Climate extremist convicted after attack on priceless Degas art

A climate radical from North Carolina is facing hard time now that he has been convicted of federal crimes related to an attack on a priceless work of art two years ago.

On April 27, 2023, Timothy Martin and Joanna Smith walked into the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., with the expressed intent of attacking the protective coverings over "Little Dancer, Age Fourteen" by French Impressionist artist Edgar Degas.

According to a press release from the DOJ, the pair entered the area "armed with plastic water bottles filled with paint" that they then smeared all over the case and sculpture base. In addition to the black and red paint, which supposedly represented oil and blood, the two tried to inflict further damage by "smacking the case with force."

They also made sure to have an attentive audience in front of them and someone to capture their actions on video.

The stunt caused $4,000 worth of damage and forced curators to remove the exhibit for 10 days for repairs.

'I could not resist the opportunity to turn her beautiful, vulnerable, symbolic self into a message [against] fossil fuel.'

Smith, who hails from New York, reached a plea deal with federal prosecutors and has already served a 60-day sentence in connection with the crime.

Martin, 55, however, decided to take his chances with a jury. Representing himself during the trial, Martin argued that he never meant to damage the exhibit permanently. In fact, he and his co-conspirator deliberately selected "Little Dancer" because it had a protective casing, and they used washable paint so that it could be cleaned up easily.

The jury apparently did not accept his explanation and found him guilty of two counts of conspiracy and injuring government property, felonies that carry a maximum penalty of five years each. He is scheduled to be sentenced in August.

Despite his conviction, Martin does not seem to have any regrets, calling the demonstration "a no-brainer."

"I come from an art background, and the little dancer is so, so beautiful and she represents the children of the world that are under major threat because of the climate emergency," he told Climate Rights International in a statement.

"I could not resist the opportunity to turn her beautiful, vulnerable, symbolic self into a message [against] fossil fuel."

CRI stands with Martin, characterizing him as the victim of a system that rewards polluters and penalizes those fighting to preserve the planet.

"People who engage in civil disobedience expect some consequences, but being charged with conspiracy against the United States and facing many years in prison is absurd," said CRI legal fellow Trevor Stankiewicz. "These excessive charges are a major threat to basic democratic freedoms."

Even though CRI admitted that Martin and Smith targeted the artwork for desecration and the DOJ accused them of "smacking" its case "with force," CRI still claimed the scheme was "nonviolent."

Climate radicals across the globe have insisted that similar physical assaults on beloved works of art are "nonviolent" protests.

After she and fellow Just Stop Oil activist Anna Holland were convicted in a U.K. court for throwing tomato soup at "Sunflowers" by Vincent van Gogh in October 2022, Phoebe Plummer suggested that, by ignoring the threat of "climate change," society basically deserved such attacks.

"I made those choices because I believe that nonviolent civil resistance is the best, if not the only, tool that people have in order to bring about the rapid change required to protect life from the accelerating climate emergency and the political decisions being made that pour fuel on the flames and which sentence us all to a catastrophic future," she said in September.

Holland received a sentence of 20 months behind bars, while Plummer received 27 months.

H/T: News2Share

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