Lab break-in charge pleases UI officials

The chairman of the University of Iowa psychology department said faculty are thrilled about an apparent break in the 2004 animal-rights vandalism of UI labs.

UI Professor Alan Christensen said that the conspiracy charge filed Thursday in an act of “animal enterprise terrorism” is a welcome development.

The indictment of Scott DeMuth, 22, of Minneapolis, does not specifically say the charge stems from the UI incident, but the time frame matches, as does the indication that the underlying event happened in Johnson County.

“This is a day we waited for five years,” Christensen said. “As a department, we're thrilled, but we don't want to celebrate too soon. But seeing this sort of progress is fabulous.”

The Animal Liberation Front, an underground animal-rights activist group, claimed responsibility for the damage to lab equipment and the release of 88 mice and 313 rats used in psychology department experiments. The break-in was designated as domestic terrorism. The UI estimated damage in excess of $450,000.

The psychology department greatly increased its security and that at the lab after the break-in and vandalism at Spence Laboratories and Seashore Hall, Christensen said. Research was only temporarily slowed, he said.

The FBI has updated UI researchers periodically about the case, Christensen said. Still, there was doubt the case could be solved, he said.

“The FBI has been absolutely tenacious,” he said. “They've kept after this and kept after this, and it paid off. They've insisted all along it's a case they're going to solve.

DeMuth was charged Thursday in federal court in Davenport and was being held in the Muscatine County Jail. He had been in custody on a civil contempt of court charge for refusing to testify before a grand jury this week. He is scheduled to be arraigned today.

Fellow activist Carrie Feldman, 20, who at one time dated DeMuth, also refused to testify and was jailed in Washington County.

DeMuth and Feldman have said they were subpoenaed to testify about the November 2004 vandalism at the UI.