Small Victory
I was arrested in December 07 with two others Bob Nye and Karen Dawe because of our protest of the Faculty of Science Council meetings at the University of Ottawa which were being run unlawfully.
On Dec 6 I was arrested aggressively and sustained minor injuries. I complained that the police had broken the law by arresting me during a protest even though I was peaceful and not obstructing any business.
Subsequently, Bob Nye and I have had all charges dropped and Karen's charge will be dropped in May when she goes to court based on an affidavit by Prof. Denis Rancourt indicating that we had been invited to attend this protest at the U of O.
Also as a result of the complaint made to Professional Standards of the Ottawa Police Services the police, city and crown met to draw up guidelines to be used in the event that they are called in to impose the Trespass To Property Act on peaceful non obstructive protesters.
It is high time the police learned to respect this basic constitutional right to protest peacefully on public property. THis is not the fist time I have been arrested and had my complaint sustained regarding improper application of the TPA. I recieved a police resolution in 2005 that stated that it was unconstitutional for me to be arrested for trespassing or mischief when engaged in peaceful non obstructive protest on City Hall property. Hopefully this arrest will be the last time.
posted by Jane Scharf @ 11:20 AM
0 Comments
