Wednesday was the third consecutive day that a group of protesters in West Marin attempted to stop the Wellington Energy employees from installing Pacific Gas & Electric’s smart meters, only this time two female protesters were arrested – they were standing in front of Wellington energy’s trucks.

Katharina Sandizell, co-director of West Marin Citizens Against Wireless Smart Meters and Point Reyes Station resident, and Kristin McCrory, an Inverness resident, were handcuffed and taken to Marin County sheriff's office in Point Reyes Station, where they were handed out citations for impeding traffic and then released.

"We're just responding," stated Sandizell, "I'd love to work out a peaceful solution where people's concerns are honoured. We certainly don't want to get arrested. We want to be home with our children."

McCrory said that "This is not anything I've done in the past. I don't consider myself an activist. I'm just an individual acting on a gut instinct to protect the health and civil liberties of my family and my community."

At around 9:45 a.m., a group of around 20 West Marin residents gathered at 12301 Sir Francis Drake Blvd. near Perry's Delicatessen in Point Reyes Station and blocked the road for a convoy of eight Wellington Energy trucks that were going toward Inverness.

The group had been expecting Wellington's return to Inverness on Wednesday, said Sandizell. She and other members of her group attempted to prevent four Wellington trucks from installing smart meters in Inverness on Monday. The next day, Wellington increased the convoy to eight trucks.

"At first we thought everything was going to be fine" stated Sandizell.

Two sheriff's cars came to the scene and Marin County sheriff's deputies told the company’s truck drivers to turn around, according to Sandizell. Six trucks followed their orders, however, two kept moving forward. The protesters kept giving the trucks more room for turning around, she said.

"Finally, we had to stand in front of them because they had a straight-away," Sandizell said. That is when the sheriff’s deputies arrested her and McCrory.

After the arrest, the remaining trucks continued to move towards Inverness. The remaining protesters chased the trucks and did their best to stop installation of the smart meters, according to Sandizell.

PG&E spokesman Paul Moreno, in response to word of the arrests, stated: "We still invite our customers to call us directly if they do have SmartMeter concerns."

"PG&E says it wants to take people's concerns to heart and listen to people, but the way they act is another story," stated Sandizell.

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