Tamara Lich trial day 41: Chris Barber’s counsel argues good faith, insufficient evidence of guilt
Magas contested that there is not enough evidence that the accused are guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. She also argued that there was no evidence of intent to commit a crime.
Thursday, August 15, was the 41st day of the longest mischief trial in Canadian history. Tamara Lich and Chris Barber were charged for their involvement in the Freedom Convoy protests against the government’s COVID-19 mandates in 2022.
The two have been charged with mischief, obstructing police, counselling others to commit mischief and intimidation. Lich has already faced 49 days of jail time after her arrest at the demonstration.
Lich’s hefty legal fees are being covered by The Democracy Fund (TDF), which is crowdfunding the costs from freedom-loving Canadians. The Crown has spent $5-10 million taxpayer dollars on the prosecution, according to defence lawyer Laurence Greenspon’s estimations.
It’s Day 41 of freedom convoy organizer Tamara Lich’s trial, the longest mischief trial in Canadian history– the process is the punishment. Today, the defense will be responding to the crown’s evidence. Follow along with my live tweets to find out what happens!
— Sarah Stock✝️ (@sarahcstock) August 15, 2024
To support… pic.twitter.com/QgvsAJk3z9
The day saw Barber’s legal counsel, Diane Magas, begin her closing arguments against the evidence submitted by the crown. She contested that there is not enough evidence that the accused are guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. Magas also argued that there was no evidence for mens rea- a legal term for intent to commit a crime.
Magas said Barber was part of a convoy of truckers, but there were different intents within the group, and each individual should have their own actions assessed. Barber is not responsible for the actions of others just because they were part of the same protest.
Defense emphasizes context- people who came to Ottawa to protest had the right to do so. She pushes back on the crowns argument that the protest became unlawful because of the unprecedented numbers and length of time. She says numbers and time don’t make the protest unlawful.
— Sarah Stock✝️ (@sarahcstock) August 15, 2024
The defence submitted a series of TikTok videos and text messages of Barber complying and working with police, and advising others to do the same, demonstrating his intent was to keep the protest lawful.
Barber’s counsel asserted that there was no evidence of Barber advising others to unlawfully block streets, but there were dozens of videos and texts where he was advocating for trucks to do slow rolls. This is a form of protest that may "cause grief" by causing congestion but is considered peaceful under the law.
Magas also brought up that a Crown witness had testified that she saw protesters defecating on a church property, but when asked later if she personally saw the defecation occurring, she said no, and explained she heard about it from someone else. The judge agreed that this information was relevant, as it could bring into question the reliability of the Crown’s evidence.
The day concluded with the defence arguing that there is no evidence that the phrase "hold the line" is incitement to obstruct police, contrary to the Crown’s previous arguments. She said the phrase could hold many different meanings depending on the context, such as "be strong," "don’t give up," and "be peaceful."
Rebel News provided live updates of today’s proceedings via X (@sarahcstock) and spoke with TDF lawyer Mark Joseph, and Barber’s lawyer, Diane Magas, about the day’s proceedings.
The trial will reconvene on Monday, Tuesday, and possibly Friday.
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