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Children given lifelong ban on talking about fracking
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She was still troubled by the gag order, however. "My concern is that they're minors. I'm not quite sure I fully understand. We know we're signing for silence for ever but how is this taking away our children's rights being minors now? I mean my daughter is turning seven today, my son is 10."
The children's father, Chris Hallowich, went on to tell the court it might be difficult to ensure the children's absolute silence on fracking given that their ages and that the family lives in the middle of a shale gas boom.
"They're going to be among other children that are children of people within this industry and they're going to be around it every day of their life, that if they in turn say one of the illegal words when they're outside of our guardianship we're going to have difficulty controlling that," he said. "We can tell them, they can not say this, they can not say that, but if on the playground....."
The court transcripts were released in response to an open records request by the Pittsburgh Post Gazette, which first reported on the children's lifetime gag order. The newspaper has been fighting for the release of all documents in the Hallowich settlement.
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So now we have mere babies being forced to sell their free speech rights to obtain compensation for the harm done to them.
We do live in interesting times. Link here .
Sorry, everyone. Was researching environmental regulations and came across this older story.
Looks like the company backtracked according to this story.
Range Resources attorney James Swetz told the judge that when it came to the settlement agreement, the family was defined as the whole family, referring to the questions by the parents, the judge, and the parents lawyer as ancillary.
Thats what weve agreed to, Swetz told the court. Putting aside all these other issues and sort of ancillary topics, thats what the settlement says, and thats what weve agreed to at this point.
Range Resources seems to now be distancing itself from its lawyers remarks, insisting the gag order applies only to the parents.
Those comments are not accurate from our former outside counsel and are not reflective of our interpretation of the settlement, wrote spokesman Matt Pittzarella in an email to StateImpact. The seven and ten year olds are free to discuss whatever they wish now and when they are of age.
So the mofos tried to silence the babies, but looks like they realize that's just not gonna happen. The attorney for the family could find no case law about gag orders for minors, but real shady try on the defendant's part.
Sorry for any confusion, but I wonder how the gag order has worked out, and the case does make you wonder how far polluters will go to have what they want.
SummerSnow
(12,608 posts)Tsiyu
(18,186 posts)How do you stop kids from talking? How can this be legal, in the sense that they are too young to consent to such a draconian stipulation?
SummerSnow
(12,608 posts)No one has rights anymore. Censorship, suppression of free speech, no freedom of expression, the list goes on and on.
Tsiyu
(18,186 posts)but apparently the kids are cool.
But gag orders are common just so the injured parties can get some relief.
It's sad that they are allowed, but who writes the laws? Imagine the laws we'll get with this new Congress.
SummerSnow
(12,608 posts)mandatory prayers in schools, replace guidance counselor with Chaplains. Bible classes. etc
Tsiyu
(18,186 posts)Back to bloomers and proper dresses for the ladies, too!
Omaha Steve
(99,833 posts)K&R!
Tsiyu
(18,186 posts)The worst of the worst are running our environmental justice system.
There should be laws in place that disallow any settlement with such a stipulation. I wonder if the Supremes have ever tackled the issue.
Trillo
(9,154 posts)My guess as a non lawyer is that they can't once they are adults. Thus its value is in training before they become adults.
If kids can be held to such a contract, made not by them but by their parents, then why can't they consent to sex with other kids, or perhaps even with adults, before they're 18?
Tsiyu
(18,186 posts)Can you sell your kid into marriage, too?
The reality is, the aggressors and polluters held off settlement until the family was broke and sick and desperate.
That our courts allow such, that judges watch these plaintiffs twist in agony as they sell their souls just for relief from duly acknowledged harm, tells me a great deal about judges. And tells me more about fracking interests.
They get all the profits; their victims get all of the sacrifice.
drm604
(16,230 posts)Maybe when they're minors, but what happens when they turn 18. They never consented to this order, minors can't legally consent to such things as far as I know.
Tierra_y_Libertad
(50,414 posts)Tsiyu
(18,186 posts)drm604
(16,230 posts)According to the article Jame Swetz, the company's lawyer said that their position was that it applies to the whole family.
However, the company later said that it doesn't apply to the children.
This article just muddies the situation.
http://www.post-gazette.com/local/washington/2013/08/07/Hallowich-children-not-part-of-Marcellus-Shale-gag-order-agreement/stories/201308070133
Anyone have any more recent information on this affair?
I find these types of agreements to be very troubling.
Politicalboi
(15,189 posts)So why the gag rule. If people weren't dying of cancer due to fracking why the gag. The frackers should stop fracking should be the rule. Don't give them anything to talk about, so no gag order, no fracking.
Tsiyu
(18,186 posts)Last edited Sun Jan 25, 2015, 11:48 PM - Edit history (1)
If their product is safe, why the need to stifle the details?
They'll just say: "Proprietary info" meaning they don't want their competitors to learn their exact cocktail of toxins.
Sick, isn't it?
Panich52
(5,829 posts)I googled "range resources gag order" & a lot of articles came up, incl'd Steve Colbert.
Yall see Range Resources ads? "Fracking is just the beginning."
That's what we're afraid of...
Water pollution, methane, earthquake 'swarms'...
Tsiyu
(18,186 posts)Like I said above, imagine the gutted environment we're going to get with this new Congress if Obama isn't vetoing everything?
Ramses
(721 posts)Where profit is King and people are fucked.
Tsiyu
(18,186 posts)Maybe people will have enough of it one day.