Biography
John D. Apel is a longtime Catholic Worker Movement activist who co-founded a Catholic Worker house in Guadalupe and became closely associated with anti-war vigils near Vandenberg Air Force Base. His activism has included repeated acts of civil disobedience in and around the base’s protest areas, resulting in multiple arrests and exclusion (“bar”) orders from the installation.
A key arrest in 2010—after he reentered a designated protest zone despite being barred—led to a federal conviction under the statute that criminalizes reentry to a military installation after an order not to return. The legal fight culminated in a 2014 Supreme Court of the United States ruling that the statute could be enforced on base land even when a public easement crosses the area, sending the case back for further proceedings.
2010s audit verified October 12, 2026: The official BOP locator identifies John D. Apel under documented register 26142-112 and confirms departure from BOP custody September 2, 2016, correcting September 1. The May 9 Catholic Worker update documents MDC Los Angeles admission, contradicting the legacy Lane County Jail assignment, which was removed. The unsupported 115-day total was cleared. The underlying August 8, 2015 protest date alone does not establish an arrest day. Sources: source 1; source 2; source 3.
Calculation follow-up October 13, 2026: The earlier blanket clearing of the day total was too broad for this completed custody interval. Both recorded endpoints are source-verified full dates; the supported elapsed-day total is retained. This does not count bail, later supervision or unrelated custody. Sources already verified for the corrected dates: source; source; source.
