Protesters demonstrating against the expansion of the Dakota Access Pipeline wade in cold creek waters confronting local police, near Cannon Ball, N.D., in 2016.WASHINGTON — Over the past five years, pipeline giant Energy Transfer has filed dozens of lawsuits and subpoenas against people and groups that participated in and supported protests against its Dakota Access pipeline in 2016.
“Wealthy and powerful corporate entities are dragging citizens and public interest opponents through meritless but protracted and extremely costly litigation to expose anyone who dares stand up to them to personal and financial ruin,” he said. Some public officials were targeted, including Beto O’Rourke, the gubernatorial candidate whom Energy Transfer CEO Kelcy Warren sued over his criticisms of massive profits earned by the pipeline company during last year’s winter storm, which left Texans without power for days.
“You can ask for someone’s private information, for their internal emails and communications and private personal information like their bank accounts,” he said. “You can be forced to testify under oath and answer questions for hours and days.”And oil-producing states such as Texas and Oklahoma have enacted tough new laws to protect energy projects by imposing lengthy prison sentences for protesters deemed to have interrupted the construction or operation of “critical infrastructure.
Raskin said he wanted to establish federal protections for activists, following the model of measures known as anti-SLAPP laws, adopted in more than 30 states.
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