Lucy Lawless Sentenced, Fined For Oil Drillship Protest [Video]
Xena: Warrior Princess actress Lucy Lawless and six other Greenpeace activists were sentenced and fined today for their involvement in a protest aboard an oil-drilling ship in 2012.
As previously reported by The Inquisitr, Lawless and her group were arrested last February after they boarded the Noble Discoverer at the Port of Taranaki in New Zealand and spent 77 hours in a tower of the ship in protest against Shell’s oil exploration operation in the Arctic.
The 44-year-old actress plead guilty to trespassing on the ship in June.
For their actions, Lawless and her fellow protesters were sentenced to 120 hours of community service each along with a fine of $651.
The Edmonton Journal notes Shell Todd Oil Services, which had chartered the ship, originally sought about 650,000 New Zealand dollars ($545,000) in reparations from the protesters but that request was shot down by the judge.
Despite the sentencing and fine, Lawless told reporters she was proud of the protest and claimed that her group played a significant role in raising awareness on issues with oil exploration in the Arctic.
“We are proud to have taken part in our attempt to stop Shell’s reckless plans to drill for oil in the pristine Arctic,” she said outside the court.
“Since we occupied the Noble Discoverer, it has become evident to everyone watching, from the millions who have signed Greenpeace petitions, to the US Government, now examining Shell’s plans, that it can never be safe to drill in the Arctic. We stand united and equally responsible for what we did. We didn’t feel that we had an option but to stand up for the environment.”
