In Utah, the US attorney’s office in Salt Lake City said Monday it has not decided yet whether to prosecute a University of Utah student who disrupted a controversial federal oil- and gas-lease auction Friday by posing as a bidder and buying nearly 22,000 acres of public land near Arches and Canyonlands national parks. The student, Tim DeChristopher, appeared in court on Monday, but no charges were filed. A spokeswoman for the US attorney’s office said, “It will take time to evaluate evidence and make a determination whether we will prosecute.” On Monday, Tim DeChristopher told Democracy Now! he is ready to go to jail.

Tim DeChristopher: “I’ve seen the need for more serious action by the environmental movement and to protect a livable future for all of us. I’ve seen that need for a long time. And frankly, I’ve been hoping that someone would step up and someone would come out and be the leader and someone would put themselves on the line and make the sacrifices necessary to get us on a path to a more livable future. And I guess I just couldn’t wait any longer for that someone to come out there and had to accept the fact that that someone might be me.”