‘TOTALLY DISPROPORTIONATE’

Climate Campaigner Jailed for 15 Months After Blocking Traffic for 25 Minutes

Deanna “Violet” Coco, 32, will have to spend at least eight months behind bars for her nonviolent protest.

A climate crisis protester was sentenced to 15 months’ imprisonment on Friday after she blocked traffic for 25 minutes in Australia. Deanna “Violet” Coco, 32, was also given an eight-month non-parole period as part of her sentence on top of a $1,700 fine for her part in an April 13 demonstration that blocked one lane of the five city-bound lanes on the Sydney Harbour Bridge. Coco had pleaded guilty to seven charges brought after she parked a truck on the bridge and stood on its roof with a lit flare. Police removed her and others from the blockade after just 25 minutes. Her lawyer, Mark Davis, said it was “outrageous” that Coco had been denied bail before her appeal hearing in March. “You always get appeals bail unless you’re a violent offender and you haven’t abided by the terms of your bail,” Davis added. “This is totally disproportionate, it’s done to deter other protesters, in effect it’s sending a message.” Coco conducted her protest as part of Fireproof Australia, a group that splintered off from climate activism organization Extinction Rebellion last year “to be more disruptive,” Coco previously told The Guardian.