The city is stepping up its legal action against Six Nations protesters, asking that eight native activists be found in contempt of court for breaching an injunction prohibiting protests at city development sites.
A notice of motion filed by the city in Ontario Superior Court on Tuesday and served to the Six Nations protesters this week asks the court to declare those named to be in contempt for breaching the city's injunction, granted by Ontario Superior Court Justice G. E. Taylor on June 2.
The documents say the protesters breached the injunction during incidents that took place from July 7 to 14 in the city's northwest business park, when protesters shut down work on two construction projects, a new Hampton Inn hotel and a warehouse being built by Kingspan Insulation.
The city's notice of motion asks the court to jail or fine those found to have violated the injunction and award the city punitive damages. It also asks the court to rule that no outside "individual, trust, association or other entity" be permitted to pay fines or damages imposed on protesters by the court and that anyone found guilty of breaching the city's injunction not be allowed to participate in legal action against the injunction.
"The reason it was filed is that these people are disobeying the injunction and the rule of law in the city," Mayor Mike Hancock said. "They are causing irreparable harm."
NAMED IN NOTICE
Those named in the notice of motion -- to be heard Aug. 15 at 10 a. m. in Ontario Superior Court on Wellington Street -- include Butch Thomas, Clyde Powless, Steve (Boots) Powless, Kevin (Whodat) Isaacs, Dick Hill, Dwayne Maracle, John Garlow and Runs Through the Fire.
Court documents filed by the city include evidence in the form of sworn affidavits from city police Insp. Scott Easto, acting Sgt. Charles Wheeler, Sgt. Mark Moravek, Hampton Inn construction site manager Laith Almasraf and County of Brant enforcement officer John Dobson.
Protester Steve (Boots) Powless, named in the notice of motion, said he believes the city's legal action is an attempt to incite the people of Six Nations.
"I think it's a heavy handed (action) by Brantford city council," Powless said. "I think they're trying to incite our people. I think they want the army to come here.
"Anyone who opposes this kind of oppression, they should come out and pitch a tent, too."
Powless, who was monitoring ongoing construction at the Hampton Inn hotel site on Thursday, said he wasn't surprised by the city's latest legal move. He plans to attend court proceedings on Aug. 15, after consulting his lawyer.
"If they throw me in jail, I'll get out and continue doing what I'm doing," Powless said. "They're not strong enough to stop me.
"The injunction put forward is discriminatory -- it's discriminatory against our people."
Six Nations protesters have been a permanent fixture in the city's northwest business park since mid-July. Two protest sites have been set up in the area, near the Kingspan construction site and beside the nearby Hampton Inn hotel development. The sites have been marked by the presence of Six Nations flags, scattered tents, as well as a teepee. On Tuesday, Six Nations
protesters threatened to shut down the Hampton Inn site if the property owner did not enter talks with Six Nations within two days. Work the site on Thursday.
No workers were present on the Kingspan site on Thursday.
Also silent Thursday was a nearby construction site on Oak Park Road, where King and Benton had been moving earth to make way for a planned $500-million commercial and industrial development.
More than 30 Six Nations protesters visited the site Tuesday morning, saying environmental concerns with the project needed to be addressed. King and Benton president Steve Charest said work would not resume until Six Nations concerns are dealt with.