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Nun gets nearly 3 years in prison for nuke protest

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. - An 84-year-old nun was sentenced Tuesday to nearly three years in prison for breaking into a nuclear weapons complex and defacing a bunker holding bomb-grade uranium, a demonstration that exposed serious security flaws at the Tennessee plant.

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. - An 84-year-old nun was sentenced Tuesday to nearly three years in prison for breaking into a nuclear weapons complex and defacing a bunker holding bomb-grade uranium, a demonstration that exposed serious security flaws at the Tennessee plant.

Two other peace activists who broke into the facility with Sister Megan Rice were sentenced to more than five years in prison, in part because they had much longer criminal histories of mostly nonviolent civil disobedience.

Although officials said there was never any danger of the protesters reaching materials that could be detonated or made into a dirty bomb, the break-in raised questions about safekeeping at the Y-12 National Security Complex in Oak Ridge. The facility holds the nation's primary supply of bomb-grade uranium.

After the break-in, the complex had to be shut down, security forces were retrained, and contractors replaced.

In her closing statement, Rice had asked the judge to sentence her to life in prison, though sentencing guidelines called for about six years.

"Please have no leniency with me," she said. "To remain in prison for the rest of my life would be the greatest gift you could give me."

She said the U.S. government was spending too much money on weapons and the military, and she told the judge about the many letters of support she had received, including one from youth in Afghanistan.

"This is the next generation, and it is for these people that we're willing to give our lives," she said.

Rice, Greg Boertje-Obed, and Michael Walli all said God was using them to raise awareness on nuclear weapons, and viewed the success of the break-in as a miracle.

Their attorneys asked the judge to sentence them to time served, about nine months, because of their record of good works.

Rice is a sister in the Society of the Holy Child Jesus. She became a nun when she was 18 and served for 40 years as a missionary in Africa teaching science.

Walli's attorney said he served two tours in Vietnam before returning to the U.S. and dedicating his life to peace and helping the poor.