appeals court reverses dismissal of charges against activist who spent hours in pipeline

by Tim Phillips

On January 13, the trespassing and resisting charges against Christopher Wahmhoff, who spent 10 hours inside a new oil pipeline in Michigan last June, were dismissed. Circuit Judge James Kingsley ruled that officers did not order Wahmhoff to leave the pipeline. According to today’s Battle Creek Enquirer article,

Wahmhoff entered a section of Enbridge Inc. pipeline near Division Drive and 16-Mile Road in Fredonia Township on June 24 to protest construction. The company is installing a new line to parallel one that broke and spilled about a million gallons of oil onto the ground and into Talmadge Creek and the Kalamazoo River in 2010.

This week an appeals court reversed Judge Kingsley’s decision to dismiss the charges. The appeals court ruled that there was evidence to establish probable cause that Wahmhoff committed the offenses. The case will now return to Judge Kingsley for trial.