The government actions against Trucker’s Convoy organizer Tamara Lich have morphed into an all out vendetta and it’s repugnant to behold. Crown prosecutor Moiz Karimjee sounded obsessive as he demanded Lich be tossed back into jail for the most flimsy of perceived bail violations..The court exchanges between the Kakimjee and Justice Kevin Phillips were fiery to listen to. The judge repeatedly had to admonish the prosecutor saying he was surprised by the Kakimjee’s decorum and asked him to “contemplate that.”.Infuriated, the Crown prosecutor asked Justice Philips to recuse himself from the case stating he was considering a mistrial application due to the judge’s comments..So what high crime did Tamara Lich commit in order to bring about such an effort to revoke her bail?.Lich is receiving an award from the Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms (JCCF) called the George Jonas Freedom award. She didn’t demand or apply for such an award. It is given by the JCCF to people the organization deems worthy of recognition for their efforts to promote freedom. The alleged crime isn’t that Lich is receiving the award, but that she dared to respond to the email informing her of it that she would be honoured to accept it..That’s it. Nothing more..Lich has been free on bail since March 7th. She had spent weeks in jail and the Crown fought her release on bail tooth and nail. They wanted her to remain incarcerated for months..Lich has abided diligently by her bail conditions since her release. She hasn't been travelling, hasn't been doing any press and hasn't been active on social media. It is telling that the worst alleged violation the Crown could find to her bail conditions was an affirmative response to an award she was being offered. Lich didn’t commit to travelling to accept the award and didn’t celebrate it on social media. She simply said she would be honored to accept it. Due to this, the Crown is willing to tie up our court system and wants a harmless woman to languish in jail for an indeterminate period..Bail should only be denied if the person charged with a crime is deemed to be a high risk to re-offend or flee..Lich clearly has not made any efforts to flee the country in the last couple months. It is rather unlikely she will..Lich has a spotless criminal record as well. She has been a law-abiding citizen for decades. It’s not as if she has a propensity for committing crimes. .Lich isn’t a serial protester or activist. She simply started a fundraiser for a protest and got inadvertently swept up in what turned out to be one of the biggest public protests in Canadian history. Aside from being involved in a registered, federal political party, her record of public actions is pretty thin. Not that chronic protesting or activism are crimes anyway..As for re-offending, what would she do and how could she do it? It’s not as if hundreds of semi-trucks and thousands of protesters are idling outside of Ottawa, ready to seize Parliament Hill and erect bouncy castles again as soon as Lich gives the word. The protests are gone and there is no sign that they will be returning any time soon. If the government decided to reinstate a bunch of pandemic restrictions, I expect the protests would return but they would do so with or without Lich. She really was only one person among thousands..The crime Lich committed was embarrassing the government. The state vendetta against her today is based on nothing but spite. Lich is a symbol of reason and activism that the government loathes. She isn’t a crazed, screaming extremist with a criminal history. She is a mother who felt she needed to peacefully stand up against a government overreaching its authority. Her very existence puts lie to the absurd actions of our government, and they despise her for it..Lich is innocent until proven guilty and she should be granted every possible freedom until if and when she is convicted of something..In 2019, it hit the news that 326 people in Toronto alone who had been charged with firearm offenses had been released on bail. In Alberta, three young mothers in the last year have been killed by offenders who had been released despite having violent histories and convictions. Canada is prone to releasing some of the most heinous and violent people into the public yet can't abide by Lich's conditional freedom..The motivation for the vendetta against Lich is political. It has nothing to do with public safety or law. In a year of national embarrassments, this is yet another one..The continued harassment of Lich from the Crown prosecutor is inspired by a petty, small, prime minister who wants to quell any consideration of protests against his government in the future. It is exposing the corrupt and broken nature of Canada’s politicized justice system. .If Lich is locked up again, the time to protest will return. This time it will be outside the courthouses of Canada. We can’t allow this persecution to continue or succeed.
The government actions against Trucker’s Convoy organizer Tamara Lich have morphed into an all out vendetta and it’s repugnant to behold. Crown prosecutor Moiz Karimjee sounded obsessive as he demanded Lich be tossed back into jail for the most flimsy of perceived bail violations..The court exchanges between the Kakimjee and Justice Kevin Phillips were fiery to listen to. The judge repeatedly had to admonish the prosecutor saying he was surprised by the Kakimjee’s decorum and asked him to “contemplate that.”.Infuriated, the Crown prosecutor asked Justice Philips to recuse himself from the case stating he was considering a mistrial application due to the judge’s comments..So what high crime did Tamara Lich commit in order to bring about such an effort to revoke her bail?.Lich is receiving an award from the Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms (JCCF) called the George Jonas Freedom award. She didn’t demand or apply for such an award. It is given by the JCCF to people the organization deems worthy of recognition for their efforts to promote freedom. The alleged crime isn’t that Lich is receiving the award, but that she dared to respond to the email informing her of it that she would be honoured to accept it..That’s it. Nothing more..Lich has been free on bail since March 7th. She had spent weeks in jail and the Crown fought her release on bail tooth and nail. They wanted her to remain incarcerated for months..Lich has abided diligently by her bail conditions since her release. She hasn't been travelling, hasn't been doing any press and hasn't been active on social media. It is telling that the worst alleged violation the Crown could find to her bail conditions was an affirmative response to an award she was being offered. Lich didn’t commit to travelling to accept the award and didn’t celebrate it on social media. She simply said she would be honored to accept it. Due to this, the Crown is willing to tie up our court system and wants a harmless woman to languish in jail for an indeterminate period..Bail should only be denied if the person charged with a crime is deemed to be a high risk to re-offend or flee..Lich clearly has not made any efforts to flee the country in the last couple months. It is rather unlikely she will..Lich has a spotless criminal record as well. She has been a law-abiding citizen for decades. It’s not as if she has a propensity for committing crimes. .Lich isn’t a serial protester or activist. She simply started a fundraiser for a protest and got inadvertently swept up in what turned out to be one of the biggest public protests in Canadian history. Aside from being involved in a registered, federal political party, her record of public actions is pretty thin. Not that chronic protesting or activism are crimes anyway..As for re-offending, what would she do and how could she do it? It’s not as if hundreds of semi-trucks and thousands of protesters are idling outside of Ottawa, ready to seize Parliament Hill and erect bouncy castles again as soon as Lich gives the word. The protests are gone and there is no sign that they will be returning any time soon. If the government decided to reinstate a bunch of pandemic restrictions, I expect the protests would return but they would do so with or without Lich. She really was only one person among thousands..The crime Lich committed was embarrassing the government. The state vendetta against her today is based on nothing but spite. Lich is a symbol of reason and activism that the government loathes. She isn’t a crazed, screaming extremist with a criminal history. She is a mother who felt she needed to peacefully stand up against a government overreaching its authority. Her very existence puts lie to the absurd actions of our government, and they despise her for it..Lich is innocent until proven guilty and she should be granted every possible freedom until if and when she is convicted of something..In 2019, it hit the news that 326 people in Toronto alone who had been charged with firearm offenses had been released on bail. In Alberta, three young mothers in the last year have been killed by offenders who had been released despite having violent histories and convictions. Canada is prone to releasing some of the most heinous and violent people into the public yet can't abide by Lich's conditional freedom..The motivation for the vendetta against Lich is political. It has nothing to do with public safety or law. In a year of national embarrassments, this is yet another one..The continued harassment of Lich from the Crown prosecutor is inspired by a petty, small, prime minister who wants to quell any consideration of protests against his government in the future. It is exposing the corrupt and broken nature of Canada’s politicized justice system. .If Lich is locked up again, the time to protest will return. This time it will be outside the courthouses of Canada. We can’t allow this persecution to continue or succeed.