Calgary pastor charged during drag queen story time appears in court
On September 19, Calgary Pastor Derek Reimer was on trial.
Reimer, the pastor for Mission 7 Ministries, was arrested on March 2 on mischief and causing a disturbance charges stemming from a protest at a children's drag queen story hour held at Seton Library in Calgary on February 25.
At this protest, Reimer was aggressively thrown out of the library room after using his voice to express his concerns to the group and calling them to repentance.
Calgary pastor Derek Reimer was physically thrown out of an all-ages drag story hour hosted by the Calgary Public Library. He was there protesting against exposing kids to drag queens.
— Rebel News (@RebelNewsOnline) February 27, 2023
Mayor Jyoti Gondek is trying to criminalize protests against these https://t.co/SiKFg8k3Te… https://t.co/jjnDlKGD2J pic.twitter.com/mvCWArkMYV
His original bail conditions prevented him from speaking to any member of the 'LGBTQIA2S+ community', even if that person is a friend or family member seeking spiritual counselling. He was also given a certain distance which he must stay away from any events regarding the community.
A frustrated Reimer initially refused to sign bail conditions that he insisted were designed to set him up. He eventually signed them which he was then released from jail. Attempting to protest around those conditions, he had allegedly broken the conditions and was then arrested two more times in the spring, later deciding it was time to take a step back to avoid any more arrests.
WATCH: @_angelica_toy hears an update from Ben Allison, Pastor Derek Reimer's legal representation, after he was released on bail late last week.
— Rebel News (@RebelNewsOnline) May 10, 2023
Visit Rebel News for more on this story: https://t.co/oa4uPFDgYB pic.twitter.com/Kmicm3Xh3W
This was intended to be day one of a continuous three day trial for Reimer, but the judge said he is not available for the three days. A suggestion was made to complete as much as could be done, then finishing on another date, or completely adjourning.
After discussion, it was agreed to spend as much time as possible for the day. In this interview, we hear from both Derek Reimer and his lawyer, Ben Allison.
We will continue covering this case when it continues on December 5 and 6.
Rebel News has been crowdfunding Pastor Derek Reimer's lawyer through a partnership with registered Canadian charity, The Democracy Fund. You can help with his legal fees by going to SavePastorDerek.com.