The bail hearing for Freedom Convoy organizer Tamara Lich ended without a decision being made by the Justice of the Peace. The Crown is seeking to revoke bail for Lich after she breached the conditions of her bail by appearing alongside a fellow convoy organizer. .Lich, who appeared in court virtually on Tuesday because she refused to take a COVID-19 test, is being charged with a breach of recognizance and a request to cancel previous release order. .Lich was charged back in February with mischief, obstructing police, counselling others to commit mischief and intimidation for her role in organizing the Freedom Convoy protests that gridlocked downtown Ottawa for three weeks..She was released the next month with a long list of conditions, which included an order not to communicate with key convoy organizers, and a ban from all social media, except through counsel or in the presence of counsel..Crown prosecutor Moiz Karimjee told an Ottawa court that Lich breached one of her conditions by being seen with Freedom Convoy organizer Tom Marazzo at a recent Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms gala on June 17, where she accepted an award for her contribution to the cause for freedom..Lich was seated at a table with Marazzo, spoke with him after receiving her award, and posed near him in a photograph..Ottawa police Detective Chris Benson, who is the lead on Lich's case, said when he tried to interview Lich about the alleged breach she “exercised her constitutional right," and refused to speak with him. Police then sought a Canada-wide arrest warrant for Lich for the alleged breach of her bail conditions. Lich was arrested last week in her hometown of Medicine Hat, Alberta. Two homicide officers, a detective, and a supervisor went to Alberta to retrieve Lich after she was taken into custody..Lich's surety, whose identity is covered by a publication ban, said when they saw the photograph of Lich and Marazzo at the gala, they were concerned and called her. Lich told the surety that lawyers, who were "just off camera," had OK'd the photograph..In his closing arguments, the defence said the brief interactions between Lich and Marazzo were "highly unlikely" to result in illegal activity. Lich's lawyer, Lawrence Greenspon, said he will argue at the trial that Lich didn’t breach the terms of her bail "recklessly or knowingly." He also told the court to expect the Crown to to overstate the significance of the breach as an affront to justice..The Crown argued that Lich should be detained on secondary and tertiary grounds, because they believe there’s a large chance Lich will reoffend, and releasing her will have a negative impact on public confidence in justice. Karimjee accused Lich of "thumbing her nose at justice," and said Justice Bourgeois, who denied Lich's bail in February, made the right initial call..Based on the seriousness of Lich's mischief charge, Karimjee noted the maximum sentence is 10 years, which is the same as assault with a weapon. .Justice of the Peace Paul Harris said he would need to take more time to deliberate before giving his decision on Lich's bail. He says he will be back in court on Friday at 1:30 p.m., and expects to give a decision then.
The bail hearing for Freedom Convoy organizer Tamara Lich ended without a decision being made by the Justice of the Peace. The Crown is seeking to revoke bail for Lich after she breached the conditions of her bail by appearing alongside a fellow convoy organizer. .Lich, who appeared in court virtually on Tuesday because she refused to take a COVID-19 test, is being charged with a breach of recognizance and a request to cancel previous release order. .Lich was charged back in February with mischief, obstructing police, counselling others to commit mischief and intimidation for her role in organizing the Freedom Convoy protests that gridlocked downtown Ottawa for three weeks..She was released the next month with a long list of conditions, which included an order not to communicate with key convoy organizers, and a ban from all social media, except through counsel or in the presence of counsel..Crown prosecutor Moiz Karimjee told an Ottawa court that Lich breached one of her conditions by being seen with Freedom Convoy organizer Tom Marazzo at a recent Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms gala on June 17, where she accepted an award for her contribution to the cause for freedom..Lich was seated at a table with Marazzo, spoke with him after receiving her award, and posed near him in a photograph..Ottawa police Detective Chris Benson, who is the lead on Lich's case, said when he tried to interview Lich about the alleged breach she “exercised her constitutional right," and refused to speak with him. Police then sought a Canada-wide arrest warrant for Lich for the alleged breach of her bail conditions. Lich was arrested last week in her hometown of Medicine Hat, Alberta. Two homicide officers, a detective, and a supervisor went to Alberta to retrieve Lich after she was taken into custody..Lich's surety, whose identity is covered by a publication ban, said when they saw the photograph of Lich and Marazzo at the gala, they were concerned and called her. Lich told the surety that lawyers, who were "just off camera," had OK'd the photograph..In his closing arguments, the defence said the brief interactions between Lich and Marazzo were "highly unlikely" to result in illegal activity. Lich's lawyer, Lawrence Greenspon, said he will argue at the trial that Lich didn’t breach the terms of her bail "recklessly or knowingly." He also told the court to expect the Crown to to overstate the significance of the breach as an affront to justice..The Crown argued that Lich should be detained on secondary and tertiary grounds, because they believe there’s a large chance Lich will reoffend, and releasing her will have a negative impact on public confidence in justice. Karimjee accused Lich of "thumbing her nose at justice," and said Justice Bourgeois, who denied Lich's bail in February, made the right initial call..Based on the seriousness of Lich's mischief charge, Karimjee noted the maximum sentence is 10 years, which is the same as assault with a weapon. .Justice of the Peace Paul Harris said he would need to take more time to deliberate before giving his decision on Lich's bail. He says he will be back in court on Friday at 1:30 p.m., and expects to give a decision then.
