John Clarke, the final defendant in the June 15, 2003, “riot” trial, had his charges stayed yesterday by Superior Court Justice Harvey Spiegel, who cited the length of time that had passed since a mistrial was called on May 11. Peter Rosenthal, Clarke’s counsel, argued that his client’s right to be brought to trial in a reasonable period of time is guaranteed by the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. This is the third stay of charges the court has passed down regarding the trial of the OCAP Three — John Clarke, Gaetan Heroux and Stefan Pilipa, all with the Ontario Coalition Against Poverty.
Clarke’s charges stem from an anti-poverty demonstration in which demonstrators clashed with police in front of the Ontario legislature on June 15, 2000. Clarke was charged with “counseling to participate in a riot” and “counseling to assault police” which could have carried a maximum of five years in prison.
Pilipa and Heroux were also charged for their involvement in the June 15 protest (“participation in a riot”), but those charges were later stayed when the case ended in a mistrial. The first jury drafted a letter to the judge which said that they were exhausted, frustrated and unable to reach a consensus as to whether the militant anti-poverty protest that unfolded on the lawn of Queen’s Park was actually a riot. Because they could not continue with their deliberations, a mistrial was declared.
While the Crown didn’t pursue the charges against Pilipa and Heroux, it did attempt to re-try John Clarke alone. The decision was met with anger by activists and progressive citizens, who deemed the second trial too costly considering the money could be better spent on affordable housing.
The Crown has not declared whether it will appeal the decision. “We went into this feeling strong and we were ready to fight a second trial, but now we don’t have to,” Clarke said outside court.
Considering the recent defeat of the Conservatives in provincial politics and OCAP’s latest victory in court, activists are describing the event as a victory: Tories 0: OCAP 1.
Because of the stay in the charges, Clarke is no longer bound by bail conditions that prevented him from attending demonstrations and associating with members from OCAP.
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