Judge finds RCMP breached charter rights during arrests at Wet'suwet'en pipeline blockade
A B.C. judge says police breached the charter rights of three people arrested for blocking work on the Coastal GasLink (CGL) pipeline, and they will receive a reduction in their sentences because of that.
The abuse of process application was brought by Sleydo' (Molly Wickham), a wing chief of the Gidimt'en Clan of the Wet'suwet'en Nation, Shaylynn Sampson, a Gitxsan woman with Wet'suwet'en family ties and Corey Jocko, who is Kanien'kehá:ka (Mohawk) from Akwesasne.
Justice Michael Tammen found the three guilty last year of criminal contempt of court for breaking an injunction against blocking work on the pipeline back in November 2021.
Tammen read his decision in B.C. Supreme Court in Smithers Tuesday after more than a year of court proceedings.
The abuse of process application alleged RCMP used excessive force while arresting the accused in November 2021, and that the group was treated unfairly while in custody. It asked the judge to stay the criminal contempt of court charges or to reduce their sentences based on their treatment by police.
Tammen said it would be inappropriate to stay court proceedings, but found that some of the accused's Section 7 rights— life, liberty, and security of person — were breached during the police raid.
Tammen said these rights were breached when several police officers on two different audio recordings were captured comparing Sleydo' and Sampson to orcs and ogres for wearing red hand prints painted over their mouths — a symbol that represents missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls.
"I view the conduct as extremely serious involving racism directed towards Indigenous women, that is a group that has been systemically disadvantaged through all sectors of the criminal justice system for generations," said Tammen.
Senior RCMP officers who gave evidence in the proceedings apologized for the behaviour of the officers, but Tammen said in his decision that he did not feel like these apologies were sufficient remedies for the prejudice and harm the comments caused.
He said he would consider a reduction in sentence as a capable remedy for this.
"The comments about the red face paint were not made by a single officer and were not a one-off occurrence," said Tammen.
He said there were multiple offensive and discriminatory comments made by multiple officers on Nov. 18, 2021 and Nov. 19, 2021. RCMP's Community-Industry Response Group led the enforcement.
"That is potentially a sign of systemic attitudinal issue within the C-IRG," he said, but Tammen said there was no evidence that this offensive behaviour was encouraged or condoned more broadly within the RCMP.
Police needed warrants: judge
During the accused's arrest on Nov. 19, Sleydo' and Sampson were located in a small structure, referred to as the tiny house. When police knocked on the door of the tiny house, Sleydo' said police needed a warrant to enter, but the RCMP breached the structure using a chainsaw, saying they could enter under the authority of the injunction.
Police also breached a separate structure where Jocko was arrested, referred to as the cabin. During these arrests, the people inside this structure also said that police needed a warrant to enter.
Tammen agreed in his decision that police did need a warrant to enter the structures.
"The breaches that flowed from that failure [to obtain a warrant] were about as minor as could ever occur with warrantless arrests in a dwelling house," said Tammen.
He said there was no doubt that the occupants of the structure would be arrested and the structures removed, even if the RCMP did obtain a warrant.
Tammen said a stay in proceedings can only be granted in the clearest of cases, which he said this case is not. Tammen said the maximum sentence for criminal contempt is no more than five years imprisonment.
The court will schedule sentencing at a later date.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
CBC
an hour ago
- CBC
Modi says Carney invited him to G7, 1st visit to Canada since RCMP linked India to killings, extortion
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi says Prime Minister Mark Carney has invited him to the G7 summit later this month in Alberta, making his first visit to Canada since the RCMP accused his government of acts of murder, extortion and coercion. In a social media post on Friday, Modi wrote that Carney called him and extended an invitation to the gathering in Kananaskis in just over a week. "As vibrant democracies bound by deep people-to-people ties, India and Canada will work together with renewed vigour, guided by mutual respect and shared interests," wrote Modi. "Look forward to our meeting at the summit." Leaders from the G7 countries — Canada, France, United Kingdom, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States — along with the president of the European Commission are heading to the western province for high-level meetings. Other leaders are often invited for side meetings. Modi, head of one of the fastest-growing economies in the world, has been invited to every G7 leaders' summit since 2019. Carney has been under pressure to break with that tradition. Earlier this week, the Toronto-based Sikh Federation said Canada should withhold any invitation "until India substantially co-operates with criminal investigations in Canada." Last fall, the head of the RCMP laid out allegations accusing agents of the Indian government of playing a role in "widespread violence" in Canada, including homicides, and warned that it poses "a serious threat to our public safety." RCMP Commissioner Mike Duheme said his officers, working with other law enforcement agencies, have obtained evidence linking Indian government agents to homicides and other violent acts in Canada, including coercion and extortion. The previous year, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced Canada had evidence linking Indian agents to the killing of Canadian Sikh separatist leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar. New Delhi has denied the allegations. During the recent federal election campaign, Carney called the Canadian-Indian relationship "incredibly important."
CTV News
an hour ago
- CTV News
‘Need to evacuate the summit site': Wildfire possibility part of G7 summit planning
A Canada flag, left, and an Alberta flag flap in the breeze with Wedge Mountain in the background at the site of the G7 leaders' meeting in Kananaskis, Alta., Monday, June 2, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jeff McIntosh CALGARY — Security officials at the G7 leaders summit in Kananaskis say plans are in place, including the possibility of evacuations, if wildfires become a serious threat later this month. Kananaskis, located about an hour west of Calgary, is in the foothills and front ranges of the Rocky Mountains. Its western edge borders Banff National Park and the Alberta-B.C. boundary. Its remote location is considered to be ideal from a security standpoint for the meeting of the leaders from Canada, the United States, France, Germany, Japan, the United Kingdom and Italy, as well as the European Union from June 15 to 17. But with an explosion of wildfires in Manitoba, Saskatchewan and in northern Alberta, a contingency plan is in place if the situation moves south. 'Wildfire has been part of our planning since the summit was announced here in Alberta,' said RCMP Chief Supt. David Hall, an event security director for the Integrated Safety and Security Group, in a recent briefing. Hall's comments come as more than 30,000 people in Manitoba and Saskatchewan have been forced to leave their homes as wildfires threaten their communities. In Alberta, there were more than 50 active wildfires and several evacuation orders are in effect. A wildfire burning in northern Alberta is not only threatening the homes of hundreds of residents in various communities, but also major oil and gas companies with operations in the area. 'Our plans incorporate the potential that we may need to evacuate the summit site - we may need to deal with evacuations that are ongoing around the summit,' said Hall. 'So maybe the summit itself is not of concern but there are evacuations in communities that might affect road access and those type of things.' Wildfires burned an estimated 22,000 square kilometres in Alberta in 2023. Last year, a fire tore through Jasper National Park in July, burning about a third of the homes and businesses in the community and forcing the evacuation of residents. Hall said with the fire outbreaks in the three Prairie provinces, it could have an effect on resources available for G7. 'I would just say that all of our respective agencies are mindful of the wildfire threat nationally and how that may draw resources from the security partners to support evacuations like we're seeing in Manitoba or Saskatchewan now or parts of Alberta.' Supt. Bryan Sundberg, from Alberta's Crown Land Enforcement Branch, said his staff will be responsible for search and rescue, backcountry patrols, and cutting down on human and animal conflicts. He said the potential for wildfires was always on the list. 'Early on we identified the risk of wildfire or other environmental events such as floods,' Sundberg said. He said the branch is working with Alberta Wildfire, which is providing localized forecasts and wildfire behaviour forecasts for the Kananaskis Valley and surrounding areas that will be sent directly to Integrated Safety and Security Group. 'That's to help the senior leaders make the decisions on keeping the summit safe and looking forward to what may be happening.' This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 6, 2025. Bill Graveland, The Canadian Press
CBC
3 hours ago
- CBC
34-year-old man dead after car, tractor trailer collide on TCH near Gander
A 34-year-old man is dead following a two-vehicle collision on the Trans-Canada Highway between Gander and Benton early Thursday morning. In a news release, the RCMP said the car was travelling west on the highway when it struck a tractor trailer travelling in the eastbound lane around 2:30 a.m. N.T. The man was the only person in the car. The RCMP said he was ejected from the vehicle and died at the crash scene. "The driver of the tractor trailer sustained minor injuries," the RCMP said. The investigation, which includes the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, is ongoing.
