Jury finds Greenpeace liable, ordered to pay hundreds of millions over Dakota Access oil pipeline protests

Summarize and humanize this content to 2000 words in 6 paragraphs in English with headings The environmental group Greenpeace has been ordered by a North Dakota jury to pay more than $660 million in connection with protests against the Dakota Access oil pipeline’s construction.Dallas-based Energy Transfer and subsidiary Dakota Access accused Netherlands-based Greenpeace International, Greenpeace USA and funding arm Greenpeace Fund Inc. of defamation, trespass, nuisance, civil conspiracy and other acts. Greenpeace USA was found liable for all counts, while the others were found liable for some. The damages owed will be spread out in different amounts over the three entities.PRO-ENERGY GROUP URGES AG BONDI TO PROBE BIDEN’S AUTOPEN ON CRUCIAL DECISIONS THAT DEVASTATED ECONOMY In a news release, Greenpeace called the lawsuit “meritless.” “This case should alarm everyone, no matter their political inclinations,” said Sushma Raman, interim executive director Greenpeace Inc, Greenpeace Fund. “It’s part of a renewed push by corporations to weaponize our courts to silence dissent. We should all be concerned about the future of the First Amendment, and lawsuits like this aimed at destroying our rights to peaceful protest and free speech.” Greenpeace said earlier that a large award to the pipeline company would threaten to bankrupt the organization. After the verdict, Deepa Padmanabha, Greenpeace’s senior legal adviser, said the group’s work “is never going to stop.””That’s the really important message today, and we’re just walking out and we’re going to get together and figure out what our next steps are,” she said outside the courthouse. EPA ADMINISTRATOR ROLLS BACK 31 BIDEN-ERA REGULATIONS The organization said it plans to appeal the decision. Energy Transfer called Wednesday’s verdict a “win” for “Americans who understand the difference between the right to free speech and breaking the law.””While we are pleased that Greenpeace has been held accountable for their actions against us, this win is really for the people of Mandan and throughout North Dakota who had to live through the daily harassment and disruptions caused by the protesters who were funded and trained by Greenpeace,” the company said in a statement to The Associated Press. The company said the lawsuit wasn’t about free speech, but instead, about protestors not following the law. The case stems from protests in 2016 and 2017 against the multi-state Dakota Access oil pipeline. The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe opposed the project, saying it posed a risk to its water supply and imposed harm on their land. Thousands of protesters camped for months near the Standing Rock Reservation, where the pipeline crosses underneath the Missouri River. The pipeline transports about 5% of the United States’ daily oil production. It started transporting oil in mid-2017.Free speech and environmental advocates have criticized the trial, saying the lawsuit was about silencing protest and meant to bankrupt opponents. The Associated Press contributed to this report.