The Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms (JCCF) announced it's appealing a Kelowna Provincial Court decision that denied Kelowna Harvest Church pastor Arthur Lucier the right to challenge the constitutionality of bans on in-person religious services. .“The court’s decision failed to address the reality the four and-a-half-million residents of BC affected by Dr. Henry’s health orders could not possibly receive due consideration of their personal requests for her to reconsider her order,” said JCCF lawyer Marty Moore in a Wednesday press release. .“If the decision is allowed to stand, BC residents facing charges for allegedly violating the public health orders while exercising their Charter rights would be deprived of their ability to defend themselves based on the Charter, which is part of the supreme law of Canada.”.Lucier was issued a $2,300 COVID-19 ticket for allegedly holding an in-person religious service in 2021. BC's medical officer of Health, Dr. Bonnie Henry, had prohibited in-person religious events at the time Lucier received the ticket. .Gyms, bars, restaurants, retail stores, and schools could hold in-person gatherings. The release said the JCCF filed a notice of constitutional question on Lucier’s behalf, giving notice the differential treatment in Henry’s orders prohibiting in-person religious services while allowing secular events would be challenged on the basis it is not justified by medical data or science..The release went on to say British Columbia government lawyers brought a motion seeking to prevent him from challenging the constitutionality of Henry’s prohibition on in-person worship. Arguments on the motion were heard at the Kelowna Provincial Court in April and June. .The provincial court ruled Lucier could not challenge the constitutionality of the ban. It said he should have requested she reconsider her decision, and his failure to have done it prevents him from challenging its constitutionality. .The release said the court had clear evidence before it Henry had been receiving repeated requests for reconsideration of her orders prohibiting in-person worship. In one case, a pastor wrote to her in 2020, requesting reconsideration of her prohibition and proposing safety protocols to permit it. .After receiving no response, the pastor sent another request. He did not hear back until months later, where he was told she was not taking requests to reconsider. .The JCCF launched court challenges in defence of 16 people and churches in British Columbia who had been slapped with $2,300 fines for violating COVID-19 restrictions in 2021. .READ MORE: Justice Centre to defend BC COVID defendants.“Many members of faith communities cannot access online services,” said the JCCF. .“For these individuals, gathering in-person is essential to their spiritual and emotional well-being, especially to cope with the negative effects of lockdowns.”
