jeremy Hammond

[Bethany]

Matt DeHart named as third Courage beneficiary


Posted on March 2, 2015
https://couragefound.org/2015/03/matt-dehart-named-as-third-courage-beneficiary/
https://mattdehart.com/

- 30-year-old former US National Guard drone team member and alleged 
WikiLeaks courier deported/extradited to US less than 24 hours ago after 
asylum claim declined by Canada

- joins Edward Snowden and Jeremy Hammond as Courage beneficiaries

- Matt’s parents Leann and Paul DeHart say: “We are comforted knowing we 
do not stand up against the tide alone.”

- Matt DeHart appeared before a judge today in Buffalo and was ordered 
to be transferred to Tennessee for arraignment.

Courage, the international organisation dedicated to the protection of 
truth-tellers, has announced that its new beneficiary will be Matt 
DeHart.

Matt DeHart is a 30-year-old former US National Guard drone team member 
and alleged WikiLeaks courier who worked with the hactivist group 
Anonymous. In the last 24 hours, he has been deported/extradited from 
Canada to the United States to face charges that judges in two countries 
(the US and Canada) have found to lack credibility. WikiLeaks founder 
Julian Assange said: “Canada’s actions are shameful. It may as well not 
have a border.” A few minutes ago Matt DeHart appeared before a judge in 
Buffalo and was ordered to be transferred to Tennessee for arraignment.

For the past five years, Matt DeHart has been at the centre of a US 
national security investigation and has experienced extraordinary 
hardship as a result. In 2010, Matt was detained at the US–Canadian 
border by FBI agents, who administered an IV (intravenous line) to Matt 
against his will. They questioned him over several days regarding his 
military unit, his involvement with Anonymous and WikiLeaks. They denied 
him access to his lawyer, deprived him of sleep, food and water, and 
tortured him during this time. Although an FBI report confirms Matt was 
detained for an “espionage matter” and agents asked him nothing about 
pornography, Matt was presented with a hastily drafted criminal 
complaint alleging he solicited nude photos from a teenager in 2008.

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange stated: “The abuse of the law in 
DeHart’s case is obvious, shocking and wrong. Matt DeHart and his family 
have suffered enough.”

On 3 April 2013, Matt and his family crossed the US–Canadian border 
again, seeking political asylum and protection under the United Nations 
Convention on Torture. Canada’s Immigration and Refugee Board turned 
down the family’s claim in February 2015, even though they found no 
“credible and trustworthy evidence” to support the charges Matt faces.

Courage has accepted Matt as its third beneficiary in order to raise 
awareness about his case, prevent him from experiencing further 
mistreatment in detention and to raise urgently needed funds for his 
legal defence. DeHart’s legal team have confirmed that they intend to 
launch legal action against the US government as well as defend Matt 
from the charges he currently faces.

Sarah Harrison, Courage’s Acting Director, said:

The FBI has ruined Matt’s life to cover up what he knew and to punish 
his support of WikiLeaks and Anonymous. Objective judges have agreed 
that the child porn charges are a ruse to smear him in pursuit of 
national security information.

Tor Ekeland, one of Matt’s lawyers, said:

Knowing the Courage Foundation has Matt’s back is a great relief to 
everyone fighting for his cause. It’s a privilege to work with such an 
esteemed organisation so committed to the freedom of information, and to 
know that there is light in the darkness.

Matt’s parents, Paul and Leann DeHart, said in a statement,

We are humbled and grateful for the support of the Courage Foundation. 
Facing a crisis of tsunami magnitude, we are comforted knowing we do not 
stand up against the tide alone.

In addition to hosting the defence fund, Courage will publicly advocate 
for Matt DeHart and build his network of support. A re-launched support 
website at mattdehart.com will provide regular updates on Matt’s case 
and raise public awareness about the threats he faces.

Donations to the Matt DeHart defence fund can be made at: 
https://mattdehart.com/donate