Theodorus DeBoer, who received a suspended sentence and a criminal record for his involvement in the Freedom Convoy protests that shut down the Ambassador Bridge in 2022, has won his appeal to have the sentence varied and the criminal record vacated.
TDF wins appeal for man who received criminal record as a result of Windsor protest | The Democracy Fund (news release):
September 10, 2024 - "The Democracy Fund (TDF) has won an appeal for a man who received a criminal record in connection to the protests that shut down the Ambassador Bridge in February 2022. TDF’s client, Theodorus DeBoer, pleaded guilty to one count of mischief in relation to obstructing traffic leading up to the bridge back in November 2023.
"As part of a plea deal TDF lawyers negotiated, the prosecution agreed to drop the more serious charge of disobeying a court order. The prosecutor and the defence then made a 'joint submission' on sentencing, asking the trial judge to discharge DeBoer with conditions as opposed to any sentence that would carry a criminal record. The trial judge, however, took the unusual step of rejecting the recommendation of the lawyers and imposed a suspended sentence, which involve[s] probation and a criminal record.
"According to Alan Honner, the lawyer whom TDF retained to argue the appeal, judges are required to give way to joint submissions except in rare circumstances.... The Appellate Court agreed with Honner’s submission that the trial judge erred by applying the wrong legal test. It varied the sentence to bring it into conformity with the original joint submission: the criminal record was vacated.
"TDF was heavily involved in representing the rights of protestors in Windsor. It sent lawyers to the city to provide summary legal advice to protestors, made legal submissions to the court on the parameters of the Superior Court injunction that prohibited anyone from blockading the bridge and represented over a dozen protestors criminally charged in connection to the protests.
"With this successful appeal, not a single TDF client ended up with a criminal record....
"Founded in 2021, The Democracy Fund (TDF) is a Canadian charity dedicated to constitutional rights, advancing education, and relieving poverty. TDF promotes constitutional rights through litigation and public education and supports an access to justice initiative for Canadians whose civil liberties have been infringed by government lockdowns and other public policy responses to the pandemic."
Read more: https://www.thedemocracyfund.ca/tdf_wins_appeal_criminal_record_windsor_protest
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