Faith lost in OPP's ability to protect Caledonia: testimony

HAMILTON -- The OPP is handcuffed by the "policy implications" of negotiation and reconciliation with aboriginal peoples when it comes to policing the fiery native occupation of land in Caledonia, forcing officers not to intervene in a startling litany of crimes, court heard on Friday.

A multimillion-dollar lawsuit against the Ontario Provincial Police and the Ontario government by a Caledonia couple whose house is adjacent to the site of a native occupation that began in 2006 and continues today, is underway in nearby Hamilton.

"The plaintiff's claim must be understood against the backdrop of the unique character of aboriginal occupations and protests," said Crown lawyer David Feliciant in his opening remarks.

Mr. Feliciant described the OPP's role as "peacekeeping" in a volatile situation outside the normal bounds of law enforcement. Evidence presented in court, however, painted a shocking picture of a community that saw little in the way of peace at the height of the native protest.

After the occupation of 70 acres of land being developed into a residential subdivision on Feb. 28, 2006, native protestors from Six Nations reserve set up a road blockade that controlled access to the site.

"They set up a checkpoint... Almost like they were entering another country," OPP Inspector Brian Haggith said in previous sworn testimony that was officially read into the court record on Friday.

The bizarre, chaotic situation, not only at the occupied site but in the community, was detailed in court.

The community lost confidence in the OPP's ability to protect them, according to Insp. Haggith's testimony.

When natives set fire to a wooden bridge in town, the fire department withdrew from fighting the blaze when confronted by shouted death threats from the protestors. The fire chief told the OPP he did not believe they would protect him or his men if they went against the natives' wishes, Insp. Haggith said.

A hydro substation was then destroyed, causing more than $1-million in damage and a blackout, when a truck crashed through its gates and was left, ablaze, next to the equipment. There was little police response.

On June 9, 2006, when two elderly citizens were followed and surrounded in their car in a commercial parking lot away from the occupation site, with native protestors jumping onto the vehicle and threatening to kill them, police did not intervene, court heard.

When a television news crew was seen shooting video of that attack, protestors walked past police officers and confronted the cameraman. A reporter was grabbed, put in a headlock and punched in the head, requiring hospital treatment. The camera was grabbed, dropped to the pavement and the video stolen.

Police did not intervene.

Insp. Haggith then heard a woman from the town on the phone to police, crying. But she refused to give officers her name because she said she knew police would not protect her from the protestors.

Even law enforcement personnel were not safe, court heard.

When an unmarked U.S. Border Patrol car with two U.S. agents and an OPP intelligence officer inside arrived to look at the site of the occupation, it was also attacked by natives. The car was stopped and the driver pulled out and a protestor climbed in.

As the OPP officer tried to escape out the back door of the moving car he was injured. The car was then driven directly at him as he lay incapacitated on the pavement and was narrowly pulled to safety by onlookers.

"I said it had gone on too far," testified Insp. Haggith, of a subsequent meeting he had with his OPP superiors. His request for a change in policy was denied.

"We were dealing with this differently because it was a land claims issue," he said.

Police officers did not even go to the home of the plaintiffs in this case, David Brown and Dana Chatwell, in response to 9-1-1 calls. "We weren't permitted to cross the barricades," Insp. Haggith said, citing explicit orders from superior officers.

In their previous testimony, Insp. Haggith and OPP Superintendant John Cain acknowledged protestors committed numerous criminal offences including: attempted murder, uttering threats, assault causing bodily harm, robbery, trespass, mischief, forcible confinement, perhaps kidnapping and others.

The officers said the OPP grew more concerned about the possibility of violence after the arrival of militant members of the Mohawk Warriors, a group described as "akin to the Hells Angels." The Warriors were involved in organized crime and cigarette running and had a reputation for physical confrontation and access to guns, including assault rifles, court heard.

"Their flag was raised higher than the Six Nations flag which is symbolic of who controls the site," Insp. Haggith testified.

Mr. Brown and Ms. Chatwell's house on Argyle Street South is the closest to the occupied site and the only one that was caught on the native side of the barricade that has since been removed. They are seeking $7-million in various damages.

The trial, presided over by Justice Thomas Bielby, continues on Monday.