Judge to allow Ottawa residents to testify in 'Freedom Convoy' organizers' trial

OTTAWA -

Eight Ottawa residents will be allowed to testify at the criminal trial of two "Freedom Convoy" organizers, the presiding judge ruled Wednesday.

Tamara Lich and Chris Barber are facing charges related to their roles in organizing the protest that brought thousands of big-rig trucks to Ottawalast year, where demonstrators remained for three weeks.

Lich's lawyer Lawrence Greenspon asked the judge not to let the locals testify, arguing their testimony would be irrelevant.

Lich and Barber have already signed admissions that the actions of certain individuals who participated in the protest interfered with public transit and the lawful use and enjoyment of property and businesses.

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Justice Heather Perkins-McVey says the defence cannot force the Crown to accept the admissions, and will allow the witnesses to be heard.

To bar the locals from taking the stand would "unfairly or irreparably cause damage" to the Crown's discretion to call evidence as it sees fit, Perkins-McVey told the court in her decision Wednesday.

The Crown plans to call five Ottawa residents as witnesses in the case to describe what they saw and experienced during the convoy.

They include Zexi Li, lead plaintiff in a class-action lawsuit against the organizers on behalf of people who live and work in downtown Ottawa.

The three other residents on the Crown's witness list are the owner of a women's clothing boutique, an employee from the National Arts Centre and an employee of OC Transpo, the public transit operator.

Perkins-McVey said she would make sure the testimony heard by the court is relevant to the charges faced by Lich and Barber, rather than what amount to victim-impact statements about how the protest affected witnesses personally.

Prosecutors want local witnesses to tell the court how disruptions caused by the protest, and intimidation by demonstrators, manifested on the streets.

Paul Champ, the lawyer for Li, said his client would have preferred not to testify in the case. But he told the Crown she would do her civic duty if called to the stand.

"It's unfortunate that the Crown is calling her. There's a lot of other people they could call," Champ said in an interview Wednesday.

Li became the face of Ottawa residents who felt they were negatively affected by the "Freedom Convoy" when she went to court to seek an injunction against horn honking during the protest, Champ said. She also testified about the experience of Ottawa residents at a federal inquiry into the Liberal government's decision to invoke the Emergencies Act during the protest.

Li has since experienced harassment and abuse, Champ said

The testimony of the Ottawa residents is expected to begin Thursday.

Lich and Barber are charged with mischief and counselling others to commit mischief and intimidation, among other charges.

The first 13 days of the trial took place in September. It resumed Wednesday after a two-and-a-half week break.

There is still no indication of how much longer it is expected to last.

On Wednesday afternoon, the court returned to the testimony of the first witness in the trial: Const. Craig Barlow, with the Ottawa police cybercrimes unit.

He compiled a video featuring footage of the protest from the perspective of police, using body and drone cameras, along with other footage.

His testimony was paused during cross-examination when it became clear he had brought in videos that were not included in his compilation or disclosed to the defence in advance.

He told the court in September that he has watched "months" worth of footage of the convoy protest recorded by police, protesters and media outlets since March 2022.

Barber's lawyer, Diane Magas, showed the court videos that weren't included in the compilation, including a video of a woman who appeared to be knocked over by a police horse during the major police operation to remove protesters from downtown Ottawa.

Barlow said the incident was caught on video by police, but it did not meet the criteria he received from the Crown.

Other videos that Magas showed the court included calm crowds, police kneeing someone during an arrest and police officers using the phrase "hold the line."

That phrase, which was also used by protesters, is central to the prosecution's argument that Lich and Barber counselled others to commit mischief during the demonstrations.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 11, 2023.