Defense argues that the Freedom Convoy organizer collaborated with a barber and law enforcement.

August 15, 2024 TruthUSA

OTTAWA—The defence lawyer for Freedom Convoy organizer Chris Barber argued that he did not intend to gridlock traffic in Ottawa, and worked with the city’s police to ensure roadways remained open.

Barber and Tamara Lich are on trial for mischief, intimidation, and counselling others to break the law in connection with the trucker protest in early 2022, while Barber is also accused of counselling others to disobey a court order. The demonstration saw hundreds of vehicles flood the streets of downtown Ottawa to protest COVID-19-related public health restrictions and vaccine mandates.

During their closing arguments on Aug. 13 and 14, Crown lawyers said Lich and Barber “crossed the line,” using unlawful means to pursue their political goals, and that the case against the two is “overwhelming.” The Crown has also said the pair conspired together so closely that evidence used against one of them should apply to both, which is known in Canadian law as a Carter application.

Defence lawyer Diane Magas said on Aug. 15 that Barber had no “mens rea”—or criminal intent—during the protest, taking the court through several of his text messages and social media videos to “show that my client was morally innocent of any criminal action.”

She also said the Crown needs to prove the elements of the offences beyond a reasonable doubt, and that a “balance of probabilities” would not be sufficient to charger Barber and Lich.

Magas showed text messages sent by Barber during the protests on Feb. 7, 2022, in which he said the vehicles were supposed to have been directed by police to a staging area. Instead, the vehicles ended up “all over the city.” Magas said the message showed that Barber did not want the vehicles to “gridlock” the city, and that he was “overwhelmed” by the situation and trying to work with the Ottawa police.

The lawyer also presented a Jan. 30 text message from Barber to Lich saying, “we have trouble” and “city cops need help.” Lich responded that the situation was going to escalate. “It’s clear from their mens rea, they want to work with the police,” Magas said.

The court was also shown evidence that Barber attempted to promote a “slow roll” of vehicles around Parliament Hill, which the defence argued was an attempt to reduce stress on downtown residents upset by the trucks’ honking and diesel fumes.

‘Hold the Line’

Magas also made the case that the phrase “hold the line”—which had been used by Barber, Lich, and other Freedom Convoy protesters—had multiple different meanings. The Crown has argued that the two organizers used the phrase to encourage demonstrators to stay in Ottawa as police attempted to clear the streets.

According to Magas, the phrase does not necessarily mean to form a line and hold it, but it can also mean to “be patient,” “stay true to your beliefs,” and “be strong.” She pointed out that Barber used the phrase at the end of several of his videos posted to social media, and it had different meanings each time.

Magas also showed the court a video of Barber being arrested on Feb. 17, and said that by not resisting arrest and encouraging the video to be posted on social media, he was leading by example and encouraging protestors to be peaceful.

The trial is expected to resume on Aug. 19, when defence lawyers will continue with their closing statements.

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