Arturo Uribe
Mesquite activist Arturo Uribe says he will appeal a Doña Ana County jury’s verdict in favor Helena Chemical Company in the civil defamation case the company brought against him.
“I wasn’t expected to show up. I wasn’t expected to win. This lawsuit was expected to shut me up and intimidate me. That’s what I believe,” Uribe said. “I believe what I’ve said to be true. I don’t understand the jury’s verdict. They made mistakes, and we will appeal.”
The jury ordered Uribe to pay $75,001 in damages for harming Helena’s reputation with claims that the company’s pollution had led to health problems in the community.
“Does this stop me from continuing our organizing and our struggle to make Mesquite a safe place to live? I think not,” Uribe said. “What it has done is make me wiser and stronger. It has shown me how much support I do have. Will I continue to hold Helena and other polluting industries accountable? You bet.”
“No matter what happened to me, the fact remains that Helena has been fined for numerous violations in which they have paid,” he said. “Helena is in an abatement plan that will require them to clean up. We went up against a giant corporation with high-dollar attorneys, high-dollar expert witnesses and expensive paid studies by Helena. They asked for $600,000. The jury came with $1 for actual damages and $75,000 for punitive. … it’s not going to scare me from speaking out when I believe something is wrong.”