Free Dr. Stacey Addison!
Dr. Stacey Addison, a Portland, Oregon veterinarian is unjustly imprisoned in the South East Asian country of East Timor. While living her dream of an around the world trip Dr. Addison had the extremely bad luck to share a hired vehicle with a stranger who committed a crime. She has been imprisoned, denied due process and can be held with no charge against her for one year. What should have been a trip of a lifetime has turned into a nightmare. I've known Stacey for 15 years and I'm helping her mother bring her home with this petition. Our government and the government of East Timor must take action immediately to release Dr. Stacey Addison from her illegal imprisonment.
On September 5th Stacey entered East Timor and shared a hired taxi from the border to the capital city of Dili with a stranger. This practice is very commonplace and usually safe. It’s like Lyft or Uber, but other people can share the car if it’s on the same route. Unknown to Stacey, the other passenger in the car was a criminal. En route he asked the driver to stop so he could pick up a package. The police were waiting, tipped off that the package contained illegal drugs. The car was surrounded by the police and everyone arrested.
After her belongings were searched, her drug test came up negative, and statements by everyone declaring they didn’t know her beyond sharing the cab were acquired, Stacey was still held for 5 days before being brought before a judge. She was given a conditional release, but told that her passport could be held for up to one year pending an investigation. Stacey found herself trapped and unable to travel back home to Portland, Oregon.
For nearly 2 months, waiting in agony and willing to cooperate, Stacey and her lawyer heard nothing from the authorities. Suddenly, on October 28th she was rearrested without a charge and taken to a women's prison. She was told that the prosecutor had filed an appeal to have her conditional release rescinded without notifying Stacey or her lawyer. This is a violation of her Human Rights and illegal under Timorese and International law.
Stacey is not a criminal. She is a dedicated and caring veterinarian, often volunteering for causes close to her heart. Even on this trip, before these horrifying turn of events, Stacey volunteered as a vet in Peru and Ecuador. This is who Stacey is and the last place she deserves to be is in prison.
We are sharing her story in hopes you will join our friends and family in calling for her to be released and for her passport to be returned. We already have the support of both US Senators from Oregon and the media is starting to pay attention. Your support could create the momentum needed to ensure Stacey gets home. Please take a moment to sign and share our petition calling on the East Timor government to free Stacey now and return her passport.
You can also go to the Facebook page Help Stacey for more info and "like" it to show your support: https://www.facebook.com/PleaseHelpStacey
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