Los Angeles Times
Environmental activist arrested in attempted arson in Pasadena
Stephen James Murphy was detained in Texas by the FBI in connection
with an incident in 2006 at a construction site for townhouses.
By Andrew Blankstein
October 2, 2009
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-eco-terrorism2-2009oct02,0,6527302.story

The FBI has arrested an environmental activist in connection with the
attempted arson of unfinished town homes in Pasadena in 2006,
authorities said Thursday.

Stephen James Murphy, 43, was arrested without incident Wednesday at
his home in Arlington, Texas, after being named in a criminal
complaint filed last week in U.S. District Court, said FBI spokeswoman
Laura Eimiller.

According to the complaint, the Pasadena Fire Department responded to
a construction site on Sept. 19, 2006, and found what it described as
a "crude incendiary device" made from cigarettes that had failed to
ignite.

Authorities said DNA found on the cigarettes matched Murphy's DNA,
which was in a state Department of Justice database stemming from a
previous arrest in California.

The next day, workers at the site could not start a tractor, where a
note had been written in permanent marker that read, "ANOTHER TRACTOR
DECOMMISSIONED BY THE E.L.F," federal officials said. Investigators
found that someone had tampered with the tractor's ignition system.

Federal and local investigators theorized that E.L.F. was shorthand
for the Earth Liberation Front, a radical environmental group that has
used vandalism and violence, including arson, to further its cause.
FBI officials say the attacks, which have occurred nationwide, have
caused millions of dollars in property damage.

A federal judge in Texas on Thursday denied bail for Murphy and
ordered him transferred to L.A. to face charges in connection with the
case.

andrew.blankstein @latimes.com

Houston Chronicle
Arrest in suspected SoCal environmental extremism
By JOHN ANTCZAK
Associated Press Writer
Oct. 1, 2009, 8:00PM
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/tx/6647990.html

LOS ANGELES — Three years after the discovery of a failed incendiary
device at a suburban Pasadena real estate construction site, FBI
agents have used DNA analysis to arrest a man in Texas in a case they
believe may involve environmental extremism.

Stephen James Murphy, 43, a former California resident, was arrested
Wednesday at his residence in Arlington, Texas, with the help of
University of Texas and city police, the FBI said.

Murphy appeared in federal court in Dallas on Thursday and is expected
to be transferred to Los Angeles in the near future, said FBI
spokeswoman Laura Eimiller.

A complaint filed last week charges him with the attempted arson of
unfinished townhouses on Sept. 19, 2006.

Pasadena Fire Department spokeswoman Lisa Derderian said the location
was near the historic Colorado Street Bridge over the Arroyo Seco.

Firefighters were called there after the discovery of crude incendiary
device that had failed to ignite.

The next day arriving construction workers found they could not start
a tractor on which someone had scrawled the phrase, "Another tractor
decomissioned by the E.L.F.," the complaint said.

The FBI said Pasadena detectives recognized the initials as referring
to the Earth Liberation Front and determined that someone had tampered
with the vehicle's ignition system.

DNA extracted from cigarettes that were used in the incendiary device
recently produced a match with Murphy's DNA profile on record with the
California Department of Justice, the FBI said.

A sample of Murphy's DNA had been taken during an unrelated arrest in
Southern California, Eimiller said.

Murphy was unemployed and living "somewhat transiently" near the
University of Texas at Arlington but had apparently worked as an
accountant at some point, she said.

Derderian said Murphy lived in Pasadena before relocating but she had
no other information about him.
--------------------------------------------

Once these ELFites get caught they are suddenly presented as poor victims of a legal system that should be ignoring their anarchism. I could care less if money was spent catching these environmental and animal rights bullies as long as they are caught and jailed for trying to force their will upon others who actually work for a living.



Green is the New Red (Blog)
Environmentalist Arrested for Attempted ELF Arson in California
by Will Potter
Oct 2nd, 2009
http://www.fools play with matches/blog/earth-liberation-front-arrest-california/2255/

An environmental activist has been arrested in connection with the
2006 attempted arson of homes under construction in Pasadena,
California. The government says the action is connected to the Earth
Liberation Front.

The FBI alleges that DNA found on cigarettes left at the scene (as
part of the incendiary device) matched the DNA of Stephen James
Murphy, 43. The FBI says Murphy’s DNA was in a state database for a
previous arrest.

The Sept. 19, 2006, incident was unsuccessful, the incendiary device
failed to ignite, but the next day “workers at the site could not
start a tractor, where a note had been written in permanent marker
that read ‘ANOTHER TRACTOR DECOMMISSIONED BY THE E.L.F.’”

I just talked to Murphy’s girlfriend, who said, “Steve is one of the
kindest and gentlest souls I have ever met. He would never harm a fly
let alone jepordize harming people, animals, or the environment. Not
only was he an animal rights activists but he also did humanitarian
aid and human rights work. Steve was a friend to everyone in need.
Always.”

I’ll keep you posted as more comes out about this case and Stephen
Murphy. But here’s something to think about: this is a three-year-old
crime that wasn’t successful, didn’t harm anyone, and only involved
some vandalism to a tractor. One tractor. And this guy has been
extradicted from Texas, and the FBI and prosecutors are moving forward
with charges against him (of course it’s too early to say, but given
the history of similar ELF cases, a terrorism enhancement penalty
could come into play).

Meanwhile, prosecutors don’t have money for DNA testing in death
penalty cases. But they can do it for a tractor.