Laura Osman, The Canadian Press

OTTAWA – The Crown on Monday morning dismissed one of the charges against Tamara Lich, an organizer of the winter 2022 “Freedom Convoy.”

In court on Monday, prosecutors announced a stay of proceedings against Ms. Lich for breaching her bail conditions last summer.

The hearing into this breach of conditions was due to take place in court next week, but the Crown stayed the arraignment on Monday in the hope of using some of that time to instead address the key allegations against Ms Lich in that folder.

“Given that the core of the case has taken longer than expected, the Crown would like to prioritize it and ensure it is dealt with in a timely manner,” prosecutor Siobhain Wetscher said in court.

After her first arrest in the final days of the demonstration in Ottawa in the winter of 2022, Ms. Lich spent more than two weeks in jail before being released on bail.

She was subsequently allowed to return to Alberta, but had to meet a long list of conditions, including a ban on communicating with other convoy organizers except through lawyers.

However, a few months later, the following summer, she was arrested in Alberta on a Canada-wide warrant after she was photographed with one of her co-organizers, Tom Marazzo, at an awards ceremony in Toronto hosted by the Justice Center Constitutional Freedoms. The organization then awarded Ms. Lich the “George Jonas Prize for Freedom” in recognition of her contribution to “promoting and preserving freedom in our country.”

Following this re-arrest, Ms. Lich spent another month in prison before being released.

His trial lawyer in Ottawa, Lawrence Greenspon, said the breach charge should never have been brought in the first place.

“If there had been a proper investigation before Tamara Lich was arrested, handcuffed, transported across the country and then held in jail for 30 days (…), they would have noticed that her lawyers at the time were present (at the event in Toronto) and therefore “These charges should never have been brought,” he said outside the courtroom on Monday.

“Political prisoner”

In her book “Hold the Line,” Ms. Lich details the event at which she and Mr. Marazzo sat at the same table and reports that she was accompanied at all times by the organization’s lawyers. In the book she also talks about her arrest and describes herself as a “political prisoner”.

Mr Greenspon said on Monday his client was relieved the charges had been stayed. “She was hoping it would be one less question she would have to answer,” he said.

Ms. Lich and her co-defendant Chris Barber are on trial for, among other things, mischief, causing others to commit misdeeds and intimidation.

Mr Greenspon believes that if Ms Lich is convicted, the time she spent in prison following her second arrest should be taken into account in her sentence. “It’s part of the whole experience she had after the protest,” he argued.

The trial was originally scheduled to end on October 13, but was delayed due to postponements related to the disclosure of evidence and legal disputes over the admissibility of witness statements and social media posts.

The Crown should call more witnesses before closing its case. Judge Heather Perkins-McVey said she expected the legal arguments in the case to be lengthy and complex.

Due to conflicting schedules and limited court time, attorneys had difficulty setting a date for the trial to continue.

Mr. Barber’s lawyer, Diane Magas, has already warned that if delays continue, she would consider filing a motion with Jordan to stay the main charges. In the Jordanian decision, the Supreme Court ruled that anyone accused of a crime has the right to be tried within a reasonable time.

The Lich-Barber trial is expected to continue Thursday in Ottawa.