It wasn't the result Gary McHale was hoping for, but one that he certainly expected.
The leader of Canadian Advocates for Charter Equality (CANACE) and the Caledonia 8 group had their second appearance in court at the Haldimand County Cayuga Administration Building on Friday Feb. 3, 2012 where the trespassing charges against the local activists were dropped stemming from a Dec. 3, 2011 incident out front of Douglas Creek Estates.
"Obviously the prosecutor realized the OPP illegally arrested us," said McHale after hearing the ruling. "It's pretty obvious people standing on a road are not trespassing on private property ... there's no way any officer misunderstood what property we were on."
McHale is known for trying to exploit OPP officers for what he calls "race-based policing".
He claims OPP officers target his group, made of caucasian people, based on the colour of their skin.
"We have become accustomed in our society to be anti-white and anti-Christian," McHale said before his court appearance. "Imagine if the OPP said to arrest Jewish people and not to arrest Christians? Every officer would understand that's an illegal order, and the fact is they are getting an illegal order now."
The order he's referring to is one outlined in the Framework for Police Preparedness for Aboriginal Critical Incidents which states one of the purposes for it is "promoting and developing strategies that minimize the use of force to the fullest extent possible."
McHale alleged OPP officers won't arrest a Six Nations resident despite how serious the crime is, citing an incident from June 2006 where a U.S. Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms officer was held up at knifepoint in Caledonia, and incidents since then where he claims people of Six Nations have been unruly to his group.
He said his group was indirectly permitted to be on the property during the Dec. 3, 2011 incident, yet were arrested for trespassing.
"We were handed a letter from the Ontario Realtor Corporation that said land-claim protestors, contractors, government management and negotiators were allowed on. We immediately said to the OPP we are land-claim protestors."
After tensions rose, the group was then arrested.
McHale and his group then organized a rally once again on Friday Jan. 27 and proceeded to put up signs stating "No Jews Allowed By Order of McGuinty" to try and prove their point further.
McHale was again arrested, but later released, with only the charges from the Dec. 3 incident to worry about.
He said he would have liked to have been prosecuted and fined on Friday for trespassing in order to access documents such as videos, text messages from OPP officers to one another and radio transmissions.
"Obviously they weren't going to get a conviction so, why hand over all that great evidence that shows the corruption?"
With the charges being dropped, McHale was quick to announce he will hold another rally in Caledonia beginning at the Lion's Hall at 2 p.m. going to the Douglas Creek Estates site on Saturday Feb. 18.
"It's completely legal. We will give the OPP one more time to see whether or not they will enforce the law without discrimination based on the colour of my skin," he said. "They have the opportunity to prove to the public that they honour the Charter of Rights and Freedoms for all people, but I believe the OPP will find a different tactic this time ... they'll find some trick once again to target us even though we're doing a peaceful march down a road."
Haldimand County OPP Media Relations Officer Mark Foster said there are no "tricks" involved when officers are patrolling the area.
"Every event is judged on the circumstance of that day. We don't plan on arresting them right away, but when it reaches a point where it may breach the peace that's when we will act," he said.
Foster said there will be a police presence at the rally on Feb. 18 and will be monitoring the situation, realizing everyone has the right to a peaceful protest.
"It goes to a certain point where our officers there must make a call ... As soon as [the Caledonia 8 group] comes to the property, it causes unrest and that's the beginning of disturbing the peace."
As for showing bias into who they target, Foster said that's simply not the case.
"Over the time frame of the Douglas Creek Estates issues from 2006, I know we have laid over 170 charges, not only against non-natives but natives as well."
He said one only has to look to just a few weeks ago when a Six Nations man was convicted of assault on a home builder in late December.