Last week, Freedom Convoy organizers Tamara Lich and Chris Barber were convicted of mischief charges for their roles in 2022 protest against COVID vaccine mandates and lockdowns.

The verdict brought an end to what has been dubbed the longest mischief trial in Canadian history, likely costing taxpayers a significant fee as public prosecutors spared no expense in pursuing charges against the pair.

On Tuesday's Rebel Roundup livestream, hosts Sheila Gunn Reid and Lise Merle were joined by independent journalist Chris Dacey, the man who runs the Dacey Media account on X and regularly covers events happening in Ottawa, for a look at Tamara Lich's first comments following her conviction.

“What was your sense of the trial? Were you as surprised at the outcome as we were?” asked Sheila Gunn Reid.

The length the Crown went to was “shocking,” Chris said, adding he was “somewhat surprised” by the conviction.

“It seems like the threshold or the standard now for being convicted of mischief is basically if you get charged,” he said, describing those who were charged as being “very arbitrary” selections by police.

“It is what it is, and we'll just deal with the next thing that comes,” Lich said of the judge's ruling. “I came in mentally prepared for whatever was going to happen,” the convoy organizer continued. 

“What are my options? I can cower in the corner like I'm some kind of victim, which I am certainly not,” she said. “Or I can hold my head up high. I know who I am, and I'm confident in who I am.”

Lich and Barber are both still awaiting their sentences following the mischief convictions.

Please donate to help pay Tamara Lich's legal bills

The Democracy Fund, a Canadian charity, is crowdfunding Tamara Lich’s legal appeal after her shocking conviction for mischief in Ottawa. Tamara, a mom and grandma from Medicine Hat, Alberta, is determined to fight back with the continued support of top lawyer Lawrence Greenspon, but this appeal will significantly increase her legal costs. If you share our outrage at this unjust ruling, please chip in a donation to help. All donations qualify for a charitable tax receipt.

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