The bizarre trial that's pitting a family caught in the Caledonia land claims dispute against the government they accuse of failing to help them will continue next week with what court-watchers expect will be more startling revelations from the almost four-year protest.
David Brown, 42, his wife Dana Chatwell, 45, and their 18-year-old son Dax Chatwell are suing the Ontario Provincial Police and the province for $7 million for failing to protect them and failing to enforce the law against the protesters who surrounded their Caledonia home on Argyle Street, right next to the former Douglas Creek Estates housing subdivision.
The trial, with Justice Thomas Bielby presiding, continues on Jan. 4 in Hamilton.
The occupation of the subdivision began on Feb. 28, 2006, but it didn't hit the national news until a violent clash a few months later, on April 20, pitted OPP against the natives with the native pushing the officers off the land and blockading the roads around it.
So far, the trial has painted a dismal picture of a family abandoned behind the native barriers where they felt responsible for protecting themselves and their home.
Witnesses have recounted how the fire department ceased fighting a blaze when confronted by angry, shouting natives because they didn't believe the police would protect them.
Court has heard how there was little police response when a truck destroyed a hydro substation, causing huge damage and an area blackout.
And there has been testimony that police didn't intervene when two senior citizens were confronted by native protesters who threatened them and jumped on their car.
Brown and Chatwell, who kept a diary of many of the events, have said their home was ransacked, a snake was put in their mailbox and nails were scattered in their driveway.
They have testified that, especially during the early days of the protest, they lived under constant threats and the OPP refused to investigate their complaints.
The stress eventually took a tremendous toll on the family. Chatwell lost her home-based business and collapsing with a suspected heart attack. Brown was unable to work. And their son was sent away at times to live with others.
Despite the frustrations, the family vowed to stay put until the government gave them a reasonable settlement for their dream home.
They feared moving out of the house would result in it being vandalized in some way but they stopped maintaining the place, convinced it would one day be burned to the ground.
During Chatwell's testimony, she dissolved into sobs on the witness stand, while others in the courtroom wept with her. When Brown was on the stand, he had to excuse himself several times in order to vomit.
Among the more shocking revelations to emerge from the trial so far:
s " R O W N S A I D H E O F T E N S T A Y E D awake all night holding a shotgun during the native protests and occupation of 2006. One of those nights, Brown said he fell asleep and hit the trigger of the gun, shooting a hole in the ceiling of his kitchen.
s " R O W N S A I D H E S P I E D O N the native protesters as they unloaded wooden crates marked with Cyrillic writing, which, he said, he suspected contained guns.
s 7 H I L E # H A T W E L L W A S H O S P I- talized, Brown yelled at OPP Insp. Dave McLean and threatened to kill a lawyer he blamed for refusing to buy the Brown/ Chatwell property. Brown heard later that McLean had a heart attack and was hospitalized right after their conversation.
s # H A T W E L L T O L D H O W S H E T O O K a baseball bat and marched into the street in neon green Mickey Mouse pyjamas to yell at a truckload of masked native men who were in her driveway. Another day she was trying to avoid being caught behind the barricades again when she was confronted by a native man swinging a piece of lumber and yelling at her. At first, she wasn't frightened because there were three OPP cars nearby but she testified that the officers drove away, leaving her with her son.
s ft V I D E O C A P T U R E D F R O M T H E deck of the Brown/Chatwell home and shown in court revealed a dozen screaming natives --some with bandanas over their faces -- swearing and threatening the family.
s # R O W N L A W Y E R $ A V I D & E L I- ciant delved into Brown and Chatwell's troubled marriage probing the husband's drug use and the wife's infidelity.
s ft T O N E P O I N T & E L I C I A N T accused Brown of making up parts of his evidence. The lawyer also said the family was caught in a unique peacekeeping situation that was outside the normal bound of law enforcement and that the OPP's hands were tied due to the "policy implications" of working with the natives.
s " R O W N S A I D A T O N E P O I N T Brant MPP Dave Levac told him that Premier Dalton McGuinty would "love to sweep this under the rug."