Bill's Comment - Injunction or Private Prosecutions

It's questionable whether injunctions being sought against native protesters in Brantford and Cayuga will make any difference when it comes to law enforcement.

For more that two years, developers with legal title to lands that fall within the Grand River watershed have been unable to build due to protests. Even when an injunction was granted by a judge back in 2006, it did nothing to change the state of affairs in Caledonia for the better. In fact, it effected worse.

But what is perhaps more concerning is not police inaction and their inability to enforce laws, but the Crown's penchant to seemingly fight such orders tooth and nail, while continuing to go after menial charges such as minor mischiefs against non-natives.

You'll recall that the Crown fought hard to appeal the 2006 Judge Marshall injunction that was granted at the request of a local developer. But more recently, well-known activist Gary McHale said that the Crown plans to fight private criminal charges of extortion, mischief and intimidation that he's laid against Ruby and Floyd Montour, who have blocked development at several sites during the past two years.

It's not surprising really. As McHale says on his website, the Premier bought DCE initially. He has lawyers fight every injunction in the province. He took Judge Marshall's 2006 injunction ruling to the Appeals court. He repeatedly told the public that negotiation is the only way to resolve issues and bragged that he could do it better than Mike Harris. He told builders not to pay HDI, then told them they are on their own and helped pay for the lawyers of the very native protesters who are shutting down billions in development. He publicly claimed that he supported the Title Deed system while doing nothing, except to help pay for native lawyers who directly challenge title ownership. Then provincial officials blame McHale and other average citizens that problems in Haldimand are their fault.

McHale said that he only needs an hour-an-a-half to present evidence at a hearing scheduled for next Tuesday, but apparently the Crown has requested up to two days, during which he expects his evidence against the Montours to be challenged.

The Attorney General can intervene in such cases when it feels the defendant(s) to be factually innocent, or if harm to the court system is being caused by a "frivolous prosecution." However thousands of dollars in developments have been stalled and people have lost their livelihoods.

If the Crown does intervene, one can only presume that it believes the Montours did not attempt to extort money from developers.

While the province continues to pursue charges of minor mischief against McHale and Caledonia residents such as Doug Fleming who were protesting an illegal smoke shack last December, the illegal smoke shacks remain open for business. Illegal roadways connecting to Highway 6 are built and signs marketing illegal cigarettes are erected with tepees and other native regalia.

Instead of stopping these businesses, the province chooses to go after asparagus farmers and roadside agricultural vendors who have apparently posted illegitimate signs to sell fruits and vegetables.

Indeed, police and law enforcement continue to pick on the 'low-hanging fruit' instead of addressing much bigger problems, with much bigger ramifications.

It's all politics according to McHale.

There's evidence that has pointed toward police intervention by the provincial government.

And McHale says that if the OPP won't press charges against criminals, it's time for citizens to take action.

"I would say that almost everybody realizes that the extortion's been going on," McHale told The Regional News. "You have (Opposition) MPPs saying it. You have mayors saying it. You even have federal MPs making a statement. It should not be left up to Gary McHale to press criminal charges when there's so much evidence available. Different lawyers have called it extortion and yet it's up to me to file criminal charges for one reason only. It's politics. That's a shame when in Canada we say all people are the same under the law and clearly that's not the case."

It's hard to disagree with him.

And if McHale can manage to succeed at laying criminal charges for not only extortion, but also mischief and intimidation, against the Montours, it may be much more effective than any injunction. Penalties may strike doubt in the mind of protesters who continue to block development in the future, on land they have no jurisdiction over. It would also be a cheaper means to recourse for any developer who wished to lay charges in the future. It would set a precedent, even though law enforcement should already be fulfilling that role.

It's sad, but true.