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Tag: convoy occupation

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Convoy leader Pat King heads to trial

Published May 12, 2024

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Published by: CBC News
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By David Fraser

One of the most polarizing figures to gain notoriety during what became known as the Freedom Convoy in Ottawa more than two years ago will stand trial Monday, signalling the tail end of criminal proceedings that have dogged hundreds of individuals who participated in the historic protest.

Pat King, from Red Deer, Alta., is facing charges of mischief, intimidation, obstructing police, disobeying a court order and other offences for his role in the protest that gridlocked downtown for nearly a month in early 2022.

Arrested and jailed for five months before his release that summer, King is unlikely to serve more time behind bars if he is found guilty, given laws around credit from time served.

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Topic: convoy occupationView all posts for the topic: convoy occupation

Ottawa Bylaw says police warned officers not to ticket ‘Freedom Convoy’ demonstrators due to ‘risk of escalation’

Published February 21, 2024

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Published by: CTV News
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By Ted Raymond

The City of Ottawa’s general manager of emergency and protective services says there is no double standard when it comes to how Ottawa Bylaw issues tickets to protesters who violate things like noise bylaws.

His comments come after the city announced this week that bylaw tickets were not issued to protesters in Ottawa for the “Freedom Convoy” anniversary rally on Saturday, despite the fact that a group of protesters set off fireworks in a parking lot on Queen Street, in violation of the city’s fireworks bylaw.

Continue readingOttawa Bylaw says police warned officers not to ticket ‘Freedom Convoy’ demonstrators due to ‘risk of escalation’
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Topic: convoy occupationView all posts for the topic: convoy occupation

Convoy organizers claim Ottawa police board should pay damages in proposed class-action lawsuit

Published February 8, 2024

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Published by: Ottawa Citizen
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By Aedan Helmer

Convoy protest organizers defending a proposed class-action lawsuit now argue the Ottawa Police Services Board should be on the hook for any potential damages to be paid out, claiming protesters were following police directions when they parked hundreds of trucks in downtown Ottawa during the 2022 demonstration.

“None of the defendants … had originally expected to park any vehicles on the streets of downtown Ottawa as part of the protest,” according to a new third-party claim filed by the lawyer for the defendants, which include organizers Tamara Lich, Chris Barber and Pat King.

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Topic: convoy occupationView all posts for the topic: convoy occupation

Judge tosses motion to dismiss proposed class-action lawsuit against convoy participants

Published February 6, 2024

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Published by: Ottawa Citizen
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By Aedan Helmer

Downtown Ottawa residents and business owners who launched a proposed class-action lawsuit against organizers of the 2022 convoy protest moved one step closer to having their day in court as a judge tossed a defence motion to dismiss the lawsuit.

“There is sufficient basis to conclude that the plaintiffs have a meritorious case,” Superior Court Justice Calum MacLeod said in his ruling, released Monday.

“There is evidence that certain plaintiffs were subjected to what they contend to have been extreme amounts of noise, horn honking, incessant diesel fumes and other pollution, blockage of the streets and intimidation.

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Topic: convoy occupationView all posts for the topic: convoy occupation

Lawsuit against convoy organizers moves forward

Published February 6, 2024

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Published by: CBC News
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By David Fraser

There is evidence that certain plaintiffs were subjected to what they contend to have been extreme amounts of noise, horn honking, incessant diesel fumes and other pollution, blockage of the streets and intimidation. There is evidence that plaintiffs had difficulty accessing their properties and that business was disrupted, reservations cancelled, and revenue negatively impacted.

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Topic: convoy occupationView all posts for the topic: convoy occupation

Federal government’s decision to invoke Emergencies Act against convoy protests was unreasonable, court rules

Published January 23, 2024

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Published by: CBC News
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By Catharine Tunney

A federal judge says the Liberal government’s use of the Emergencies Act in early 2022 to clear convoy protesters was unreasonable.

“I conclude that there was no national emergency justifying the invocation of the Emergencies Act and the decision to do so was therefore unreasonable and ultra vires,” Federal Court Justice Richard Mosley wrote in a Tuesday decision. “Ultra vires” is a Latin term used by courts to refer to actions beyond the scope of the law.

Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland told reporters at a cabinet retreat in Montreal that the government plans to appeal the decision.

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Topic: anti-vaxxersView all posts for the topic: anti-vaxxers

Far-Right Convoy Groups Plan to Occupy Canadian Police Stations Until Government Officials are Arrested

Published January 23, 2024

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Published by: PressProgress
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By Luke LeBrun

Members of far-right convoy groups are holding private meetings where they are developing an ambitious and unorthodox plan to occupy police stations in cities across Canada in order to pressure police into arresting government officials.

The “Team Lead” for the plan is Dana Metcalfe, an organizer of the original Freedom Convoy who is currently facing criminal harassment charges after staging a “surprise convoy” to the home of the Premier of Newfoundland and Labrador.

On a Zoom call Monday night, Metcalfe was joined by over 100 others, including several leaders of the “Save the Children Convoy,” a group influenced by sovereign citizen and QAnon rhetoric that also planned arrests of politicians and police officers and has since established a rural basecamp near Ottawa.

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Did the protesters mean harm? That’s at the heart of bid to toss convoy class-action

Published December 15, 2023

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Published by: CBC News
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By Elyse Skura

A $300-million proposed class-action lawsuit filed against convoy protesters, donors and organizers on behalf of people who live or work in Ottawa is facing another challenge, with lawyers arguing the case seeks to unfairly limit fundamental freedoms.

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Topic: anti-vaccine movementView all posts for the topic: anti-vaccine movement

Residents abandoned to a violent occupation during ‘Freedom Convoy’: Report

Published January 30, 2023

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Published by: CBC News
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People who live and work in downtown Ottawa endured several weeks of widespread human rights abuse, amidst a climate of threats, fear, sexual harassment and intimidation marked by racism, misogyny, antisemitism, Islamophobia, homophobia, transphobia, and other expressions of hate and intolerance.

While convoy organizers claimed there was diversity among the participants and supporters, and that was true to a limited extent, it is clear that the overwhelming majority of people involved in the protests were white males.

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Topic: convoy occupationView all posts for the topic: convoy occupation

Anti-vaccine protest in Canada spurs outrage

Published February 1, 2022

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Published by: The Associated Press
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By Rob Gillies

In a scene at odds with Canadians’ reputation for niceness and rule-following, thousands of protesters railing against vaccine mandates and other COVID-19 restrictions descended on the capital over the weekend, deliberately blocking traffic around Parliament Hill.

Some urinated and parked on the National War Memorial. One danced on the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. A number carried signs and flags with swastikas.

In the aftermath of Canada’s biggest pandemic protest to date, the demonstrators have found little sympathy in a country where more than 80% are vaccinated. Many people were outraged by some of the crude behavior.

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