Lawyers for Coutts border blockade defendants say Crown overreached with conspiracy to murder charges
Both defence lawyers in the Coutts border blockade trial said they believe the Crown overcharged their clients and a legal expert agrees with them.
Following the late-night Friday acquittal of her client Chris Carbert, on charges of conspiracy to murder RCMP officers, counsel Katherin Beyak said the jury got it right.
"The jury put in a lot of hard work and came to the right decision on the (conspiracy to commit) murder charge," said Beyak. "I think it was an overcharge to begin with and I'm glad they came back with the verdict they did."
Marilyn Burns, who represented defendant Anthony Olienick, agreed: "I've never believed since I took on this file that were was evidence that would support a finding of guilt in that (conspiracy to commit murder), so it's always a tremendous relief of course. But it's not surprising: we had a very thoughtful jury that took plenty of time to think it over."
Both men were convicted on lesser charges of mischief and possession of weapons for a dangerous purpose. Olienick was also convicted of possessing a pipe bomb.
A plea deal that never materialized
Mount Royal University criminal justice professor Doug King said he believed the Crown overplayed its hand in anticipation of a plea deal that never materialized.
“It’s a hard conviction to begin with,” King said, “because a conspiracy involves a plan. A threat is not a plan. An idle threat is not a plan.
“You can maybe charge them with uttering a threat," he continued, "but you had to show some pretty concrete evidence that they were prepared to take the threat beyond just a statement to something really much more concrete.”
King said the typical conspiracy to murder charge comes when someone hires a hitman to kill someone and hatches a plan to do it.
“Did the Crown have sufficient evidence walking in to have a reasonable likelihood of a conviction?” he asked.
“And do Crown prosecutors (ever) overcharge in order to squeeze plea deals? Sure they do.
“That’s what’s in my mind right now: did they overcharge to try and squeeze plea deals on the other charges?
“The two guys said, 'No. We’re going to trial.'"
Not surprised by convictions
King said he wasn’t surprised at the convictions either.
"Those are fairly simple charges to secure a conviction on," he said.
"Obviously they had weapons,. (and) they had them there for a purpose," he added. "They even said themselves in their evidence to police they were going to be used as defensive weapons if the government came after them.
"Well they just sealed their fate there,."
Beyak said she wasn’t surprised by those convictions either.
“We invited the jury to find him (Carbert) guilty on the mischief (charge) because of the very active role he took on the blockade," she said Friday night, "and the second one, for possession of weapons for a dangerous purpose, I’m still processing – I can see how the jury got there, but I’m still processing.”
King speculated that the acquittal of the conspiracy to murder charges might fuel the protesters who believe the government was conspiring against them.
“Given all that we went through with the pandemic, with the blockades, and how people really became very, very segmented – a group of people believed government was really doing a disservice and was out in a conspiratorial way to do harm," he said.
“A group of those people will be able to point to the prosecution of this case and say, 'See? We told you. The Crown and police and government set these guys up by overcharging them."
What's next
The men will next appear in court Aug. 12 to deal with the convictions on the lesser charges, but King said those convictions still have the potential to be significant.
"These are indictable offences that can lead to a punishment of up to 10 years," he said, "so I fully expect we’ll see some prison time coming out of these cases.”
Both men have already spent more than 800 days in prison and their lawyers said it’s possible they may have already served more time than they get sentenced for.
With files from The Canadian Press and Karsen Marczuk and Tyler Barrow
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
2 dead, third in critical condition after attack in Kingston, Ont., suspect arrested
Two people are dead and a third suffered life-threatening injuries following an attack at an encampment in Kingston, Ont., Thursday. A suspect has been arrested following a multi-hour standoff.
B.C. will scrap carbon tax if feds remove requirement: Eby
British Columbia's premier says the province will end the consumer carbon tax if the federal government removes the legal requirement to have one.
Actor Chad McQueen, son of Steve McQueen, dies at 63
Chad McQueen, an actor known for his performances in the 'Karate Kid' movies and the son of the late actor and race car driver Steve McQueen, has died. He was 63.
Family of Sikh man speaks out against Toronto-area hospital after beard shaved
The family of a Sikh man from Brampton is seeking an apology, an explanation, and a promise to do better from the local hospital network after they say the facial hair of their loved one was removed without their consent.
Ottawa resident who tested positive for mosquito-borne virus dies, public health says
An Ottawa resident who died of a viral encephalitis this summer tested positive for the mosquito-borne virus eastern equine encephalitis (EEEV), the first human case of the virus in Ottawa.
Trump rules out another debate against Harris as her campaign announces US$47M haul in hours afterward
Donald Trump on Thursday ruled out another presidential debate against Kamala Harris as her campaign announced a massive fundraising haul in the hours after the two candidates met on stage.
'Keep your bags packed': Consul general grilled over $9M NYC condo purchase
After weeks of pressure, Canada's consul general Tom Clark is testifying on Thursday before a House of Commons committee about the purchase of his new official residence in New York that generated a lot of political attention over the summer.
NEW N.B. premier's asylum seeker comments spark controversy
Claims from New Brunswick Premier Blaine Higgs that Ottawa wants to force the province to take in 4,600 asylum seekers are 'largely fictitious,' says federal Immigration Minister Marc Miller.
TIFF pauses screenings of documentary about Russian soldiers due to 'significant threats'
The Toronto Film Festival says it has been forced to pause the screenings of a documentary about Russian soldiers this weekend, citing 'significant threats to festival operations and public safety.'