Rebel News Podcast - LEVANT： Three peaceful Coutts trucker protesters who are now facing 10 years in prison

00:00:00.000 Hello, my Rebels. I'm on location in Frosty, Lethbridge, Alberta.

00:00:03.620 In fact, I'm shivering on the street corner as I record this.

00:00:07.080 We're going to talk about the prosecution of three truckers

00:00:09.860 that the government of Alberta wants to put them away for 10 years.

00:00:14.880 They were peaceful protesters, nothing more.

00:00:16.720 10 years in prison?

00:00:18.440 We'll tell you about that story and we'll hear,

00:00:22.160 well, we'll tell you what happens in court.

00:00:25.280 Before I do, let me invite you to become a subscriber to Rebel News Plus.

00:00:28.600 It's the video version of this podcast.

00:00:30.420 Just go to rebelnewsplus.com, click subscribe.

00:00:33.640 It's $8 a month, which is, I can't even believe how low that is

00:00:37.480 because you get 20 episodes a month from me

00:00:39.980 and we have four weekly shows.

00:00:42.760 That's 36 episodes a month just for $8.

00:00:45.400 That's half price of Netflix

00:00:46.700 and it's the only place you're going to hear this side of the story.

00:00:50.260 Of course, we don't take a dime from Trudeau,

00:00:51.840 so we really rely on this $8.

00:00:53.500 Thanks very much.

00:00:54.340 All right, here's today's podcast.

00:00:58.600 You're listening to the Rebel News Podcast.

00:01:10.720 You're fighting for freedom!

00:01:13.980 Shame on you, you sensorious bug! 0.85

00:01:17.080 It's just after dawn.

00:01:27.460 It's about 8.20 a.m. here in Lethbridge, Alberta.

00:01:30.640 I'm in front of the courthouse.

00:01:32.200 You can see there's a lot of police with some body armor

00:01:35.080 and they set their bikes up away from the walls.

00:01:38.240 I'm not quite sure what that means.

00:01:39.800 I asked them, what's going on?

00:01:41.620 There's so many police around the city.

00:01:43.840 Every single corner has a police vehicle with red and blue lights flashing.

00:01:47.780 I said, is there a drug kingpin on trial?

00:01:50.640 El Chapo, maybe.

00:01:52.180 And we had a chuckle because, of course, no,

00:01:54.320 there's no drug kingpin or mass murder on trial.

00:01:57.560 Just three ordinary men, men of the community,

00:02:00.960 who were at the peaceful protest

00:02:02.540 at the border between Coutts, Alberta and Montana

00:02:05.780 earlier this year.

00:02:07.400 That was a completely peaceful protest

00:02:09.280 that was very successful.

00:02:11.880 It caused Jason Kenney, the premier at the time, to blink

00:02:13.940 and to agree to abandon

00:02:16.000 the bigoted vaccine mandates

00:02:18.580 and other lockdown provisions.

00:02:20.580 It was an echo convoy

00:02:22.660 to the big one in Ottawa

00:02:24.040 that achieved much the same nationally.

00:02:27.760 Those protesters were peaceful

00:02:30.400 and they ended peacefully

00:02:31.820 when Kenney announced that they had won.

00:02:34.480 But that wasn't enough for Kenney

00:02:35.860 and his prosecutors.

00:02:37.560 And so we are here today in November

00:02:39.880 for a hearing of three men

00:02:42.040 from that convoy, peaceful men,

00:02:44.740 who were being prosecuted by,

00:02:46.760 I can only describe him as a man with a vendetta,

00:02:49.380 Stephen Johnston, a prosecutor who is demanding

00:02:51.600 that these three peaceful men

00:02:53.500 spend 10 years in prison.

00:02:57.000 I say again, there was no violence.

00:02:58.860 There were no weapons.

00:02:59.640 There was none of that.

00:03:01.420 10 years in prison.

00:03:03.140 And I Googled this guy.

00:03:04.120 I mentioned this earlier.

00:03:06.720 This same prosecutor, Stephen Johnson,

00:03:08.520 recently asked a judge

00:03:09.820 for a four and a half year sentence

00:03:11.980 for a man convicted of a brutal rape.

00:03:15.740 So a violent rape

00:03:17.060 for this prosecutor

00:03:18.560 deserves four and a half years in prison.

00:03:20.760 But a peaceful trucker protest

00:03:22.520 deserves 10 years in prison.

00:03:24.920 What's so atrocious here

00:03:26.160 is that this does not reflect

00:03:28.180 either the public interest.

00:03:29.720 I don't know what the likelihood of conviction is,

00:03:32.520 but I do know that this is one of the reasons

00:03:34.860 Jason Kenney is no longer premier.

00:03:36.900 And yet this legacy holdover,

00:03:39.600 like the prosecutorial deep state continues,

00:03:42.660 even though the new premier, Danielle Smith,

00:03:46.180 has apologized to those who were abused

00:03:49.560 by the lockdowns

00:03:50.680 and has said that she looks to review

00:03:52.900 these out-of-control prosecutions.

00:03:55.600 Here's the premier, Danielle Smith,

00:03:57.500 saying that to our reporter,

00:03:58.880 Celine Glass,

00:03:59.720 just a couple of weeks ago.

00:04:01.240 Hi, Ms. Smith.

00:04:01.960 Celine Glass from Rumble News.

00:04:03.340 During your campaign,

00:04:04.240 you said that not only would you issue an apology

00:04:06.280 to those prosecuted during COVID restrictions,

00:04:09.020 but you would also grant them amnesty.

00:04:10.820 When can we expect those apologies?

00:04:12.240 I can apologize right now.

00:04:15.640 I'm deeply sorry for anyone

00:04:17.900 who was inappropriately subjected

00:04:21.260 to discrimination as a result

00:04:24.200 of their vaccine status.

00:04:25.360 I'm deeply sorry for any government employee

00:04:28.300 that was fired from their job

00:04:29.560 because of their vaccine status.

00:04:31.820 And I welcome them back

00:04:33.160 if they want to come back.

00:04:35.040 As for the amnesty,

00:04:36.220 I have to get some legal advice on that.

00:04:38.000 And so I've already asked my staff

00:04:40.680 to request that advice

00:04:43.020 so I can see how we would be able

00:04:44.660 to proceed on that.

00:04:45.940 My view has been

00:04:47.000 that these were political decisions

00:04:49.320 that were made,

00:04:50.000 and so I think that they could be

00:04:51.140 political decisions

00:04:52.000 to offer a reversal.

00:04:53.480 But I do want to get some legal advice

00:04:55.520 on that first.

00:04:56.760 Would that also have to do

00:04:57.860 with the timeline

00:04:58.500 for the proposed amnesty?

00:05:00.440 I would have to see.

00:05:01.920 If I can do it,

00:05:03.360 I will do it at the earliest opportunity.

00:05:05.360 So I'm hoping within the next week,

00:05:08.000 I will get that legal advice.

00:05:09.280 So I'm here,

00:05:10.340 and the main trial

00:05:11.600 will not be happening today.

00:05:13.260 But rather,

00:05:14.240 I understand that there will be a hearing

00:05:15.900 the same Stephen Johnson,

00:05:18.100 the out-of-control prosecutor

00:05:19.960 who wants 10 years in prison.

00:05:21.260 I can't even believe I'm saying that.

00:05:22.880 If we were in Russia or Iran or China,

00:05:25.940 that would make sense.

00:05:26.940 10 years in prison

00:05:27.800 for a peaceful protest,

00:05:29.180 but in Alberta?

00:05:30.380 Motto, strong and free.

00:05:31.540 It's just unnatural.

00:05:33.960 Anyways, Stephen Johnson,

00:05:36.540 this prosecutor,

00:05:37.420 he's no dummy.

00:05:38.540 He's mean,

00:05:39.360 but he's not stupid.

00:05:40.760 And he knows that these men,

00:05:42.340 if they have a trial

00:05:43.220 in Lethbridge, Alberta,

00:05:46.180 will certainly be acquitted.

00:05:48.600 Lethbridge is one of the more

00:05:49.460 freedom-loving places

00:05:50.440 in a freedom-loving province,

00:05:51.780 and there's massive support

00:05:53.320 for these men.

00:05:54.540 Hundreds of people are expected

00:05:55.880 at the court today.

00:05:56.980 You could already see

00:05:57.820 them gathering around,

00:05:59.220 even though it's quite cold.

00:06:01.440 Even some of the police officers

00:06:02.840 who I've been talking to

00:06:03.860 without my camera on

00:06:04.940 are clearly sympathetic

00:06:06.380 to the protesters.

00:06:08.760 So Stephen Johnson knows

00:06:09.900 that the likelihood

00:06:10.600 of a conviction,

00:06:12.460 let alone a 10-year sentence

00:06:13.560 in Lethbridge,

00:06:14.140 is low.

00:06:14.800 So I understand

00:06:15.620 that he wants to take

00:06:16.600 the hearing out

00:06:18.080 of Lethbridge

00:06:19.040 and move it

00:06:19.540 to another venue.

00:06:20.700 I understand he's saying

00:06:21.860 that there are

00:06:22.420 security concerns,

00:06:24.960 thus the bicycles.

00:06:27.060 You know,

00:06:27.300 he's a bit of a coward,

00:06:28.340 as most bullies are.

00:06:29.920 He's not moving this

00:06:31.380 out of Lethbridge

00:06:32.240 because of security concerns.

00:06:33.680 He's moving it

00:06:34.360 because he wants to move it

00:06:35.420 to a jurisdiction

00:06:36.100 that he's forum-shopping,

00:06:38.460 as we say in the law.

00:06:39.380 He wants to go to a court

00:06:40.720 that's more likely to convict.

00:06:42.380 He would probably go to Toronto

00:06:43.880 if he could,

00:06:45.120 or Edmonton,

00:06:45.940 or maybe put Rachel Notley

00:06:47.400 on the panel.

00:06:49.020 We're going to cover this

00:06:50.180 because this is abusive.

00:06:51.700 This is prosecutorial misconduct.

00:06:55.180 I say that advisedly

00:06:57.020 because there are two conditions

00:06:58.700 to prosecute any crime

00:06:59.800 in this country.

00:07:00.780 The first is,

00:07:01.460 is it in the public interest?

00:07:02.660 There is no public interest

00:07:03.720 for prosecuting these men.

00:07:06.180 And second,

00:07:06.680 is there a reasonable

00:07:07.320 likelihood of conviction?

00:07:08.940 Well, I would like to say,

00:07:10.460 I would hope,

00:07:11.200 that in Canada

00:07:11.800 the answer to that

00:07:12.620 is still no.

00:07:14.180 That you can't put a man 1.00

00:07:15.260 in prison for 10 years

00:07:16.540 for peacefully protesting.

00:07:18.440 But wouldn't that be

00:07:19.180 quite something?

00:07:20.300 We'll find out.

00:07:21.380 And I'm going to be here

00:07:22.180 throughout the day.

00:07:23.020 We'll introduce you

00:07:24.040 to the three men later.

00:07:25.080 And we'll talk to their lawyer,

00:07:27.140 Chad Williamson,

00:07:28.140 who's on the file

00:07:29.260 along with his colleague,

00:07:30.800 Yoav Neve.

00:07:32.660 Rebel News,

00:07:33.340 as you know,

00:07:34.520 reports the news.

00:07:35.480 We tell the other side 0.99

00:07:36.320 of the story.

00:07:36.780 That's actually our motto.

00:07:38.320 But one of the things

00:07:39.040 I'm most proud of

00:07:40.120 at Rebel News

00:07:40.720 is that every once in a while

00:07:41.960 we get involved

00:07:43.160 to make a difference.

00:07:43.880 We don't just act

00:07:44.940 like voyeurs

00:07:45.680 gawking at things.

00:07:47.240 Sometimes when there's

00:07:48.020 a real injustice,

00:07:48.900 we try and fight it.

00:07:50.320 And we are in this case.

00:07:52.740 What we've done

00:07:53.700 is a promise we made

00:07:55.500 to these men,

00:07:56.720 a promise that I personally

00:07:58.020 made them on the telephone.

00:07:59.380 I don't know if you recall,

00:08:00.620 but when these truckers

00:08:01.680 were holed up in the saloon

00:08:02.880 in Coots, Alberta,

00:08:04.380 they could feel

00:08:06.100 that the police

00:08:06.920 were dealing with them

00:08:07.660 in bad faith.

00:08:08.780 And we had two reporters

00:08:09.880 embedded with them,

00:08:10.660 Sidney Fazzard

00:08:11.360 and Kian Simone.

00:08:12.660 And they mentioned

00:08:14.200 that sometimes Rebel News

00:08:15.500 does crowdfund lawyers.

00:08:17.500 And they called me.

00:08:18.560 I was at home.

00:08:19.340 And they called me

00:08:20.000 on my phone

00:08:20.620 from the saloon

00:08:21.540 and they said,

00:08:22.340 can you help?

00:08:24.220 Good to meet you.

00:08:24.760 It's pretty chilly out today.

00:08:26.220 Well, as you are

00:08:26.880 the man of the hour,

00:08:27.460 you're the lawyer

00:08:27.920 for the man of the century.

00:08:30.140 What's brought you here?

00:08:31.900 So the amazing

00:08:34.840 Civil Liberties initiative

00:08:36.740 launched by the Rebel

00:08:38.960 to get these guys

00:08:40.380 some representation

00:08:41.320 and hopefully defuse

00:08:42.720 the tense situation

00:08:44.320 that we've got down here.

00:08:46.060 It's hot,

00:08:46.640 even though it's cold.

00:08:47.580 So we're going to

00:08:48.300 try to bring some clarity

00:08:50.820 to everything

00:08:51.840 and try to see

00:08:53.540 if we can bring

00:08:54.880 parties together.

00:08:55.800 So that's your mission today.

00:08:56.920 And what is your expectation,

00:08:58.380 let's say, for the day

00:08:59.100 and even for the future

00:09:00.300 going ahead?

00:09:01.460 Well, I mean,

00:09:02.280 there's a lot to do.

00:09:03.380 First, we want to

00:09:04.240 obviously meet the group

00:09:06.920 and meet the protesters

00:09:09.960 and then establish

00:09:11.500 a connection

00:09:12.980 and a rapport

00:09:13.660 with the authorities

00:09:15.480 that are on scene

00:09:16.220 so that we can start

00:09:17.080 productive negotiations

00:09:19.120 if that's possible.

00:09:20.200 And I know you fight

00:09:20.900 tooth and nail

00:09:21.460 and our supporters

00:09:22.640 are going to be able

00:09:23.160 to help you do that

00:09:23.760 through truckerlawyer.ca

00:09:25.360 and I know everyone here

00:09:26.680 really, really appreciates

00:09:28.000 your support.

00:09:29.080 Thanks.

00:09:29.640 Yeah, we've got

00:09:30.280 a great team here today.

00:09:31.460 It's Martin Raymond

00:09:32.460 and myself.

00:09:34.100 It's an early morning

00:09:35.680 so we're on scene

00:09:37.200 and I don't want to leave

00:09:38.320 until this is over.

00:09:39.440 So you probably know

00:09:40.520 from my reputation,

00:09:42.680 I do as well.

00:09:43.920 First of all,

00:09:44.600 I just want to commend you guys

00:09:46.080 and congratulate you

00:09:47.280 for taking a stand

00:09:48.480 for our constitutional rights,

00:09:50.740 our charter rights,

00:09:51.920 and for exercising

00:09:52.940 your right

00:09:53.740 to peaceful protest.

00:09:56.720 So on behalf of Albertans

00:09:58.740 and Canadians in general,

00:10:00.740 I thank you

00:10:01.380 for what you've done.

00:10:03.060 It's going to be

00:10:04.040 a trying process

00:10:05.380 and frankly,

00:10:07.160 I can't promise you guys

00:10:08.400 that we're going to be

00:10:09.180 able to fudge

00:10:10.560 the government

00:10:11.100 on this stuff

00:10:12.040 but we've got,

00:10:14.220 I mean,

00:10:14.820 we're the people

00:10:15.660 and we've got the power, right?

00:10:16.860 So give yourselves

00:10:17.540 a round of applause

00:10:18.640 just for...

00:10:19.380 Just for...

00:10:20.440 And as I've told everybody,

00:10:26.420 this is pretty serious business

00:10:27.760 and obviously,

00:10:29.420 you guys are aware of that,

00:10:30.640 what you're doing,

00:10:31.800 what's on the line

00:10:32.520 and what's at risk.

00:10:33.440 So if you need Marty or me,

00:10:36.120 we're here to help you.

00:10:37.920 The legal fees

00:10:39.020 are being crowdfunded

00:10:40.240 so that's great

00:10:41.140 and you guys

00:10:42.300 will have representation, okay?

00:10:44.600 So thank you guys again.

00:10:46.700 We're not going to be going anywhere

00:10:48.220 so we'll be floating around all day

00:10:50.020 if you have any questions.

00:10:51.300 We are going to be dealing

00:10:52.360 with a couple folks

00:10:54.080 that hopefully will be representing

00:10:55.720 the majority of interests here

00:10:57.380 and once we have

00:10:58.960 a little bit of a meeting downstairs,

00:11:00.840 we'll be establishing

00:11:01.800 our connection

00:11:03.760 with the authorities

00:11:05.020 to start negotiations.

00:11:06.620 So thank you guys again.

00:11:07.700 Again,

00:11:08.500 big round of applause

00:11:09.700 for everybody.

00:11:12.860 This isn't easy

00:11:15.300 and my family arrived

00:11:18.240 in Alberta

00:11:18.720 at the turn

00:11:19.500 of the 20th century

00:11:21.080 over 100 years ago

00:11:23.040 and I'm about

00:11:24.760 as Albertan

00:11:25.400 as they come

00:11:26.040 but I still don't think

00:11:27.720 that that even measures up

00:11:29.120 to what you guys are doing

00:11:30.440 no matter when

00:11:31.160 your family's arrived

00:11:32.580 in this province.

00:11:33.340 So my hat's off to you.

00:11:34.840 Well,

00:11:35.500 I made that promise

00:11:36.440 and I bloody well

00:11:37.440 better keep it.

00:11:39.080 So we're keeping it

00:11:40.540 in a number of ways.

00:11:41.320 A lot of people

00:11:42.000 from that Coutts blockade

00:11:43.860 have minor offenses,

00:11:45.800 really glorified traffic tickets.

00:11:47.860 That's easy to defend.

00:11:49.000 I think we've got

00:11:49.920 about 30 cases like that

00:11:51.680 but this is the only case

00:11:53.700 emanating from that saloon

00:11:55.180 of truckers

00:11:55.800 where a vendetta-driven prosecutor

00:11:59.120 wants 10 years in prison.

00:12:00.860 That's not messing around.

00:12:01.880 That's not a slap on the wrist.

00:12:03.720 That's not a fine.

00:12:05.080 That is a life-altering sentence.

00:12:07.820 He wants to convict these men

00:12:09.380 and throw them in prison

00:12:10.600 for more than twice as long

00:12:11.820 as he wanted that rapist 0.96

00:12:13.260 to go to jail,

00:12:13.920 this prosecutor Stephen Johnston.

00:12:16.020 We can't let that happen.

00:12:18.080 We have promised

00:12:18.960 and we will keep the promise

00:12:20.160 to crowdfund the legal defense

00:12:22.080 for the three men.

00:12:23.640 I have spoken at length

00:12:25.120 with the lawyer,

00:12:26.140 Chad Williamson.

00:12:26.720 I believe he's the right man

00:12:27.660 for the job.

00:12:28.220 Chad Williamson's

00:12:28.840 an excellent lawyer.

00:12:29.820 By the way,

00:12:30.300 he had a very important victory

00:12:31.620 for Rebel News in 2021.

00:12:33.700 I don't know if you remember,

00:12:35.080 but Chad was the lawyer

00:12:36.060 Rebel hired

00:12:37.060 to get us into

00:12:38.440 that federal leaders debate

00:12:40.020 when Trudeau banned us.

00:12:41.460 That was a bit of

00:12:42.140 a miraculous win.

00:12:43.540 If Chad can win

00:12:44.460 in federal court

00:12:45.340 against Trudeau,

00:12:46.260 I think Chad can win

00:12:47.420 here in Lethbridge

00:12:48.380 against this bigoted prosecutor.

00:12:50.240 I call him bigoted

00:12:50.980 because you've got to

00:12:52.160 have a screw loose

00:12:53.240 to think that peaceful protesters

00:12:54.960 deserve to be in prison

00:12:56.140 for 10 years.

00:12:57.100 That is something

00:12:57.700 from an authoritarian regime.

00:12:59.800 I actually think

00:13:00.360 this is a bit of a test.

00:13:01.620 of Danielle Smith's government

00:13:03.120 because, you know,

00:13:05.920 we do not believe

00:13:07.060 in political meddling

00:13:08.640 in prosecutions,

00:13:10.100 not at all.

00:13:11.020 But if a case

00:13:12.020 is clearly not

00:13:12.820 in the public interest,

00:13:13.920 if it was ginned up

00:13:15.260 for political reasons,

00:13:16.820 if it was a political decision

00:13:18.460 to prosecute these men,

00:13:20.180 a political decision

00:13:21.280 to grant them an amnesty

00:13:22.660 can be made as well.

00:13:23.980 And I'd like you to go

00:13:24.720 to lockdownamnesty.com

00:13:26.260 and sign our petition there.

00:13:28.080 But the most important thing

00:13:29.500 is we've got to help

00:13:30.340 these men in court today.

00:13:31.420 I made them a promise

00:13:32.400 and I would be grateful

00:13:34.020 if you helped me

00:13:34.560 keep that promise.

00:13:35.820 Go to truckerdefensefund.com

00:13:39.000 and chip in.

00:13:39.900 I've talked to Chad.

00:13:41.280 He bills very reasonably,

00:13:43.000 but this is going to be

00:13:43.920 such a massive trial.

00:13:45.400 We do need to come up

00:13:46.300 with a lot of dough

00:13:47.060 to help see these men through.

00:13:49.060 You can see the resources

00:13:50.220 of the state.

00:13:50.880 I was talking to one

00:13:51.980 of these cops earlier

00:13:52.920 and I was joking about

00:13:54.520 there being this gangland trial.

00:13:55.920 I said, all that's missing

00:13:57.520 is the helicopter,

00:13:59.100 the eye in the sky.

00:13:59.960 He said, yeah,

00:14:00.480 I wish we had one.

00:14:01.700 I don't know if he was joking around

00:14:03.100 or just sort of daydreaming

00:14:04.180 about a gadget

00:14:05.040 or maybe he really is

00:14:06.560 an authoritarian

00:14:07.120 who thinks that we should

00:14:08.780 spy on our citizens

00:14:09.980 and that we need a helicopter

00:14:12.360 and that the police response

00:14:13.520 you see here isn't strong enough.

00:14:16.180 Like this is actually a disgrace

00:14:17.780 that these police are deployed

00:14:19.500 against peaceful citizens.

00:14:21.220 I'm embarrassed.

00:14:21.800 Then again,

00:14:22.060 the Lethbridge Police Force

00:14:23.060 has had some scandals

00:14:24.520 of their own in recent years.

00:14:25.480 All right,

00:14:25.860 you can see I'm angry.

00:14:27.580 I'm going to sign off now

00:14:28.640 but I'll come back to you

00:14:29.680 with more from our reporters

00:14:31.140 who know these three men

00:14:32.360 and hopefully we'll get a chance

00:14:33.820 to talk to them too.

00:14:46.820 Well,

00:14:47.280 it's almost noon.

00:14:48.280 We're outside

00:14:48.820 the Lethbridge Courthouse

00:14:49.760 standing next to me

00:14:50.520 is Sidney Fizard,

00:14:51.400 one of the two

00:14:52.300 Rebel News journalists

00:14:53.400 who were embedded

00:14:55.120 with the Coutts truckers

00:14:57.080 for more than a week

00:14:58.280 during the lockdown.

00:15:00.520 It was very important

00:15:01.320 that they were there

00:15:01.820 documenting the interaction

00:15:03.220 between the police

00:15:04.460 and the truckers.

00:15:05.540 Of course,

00:15:05.800 we made a documentary film

00:15:07.260 out of that.

00:15:08.780 The three men

00:15:09.560 who were on trial

00:15:10.640 in this building behind us

00:15:12.040 were three of the truckers.

00:15:13.040 They're peaceful men.

00:15:13.640 I want to emphasize that.

00:15:14.960 There were other people

00:15:16.080 in this country

00:15:16.740 who were charged

00:15:17.460 with the weapons offense

00:15:18.300 and I don't know

00:15:19.180 the truth or the falsehood

00:15:20.920 of that.

00:15:21.780 But the three men

00:15:22.420 who were on trial here,

00:15:23.960 Alex, Marco, and George,

00:15:26.680 completely peaceful.

00:15:27.800 There is no violent element

00:15:28.880 whatsoever to their charges

00:15:30.240 and yet the prosecutor

00:15:31.720 demands 10 years.

00:15:32.900 Now, today's hearing

00:15:33.740 was very brief.

00:15:36.000 It was the Crown,

00:15:38.180 the prosecutor,

00:15:39.400 choosing to go by indictment.

00:15:40.880 There are some crimes

00:15:43.320 in the criminal code

00:15:44.160 where you can deal with them

00:15:45.480 in a summary or minor matter

00:15:47.640 or indictment,

00:15:48.920 which is a very serious matter.

00:15:51.320 Going for the indictment

00:15:52.920 is absurd.

00:15:54.400 It's the same kind

00:15:55.240 of over-prosecution

00:15:56.520 that Tamara Leach

00:15:57.340 was subjected to

00:15:58.580 when she was imprisoned

00:16:00.520 for nearly two months

00:16:01.680 for inciting mischief.

00:16:03.120 I don't think

00:16:03.560 that's ever happened before

00:16:04.780 in Canada

00:16:06.180 or, frankly,

00:16:06.900 the United States

00:16:07.620 or the UK or Australia.

00:16:09.920 Here they're going

00:16:10.720 after these three truckers

00:16:12.300 by indictment,

00:16:13.060 but that does give

00:16:13.800 the truckers the right

00:16:14.680 to have a judge

00:16:15.400 and jury trial.

00:16:17.940 And as Chad Williamson,

00:16:19.320 the lawyer for the three men,

00:16:20.700 said in a brief speech

00:16:22.320 to the rally

00:16:22.900 gathered outside,

00:16:24.480 there is no jury

00:16:25.780 in Alberta

00:16:26.980 that would convict.

00:16:28.140 Here's Chad.

00:16:29.000 Mr. Jansen

00:16:30.080 and Master Huguenbos,

00:16:31.280 the right to be tried

00:16:32.200 by a jury of their peers.

00:16:35.020 We believe that

00:16:36.320 12 randomly chosen

00:16:37.940 representative jurors

00:16:39.460 reflect the

00:16:40.280 common sense,

00:16:41.740 the values,

00:16:42.560 and the conscience

00:16:43.200 of this community

00:16:44.260 is very important

00:16:47.320 in this case.

00:16:48.860 Once disclosure

00:16:49.760 has been properly received,

00:16:51.620 we'll proceed

00:16:52.340 to trial by jury

00:16:53.840 immediately.

00:16:55.300 There will be no deals

00:16:56.580 and no concessions

00:16:58.120 of any kind.

00:16:59.080 We have another court date

00:17:07.800 which is a procedural

00:17:09.860 court date

00:17:10.720 scheduled currently

00:17:12.080 for December 12th

00:17:14.060 of this year

00:17:14.920 and I will be down

00:17:16.140 for that appointment

00:17:17.580 as well.

00:17:18.040 Thank you very much, Chad.

00:17:22.680 When I say there's no jury

00:17:24.000 in Alberta that convicts,

00:17:24.980 I should probably say

00:17:25.660 there's no jury

00:17:26.300 in Cootes

00:17:27.480 or Lethbridge

00:17:28.840 or probably even Calgary

00:17:30.200 but I suspect

00:17:31.180 that the prosecutor

00:17:32.580 in this case

00:17:33.260 is going to try

00:17:33.820 and move

00:17:34.660 the trial

00:17:35.720 to a friendlier

00:17:37.220 jurisdiction for him.

00:17:38.400 If he could,

00:17:38.840 he'd probably move it

00:17:39.600 to downtown Ottawa

00:17:41.200 or Toronto.

00:17:42.560 It'll be an interesting

00:17:43.420 battle ahead.

00:17:44.180 The next court hearing

00:17:45.180 is on December 12th.

00:17:46.560 It's called an arraignment.

00:17:47.500 Again, it'll be

00:17:47.880 a very quick hearing.

00:17:49.480 This matter will go on

00:17:50.860 for many months,

00:17:51.600 perhaps years.

00:17:52.580 The process is the punishment.

00:17:54.840 No normal human being

00:17:56.300 could afford a lawyer

00:17:58.300 to fight this case

00:17:59.180 let alone three severely

00:18:00.840 normal citizens,

00:18:01.900 ordinary men.

00:18:02.980 That's part of it here.

00:18:04.340 That's the vengefulness.

00:18:06.080 That's Trudeau and Kenny

00:18:07.680 and the Kenny prosecutor.

00:18:10.040 All right, enough preamble

00:18:10.980 from me.

00:18:11.560 Let's talk to a reporter

00:18:12.940 who was there

00:18:13.600 embedded in the

00:18:16.060 Coutts blockade 0.99

00:18:17.280 and who has been

00:18:17.960 covering the three men

00:18:19.360 and will lead our coverage

00:18:20.720 in the months ahead.

00:18:22.420 Sidney Fazzard.

00:18:23.060 Sid, great to see you.

00:18:23.900 Absolutely.

00:18:24.380 It's a pleasure

00:18:24.700 to be joining you

00:18:25.280 and I'm glad that we're

00:18:25.940 here representing these guys.

00:18:27.280 Well, you've really

00:18:27.980 come to know them.

00:18:28.740 I mean, you spent a lot

00:18:29.540 of time with them

00:18:30.120 in close quarters.

00:18:31.080 You and Key and Simone

00:18:32.040 went down there

00:18:32.800 and I still chuckle

00:18:33.900 because I remember

00:18:34.400 when you guys went down there

00:18:35.480 and we just thought,

00:18:36.500 oh, you're going for a day.

00:18:37.600 I don't think you guys

00:18:38.500 even packed a change of clothes

00:18:40.380 and you were down there

00:18:42.020 for a great period of time

00:18:43.160 really in close quarters

00:18:44.980 and it was almost

00:18:45.920 like a bunker,

00:18:47.140 this saloon.

00:18:47.800 It was bloody cold out.

00:18:49.940 I think you probably

00:18:51.340 got to know these men

00:18:52.320 as well as anyone.

00:18:53.780 Well, certainly I hope

00:18:54.640 aside from let's say

00:18:55.600 their family

00:18:56.080 but all of them,

00:18:57.840 the three individuals

00:18:58.560 and everybody

00:18:59.120 who was there

00:18:59.640 at the blockade

00:19:00.300 and at the demonstrations

00:19:01.120 in the area

00:19:01.740 were all the salt

00:19:03.580 of the earth Canadians

00:19:04.240 that you would expect

00:19:04.800 to show up

00:19:05.180 at a peaceful protest

00:19:05.920 and that's what it was

00:19:06.800 and that was literally

00:19:07.780 the cause for them

00:19:08.660 to say we're going

00:19:09.640 to wrap up,

00:19:10.200 we've made our message clear,

00:19:11.560 the people have heard us

00:19:12.520 but today is the day

00:19:14.020 that we're going

00:19:14.420 to peacefully depart

00:19:15.380 because peaceful message

00:19:16.640 is the key.

00:19:17.940 Yeah, well I remember

00:19:18.560 when you and Aki and somebody

00:19:20.000 were down there

00:19:20.500 and you called me

00:19:21.140 saying can we get lawyers

00:19:22.180 for these guys

00:19:22.740 and I said yes

00:19:23.480 so we're here

00:19:24.100 to keep that promise

00:19:24.960 and it's going to be

00:19:26.240 an extremely expensive case

00:19:27.500 because it's proceeding

00:19:29.020 by indictment,

00:19:29.780 judge and jury trial,

00:19:31.180 three defendants.

00:19:32.800 I only met the defendants

00:19:33.940 for the first time today

00:19:34.840 because they're local guys,

00:19:36.560 how would I meet them?

00:19:37.280 I live out east,

00:19:38.800 here's the cops going by,

00:19:40.660 you know,

00:19:41.220 probably the largest deployment

00:19:42.700 in Lethbridge

00:19:43.920 since the Second World War.

00:19:46.460 I was bantering

00:19:47.260 with one of them about,

00:19:48.980 I mean, listen,

00:19:50.360 I suppose those cops

00:19:51.400 are just following orders

00:19:52.920 but that's not an excuse

00:19:54.320 I like very much.

00:19:57.000 Let's get back

00:19:57.760 to the three men.

00:19:59.520 They seem,

00:20:00.160 I mean,

00:20:00.600 we're going to meet them

00:20:02.440 and get to know them

00:20:03.480 in the weeks

00:20:04.000 and months ahead.

00:20:05.320 These are regular guys,

00:20:06.260 one of them is even

00:20:07.000 on a town council.

00:20:08.220 I couldn't even believe it,

00:20:09.040 like he's a local

00:20:09.700 elected official.

00:20:10.740 Yeah, that's Marco

00:20:11.860 and not only is he

00:20:12.660 like a town councillor,

00:20:14.580 he's also going to be

00:20:15.520 a witness at the

00:20:16.400 Public Order Emergency Commission

00:20:17.700 to speak on the events

00:20:19.920 of the Coutts blockade

00:20:20.700 and how they relate

00:20:21.340 to the invocation

00:20:22.000 of the Emergencies Act.

00:20:23.580 Very interesting

00:20:24.300 and I met the other guys,

00:20:25.640 very normal,

00:20:27.140 quiet,

00:20:28.000 private people,

00:20:29.200 not the kind of people

00:20:30.020 that would be like George.

00:20:31.400 I met him,

00:20:32.960 you know,

00:20:34.700 feels a little old school

00:20:36.240 a little old fashioned,

00:20:37.920 certainly not someone

00:20:38.980 who likes the limelight,

00:20:40.080 very modest man,

00:20:40.940 a Christian man,

00:20:42.560 not the kind of person

00:20:43.600 who should be

00:20:44.060 in a criminal trial.

00:20:45.260 Give me a word about George.

00:20:47.020 Incredibly calm,

00:20:47.880 I noticed.

00:20:48.960 Determined,

00:20:49.480 sure,

00:20:50.020 absolutely,

00:20:50.920 but I just remember

00:20:51.900 the way he would

00:20:52.560 compose himself

00:20:53.100 through the entirety

00:20:53.800 of when I saw him

00:20:55.340 at Coutts demonstrations

00:20:56.820 or the blockade demonstrations

00:20:57.920 is he was a very

00:20:59.680 collected individual,

00:21:00.860 very peaceful

00:21:01.360 by all accounts.

00:21:02.580 I think at one moment,

00:21:03.340 and this was many individuals

00:21:04.940 had done this,

00:21:05.780 where he was like,

00:21:06.560 you know,

00:21:06.660 let's pray,

00:21:07.200 let's lead a prayer here.

00:21:08.620 These are religious individuals.

00:21:10.860 They're regular

00:21:11.420 Southern Albertans.

00:21:13.040 There's nothing of them

00:21:15.180 in any capacity

00:21:15.940 that I saw spoke

00:21:16.960 to them being violent

00:21:18.420 or malicious

00:21:18.920 in any regard.

00:21:19.680 Even as Marco

00:21:22.020 had suggested

00:21:22.600 when he made a speech here,

00:21:24.200 it was that,

00:21:24.560 you know,

00:21:24.760 thank you officers

00:21:25.640 for being here.

00:21:26.260 We understand there's,

00:21:27.120 you know,

00:21:27.620 a bit of turbulence

00:21:29.520 in the situation,

00:21:30.400 but this is a part

00:21:32.000 of the system

00:21:32.520 is to have law enforcement

00:21:33.420 and we are thankful

00:21:35.200 to everybody

00:21:35.920 in this situation.

00:21:37.240 You know what?

00:21:37.940 I'm Jewish

00:21:38.940 and so our Old Testament

00:21:40.100 is a little bit different

00:21:41.040 than the New Testament.

00:21:41.940 New Testament has a lot

00:21:42.780 of turn the other cheek,

00:21:44.140 you know,

00:21:44.740 talk about love.

00:21:47.240 That's one of the things

00:21:48.060 that makes Christianity

00:21:48.960 so important

00:21:51.180 and so successful

00:21:52.060 and so valuable.

00:21:54.000 Judaism,

00:21:54.700 the Old Testament

00:21:55.620 is a little bit more

00:21:56.380 fire and brimstone

00:21:57.220 and there was a real

00:22:00.540 Christian flair here today.

00:22:02.240 Not a flair,

00:22:03.040 but a Christian kindness

00:22:05.320 and I respect it,

00:22:07.760 but I have to say

00:22:08.900 I don't share it, Sid.

00:22:10.720 This praising of the police

00:22:12.680 and I know that's

00:22:14.720 the right thing,

00:22:15.480 that's the noble way to be,

00:22:16.920 but I saw some RCMP liaison

00:22:20.100 officers bantering

00:22:22.100 with the protesters

00:22:23.640 and you told me

00:22:25.400 that those were the same

00:22:26.500 RCMP tricksters,

00:22:29.320 the dirty tricksters

00:22:30.300 who were negotiating

00:22:31.200 in bad faith

00:22:31.960 with the truckers

00:22:32.780 in coots.

00:22:33.900 They're the ones

00:22:34.700 who were collecting

00:22:35.560 intelligence on the truckers

00:22:37.080 to feed to the prosecutors

00:22:38.960 to give them,

00:22:40.280 those liaison officers

00:22:42.400 are likely going to be

00:22:43.640 witnesses in this trial

00:22:44.840 and there's just something,

00:22:46.220 listen,

00:22:46.420 I love Christians

00:22:47.100 and I love the Christian mindset,

00:22:49.200 but there's something about

00:22:50.760 like joking and bantering

00:22:52.920 and we respect you

00:22:54.360 kind of talk

00:22:55.200 to RCMP officers

00:22:57.600 whose mission even today

00:23:00.060 is to get every scrap

00:23:01.700 of intelligence

00:23:02.400 to put these truckers 0.91

00:23:03.900 behind bars

00:23:04.580 for up to 10 years.

00:23:05.660 I just don't have that

00:23:06.980 milk of human kindness

00:23:07.980 in me, Sid.

00:23:08.820 Maybe it's nothing to do

00:23:10.300 with religion,

00:23:10.840 maybe it's just my

00:23:11.660 quarrelsome personality,

00:23:13.340 but I did not like

00:23:14.560 that chumminess 0.92

00:23:15.420 with the police snitches

00:23:18.080 and spies

00:23:18.700 who are trying to put

00:23:19.440 these truckers away.

00:23:20.680 I've just built different, Sid.

00:23:22.380 Well, I think,

00:23:23.020 and I implied

00:23:23.700 that they respect the police

00:23:24.580 and that could very well

00:23:25.540 be a fair statement,

00:23:26.800 but more to the point

00:23:27.880 is they appreciate

00:23:29.580 the stance of the cops.

00:23:31.200 They don't let them

00:23:31.880 off the hook, though.

00:23:32.960 That's the thing,

00:23:33.600 is they hold the police

00:23:34.500 accountable to their words.

00:23:35.820 Now, the problem you allude to

00:23:37.060 is the fact that they are

00:23:37.720 literally walking CCTV cameras

00:23:39.420 gathering evidence

00:23:40.860 and information against them,

00:23:42.320 but a part of this, too,

00:23:44.140 is the fact that

00:23:44.740 a lot of the blockade supporters,

00:23:46.520 those who were

00:23:46.900 at the demonstrations,

00:23:48.040 they don't have anything to hide.

00:23:49.160 That's a good point,

00:23:50.620 but, you know,

00:23:52.020 the head of the,

00:23:53.000 one of the founders

00:23:53.560 of the KGB said,

00:23:54.920 show me the man

00:23:55.660 and I'll find you the crime.

00:23:58.080 And that's the thing

00:23:59.100 about what I've discovered

00:24:00.400 is if they can put

00:24:01.220 Tamara Leach in prison,

00:24:02.760 if they can put

00:24:03.380 Arthur Pawlowski in prison,

00:24:04.780 neither of which

00:24:05.280 who's ever had a trial

00:24:06.380 on the merits of their case,

00:24:08.720 if they can put a pastor

00:24:10.940 and a Métis grandma

00:24:12.400 in prison for a month

00:24:13.740 and a half without trial,

00:24:16.100 show me the man,

00:24:16.760 I'll find you the crime,

00:24:17.560 these cops can put anyone 0.90

00:24:18.800 in jail.

00:24:20.280 And it's really rocked

00:24:21.560 my faith in the judicial system

00:24:23.800 and the Charter of Rights

00:24:24.600 and Freedoms.

00:24:25.060 And I say this as someone,

00:24:26.540 when I was in law school,

00:24:27.460 we were taught

00:24:27.900 that the Charter of Rights

00:24:28.860 was the highest document

00:24:31.300 in the country,

00:24:32.340 tantamount to the Bible

00:24:34.060 for lawyers,

00:24:34.700 and it's proved

00:24:35.160 to be worthless.

00:24:36.960 Listen,

00:24:37.300 I'm going to maintain

00:24:39.120 a keen interest in this

00:24:40.320 because it's a terrible story.

00:24:42.480 We have to help these men.

00:24:44.680 We made a promise

00:24:45.780 to help them.

00:24:46.400 We have to keep that promise.

00:24:47.720 The promise was

00:24:48.380 to crowdfund their legals.

00:24:49.960 We have to do that.

00:24:51.320 But it's also a political story

00:24:53.000 in that these officers,

00:24:55.360 these RCMP,

00:24:56.160 there's Trudeau's cops,

00:24:58.300 Brenda Luckey's cops, 0.97

00:24:59.860 and you have

00:25:00.760 Jason Kenney's prosecutor,

00:25:03.100 and Trudeau's cops

00:25:04.620 and Brenda Luckey

00:25:05.320 have been discredited,

00:25:06.840 and Jason Kenney

00:25:08.380 has been defenestrated,

00:25:10.200 and you've got

00:25:10.760 a new premier,

00:25:11.420 Danielle Smith,

00:25:12.660 and we will stand

00:25:14.520 with these truckers

00:25:15.200 and fight with them,

00:25:16.160 but the right thing

00:25:17.420 would be for

00:25:18.480 the prosecutor to say,

00:25:20.300 you know what,

00:25:20.600 this is not in the public interest,

00:25:22.160 we are not going to proceed,

00:25:23.340 and I have hope

00:25:24.280 that the new premier of Alberta

00:25:25.820 will call off this show trial.

00:25:27.620 Well,

00:25:27.880 and September 16th,

00:25:29.460 I believe,

00:25:29.780 is when the RCMP

00:25:30.480 laid these charges,

00:25:31.380 the three charges of mischief,

00:25:32.680 and they alleged

00:25:33.360 that these guys

00:25:33.840 were the key participants

00:25:34.680 of the Coutts blockade,

00:25:35.860 or in other words,

00:25:36.500 they alleged that

00:25:37.080 they were involved

00:25:37.620 in a peaceful protest,

00:25:38.740 and now they're getting charged,

00:25:39.860 and the punishment

00:25:41.660 which seems to be sought after

00:25:43.300 by the prosecutor

00:25:43.920 is the 10 years in prison.

00:25:45.400 Is this the standard

00:25:46.300 we want to set?

00:25:47.380 Yeah,

00:25:47.580 well,

00:25:47.700 as I mentioned earlier,

00:25:48.640 one of these same prosecutors

00:25:49.780 asked for four and a half years

00:25:51.360 for a rape,

00:25:52.720 a rapist,

00:25:53.820 so he obviously thinks

00:25:54.760 peaceful protest is worse.

00:25:56.460 Well,

00:25:56.900 Sid,

00:25:57.200 I mean,

00:25:57.420 I was glad to be down here,

00:25:59.100 I flew in and drove down,

00:26:00.980 and I know you guys

00:26:02.420 got up super early

00:26:03.500 this morning

00:26:04.280 because the convoy

00:26:06.380 had come in

00:26:07.040 from out of town,

00:26:08.020 I really appreciate you

00:26:09.500 following this file.

00:26:10.880 I think you have to

00:26:12.180 continue following this.

00:26:13.840 I'm going to try and come

00:26:14.920 for some of the court dates

00:26:16.440 arising.

00:26:17.280 The next one on December 12th,

00:26:18.640 again,

00:26:19.020 it's going to be

00:26:19.460 a 10-minute court hearing.

00:26:21.220 I'm not sure if I'll come in

00:26:22.060 just for that,

00:26:22.660 but we have to cover

00:26:24.040 everything like that.

00:26:25.400 We have to also tell the story

00:26:27.600 of who these men are.

00:26:28.940 One of the ways

00:26:29.760 we've been successful

00:26:30.600 in fighting for Arthur Pawlowski

00:26:32.060 is to let people know

00:26:33.020 who he is.

00:26:34.160 That in the case of

00:26:35.300 Pastor Arthur,

00:26:36.020 he's noisy,

00:26:36.880 he, you know,

00:26:38.840 he speaks

00:26:39.440 with firm words.

00:26:42.480 Like, he's a little bit

00:26:43.100 Old Testament in his style,

00:26:44.440 frankly.

00:26:45.640 He talks about lions

00:26:46.960 versus jackals and hyenas.

00:26:48.460 I like it.

00:26:49.140 He's a tough guy,

00:26:50.220 but he's very peaceful

00:26:51.420 and nonviolent, obviously.

00:26:53.320 People have come to know

00:26:54.320 Arthur Pawlowski,

00:26:55.280 and so they've come to know

00:26:55.980 the charges against him

00:26:56.960 were outrageous.

00:26:58.360 We have to let the world know

00:27:00.380 about these three men

00:27:01.800 who I've only just met today,

00:27:03.620 Alex, Marco, and George.

00:27:05.520 We have to tell the story

00:27:07.120 to prove to the world

00:27:08.700 in the court of public opinion

00:27:09.980 that they are regular people.

00:27:12.500 Chad Williamson will do his job

00:27:14.220 in the court of law.

00:27:15.620 You have to do the job,

00:27:17.020 you and the rest of the rebel team,

00:27:18.280 in the court of public opinion.

00:27:19.980 Show the world

00:27:20.640 who these men really are.

00:27:22.240 Show what really happened in Coutts.

00:27:24.200 Help us crowdfund the lawyer,

00:27:25.800 and let's see if we can get justice

00:27:27.520 because the idea that these men

00:27:29.540 would be put in prison

00:27:30.360 for 10 years

00:27:31.040 is not a Canadian idea.

00:27:32.800 That is a Soviet idea. 0.77

00:27:35.020 Last word to you, Sid.

00:27:35.940 Well, two things that come to mind

00:27:37.480 is you mentioned,

00:27:38.340 well, Chad Williamson,

00:27:39.440 I think, is by far

00:27:40.280 the best legal representation.

00:27:42.280 Williamson Law is the best group

00:27:43.800 to represent these guys

00:27:44.640 because, and as you mentioned

00:27:46.220 earlier today,

00:27:46.860 is that they were there.

00:27:47.900 They were the mitigators

00:27:48.660 between the RCMP

00:27:49.480 and protesters at the time.

00:27:50.780 They were there representing

00:27:51.740 these protesters

00:27:52.360 from almost day one,

00:27:54.300 and I think there's

00:27:55.400 no better candidate than that.

00:27:56.340 And as well, lastly,

00:27:57.480 I'll mention Arthur Pawlowski.

00:27:58.380 I think his longest time

00:28:00.880 spent in jail,

00:28:01.520 the 51 days,

00:28:02.900 was in relation

00:28:04.080 to the Coutts blockade

00:28:05.020 and him allegedly inciting

00:28:06.840 protesters to block the highway.

00:28:08.200 So who's the leader here?

00:28:09.480 You know, who are they going after?

00:28:10.980 And months later,

00:28:12.100 they're going to charge them

00:28:12.880 with mischief charges

00:28:15.040 and allege them

00:28:16.040 to be key participants.

00:28:16.980 Do they even know

00:28:17.740 what they're doing at this point

00:28:18.660 is my big question.

00:28:19.620 That's a great point.

00:28:20.240 I was talking to Sarah Miller,

00:28:21.320 Arthur's lawyer,

00:28:22.180 who says it was

00:28:22.960 the same prosecutor,

00:28:23.940 Stephen Johnston,

00:28:24.720 who was demanding

00:28:25.920 that Arthur be kept in prison.

00:28:27.560 He is a bad apple

00:28:29.700 and he's rotting the bunch.

00:28:31.220 And you know what?

00:28:32.120 Stephen Johnston,

00:28:33.040 this out-of-control,

00:28:34.020 vendetta-driven prosecutor,

00:28:35.640 that's the Jason Kenney

00:28:37.200 Trudeau prosecutor.

00:28:38.720 But there's only so long

00:28:40.020 you can say that.

00:28:41.540 Danielle Smith,

00:28:42.200 if she's premier

00:28:42.700 one month, two month,

00:28:43.620 three, four, five, six months,

00:28:45.360 then this out-of-control

00:28:46.560 prosecution

00:28:47.200 by a vendetta-driven prosecutor

00:28:48.880 is no longer

00:28:49.740 Kenny's guy.

00:28:51.720 Then it becomes

00:28:52.500 Danielle Smith's guy.

00:28:53.480 Now give the new premier

00:28:55.340 a chance to get

00:28:56.160 her feet under her

00:28:56.920 and get control

00:28:58.540 of her ministries.

00:28:59.900 But every day

00:29:01.060 this prosecution continues

00:29:02.640 makes it less

00:29:03.340 a Jason Kenney prosecution

00:29:04.680 and more a Danielle Smith prosecution.

00:29:07.240 I hope she

00:29:07.760 I hope she stays

00:29:10.000 this prosecution,

00:29:11.060 which is her

00:29:11.540 constitutional right

00:29:12.800 as the boss

00:29:13.900 of the Attorney General.

00:29:14.740 Sid, thanks for joining

00:29:15.520 today.

00:29:16.080 Oh, it looks like

00:29:16.520 you had one more thing

00:29:17.000 you want to say.

00:29:17.600 Well, silence speaks volumes

00:29:18.720 and I do hope she speaks.

00:29:20.020 I hope so too.

00:29:20.980 Well, it's good to be down here

00:29:22.240 with my colleagues

00:29:23.000 Mocha Beziergan

00:29:23.680 who's behind the camera

00:29:24.540 and Sidney Fazzard.

00:29:25.740 We've been covering this

00:29:26.740 and I'm happy to be here

00:29:28.280 and I will come back.

00:29:30.360 I'm not sure if I'll be back

00:29:31.380 on the December 12th event

00:29:32.420 just because it's a

00:29:33.160 10-minute court hearing

00:29:34.420 and I'm not sure if I want

00:29:35.280 to make the very large journey

00:29:36.680 just for that.

00:29:37.420 But we will tell

00:29:39.180 these men's stories

00:29:40.400 and we will have a team here.

00:29:41.940 I just don't know

00:29:42.380 if it's going to be me

00:29:42.940 coming in from Toronto.

00:29:45.260 Well, thank you

00:29:45.880 for your support.

00:29:46.640 This trucker convoy

00:29:47.860 is what freed our country.

00:29:50.320 And, you know,

00:29:51.060 we're getting back to life

00:29:52.320 as normal

00:29:53.280 but it wouldn't have been

00:29:54.380 this way were it not

00:29:55.180 for the truckers.

00:29:56.360 And it's vengeance

00:29:57.500 and political comeuppance.

00:30:00.860 That's what is driving

00:30:01.820 this prosecution.

00:30:02.640 We have to document it

00:30:03.640 and we have to stop it.

00:30:05.140 Well, that's it for today

00:30:06.280 on behalf of all of us

00:30:07.500 around the world

00:30:08.140 for Rebel and here

00:30:08.960 in frosty Lethbridge, Alberta

00:30:10.980 to you at home.

00:30:11.720 Good night

00:30:12.060 and keep fighting for freedom.

00:30:14.140 Hey everyone,

00:30:22.340 William Diaz here

00:30:23.020 with Rebel News

00:30:23.880 in Ottawa

00:30:24.260 currently covering

00:30:25.100 the Emergencies Act Inquiry

00:30:26.980 which is taking place

00:30:28.020 from October 13

00:30:29.420 to November 25

00:30:30.640 since in February

00:30:31.860 Justin Trudeau

00:30:32.460 invoked the

00:30:33.020 Emergencies Measures Act

00:30:34.600 on peaceful

00:30:35.540 law-abiding protesters

00:30:36.720 who are protesting

00:30:37.680 the federal COVID-19 mandates.

00:30:39.880 Today I bring you

00:30:40.640 an interview I did

00:30:41.420 with Jim Carajalios

00:30:42.540 leader and co-founder

00:30:43.480 of the New Blue Party

00:30:44.720 of Ontario

00:30:45.260 as he was representing

00:30:46.700 Benjamin Dichter

00:30:48.120 during his testimony.

00:30:50.100 Dichter testified

00:30:50.780 in front of the

00:30:51.320 Public Order

00:30:51.780 and Ministry Commission

00:30:52.500 as he was originally

00:30:53.880 from my understanding

00:30:55.080 one of those

00:30:56.100 who organized

00:30:56.780 the Freedom Convoy

00:30:57.720 at its genesis.

00:30:59.280 Carajalios studied law

00:31:00.440 at the University of Ottawa

00:31:01.580 prior to entering politics

00:31:02.980 and spoke to us

00:31:04.140 about why he decided

00:31:05.340 to represent Dichter

00:31:06.420 during the inquiry

00:31:07.660 what his views are

00:31:08.980 on the Freedom Corp

00:31:09.840 which basically is

00:31:10.960 Tamara Leach,

00:31:11.560 Chris Barber,

00:31:12.180 Tom Muratso notably.

00:31:13.480 He also touched

00:31:14.160 on Dichter's views

00:31:15.160 of his relationship

00:31:16.680 with Tom Muratso

00:31:17.520 and a lot more.

00:31:18.880 Watch how our

00:31:19.720 interview unfolded.

00:31:21.140 What were your

00:31:21.760 general impressions

00:31:22.480 from the testimony

00:31:23.420 and the cross-examination?

00:31:26.520 You know,

00:31:27.120 it was expected

00:31:27.760 what we were going to see

00:31:28.640 from Mr. Dichter.

00:31:30.000 He was in an unfortunate

00:31:31.120 situation of being surrounded.

00:31:32.820 He previously thought

00:31:35.860 he had standing.

00:31:37.020 The convoy corporation,

00:31:40.140 as you heard,

00:31:42.500 kind of let him on

00:31:44.880 telling him that

00:31:45.440 he was going to have standing

00:31:46.260 and then he found out

00:31:48.040 he didn't have standing

00:31:48.800 and he applied

00:31:49.560 to get standing

00:31:50.320 which would have given them

00:31:51.220 the right to cross-examine

00:31:52.160 others.

00:31:52.980 It was dismissed.

00:31:54.100 He applied to have

00:31:54.960 his own lawyer

00:31:55.580 lead the testimony

00:31:56.480 that got dismissed.

00:31:57.900 So he was kind of

00:31:58.380 really surrounded,

00:31:59.260 you know,

00:31:59.520 like most of the other

00:32:00.280 witnesses have parties

00:32:01.940 that are in standing

00:32:02.780 that can back up

00:32:04.840 the witness, right?

00:32:06.140 Yeah.

00:32:06.640 And so he had

00:32:07.300 a particular tough time

00:32:08.340 because every party

00:32:09.600 asking him questions,

00:32:11.160 they were all trying

00:32:12.440 to get at him, right?

00:32:14.300 So a very difficult position

00:32:17.620 he was put in today

00:32:18.560 and I think he did well.

00:32:21.280 It was very unfortunate

00:32:22.260 yesterday listening

00:32:22.960 to Mr. Wilson's testimony

00:32:24.240 and as you heard

00:32:26.260 Mr. Dichter say today

00:32:29.000 that, you know,

00:32:30.340 he heard a rumor

00:32:31.100 that they were going

00:32:31.600 to try to throw him 0.51

00:32:32.220 under the bus

00:32:32.780 and that's what

00:32:34.040 they were doing

00:32:34.460 and the facts were made up

00:32:35.780 to try to make it

00:32:36.900 look that way

00:32:37.420 but we were able

00:32:38.380 to point to evidence

00:32:39.200 that discounted

00:32:40.520 everything Mr. Wilson

00:32:41.260 said yesterday.

00:32:42.120 Why do you think it is

00:32:43.040 that Dichter 1.00

00:32:43.500 didn't have standing

00:32:44.300 unlike everyone else?

00:32:47.280 Because at the time

00:32:48.380 when it was due in June

00:32:49.700 he was under the impression

00:32:52.480 that they were all

00:32:53.240 going to have standing

00:32:53.880 together,

00:32:54.460 the directors of the corporation

00:32:55.740 and his name

00:32:56.320 was left off

00:32:57.020 the application

00:32:57.720 by the Freedom Corporation

00:33:00.380 and he only found out

00:33:01.660 about it by August

00:33:03.800 and so when he tried

00:33:04.740 to apply for standing

00:33:05.680 with Chris Guerra

00:33:06.420 together from Adopt-A-Trucker

00:33:08.120 the commission dismissed it

00:33:10.380 and the convoy organizers

00:33:12.720 and their lawyers

00:33:13.380 really are not representing

00:33:16.120 the original directors

00:33:17.140 because if you look

00:33:19.760 at the standing list

00:33:20.740 the majority of the seven

00:33:22.560 original directors

00:33:23.300 are not listed there.

00:33:24.240 so we don't really know

00:33:25.720 who they're speaking for

00:33:26.600 but they're not speaking

00:33:27.320 for the original directors.

00:33:28.880 And you said that

00:33:29.540 Keith Wilson's testimony

00:33:30.820 yesterday was unfortunate

00:33:31.900 that's what you just said

00:33:32.660 can you elaborate on

00:33:33.520 what you mean by that?

00:33:34.520 Yeah it was terrible

00:33:35.080 he used the word sabotage

00:33:36.800 with regards to Ben

00:33:37.960 he accused Ben

00:33:40.800 or he said that

00:33:42.740 he didn't know

00:33:43.480 what Ben had done

00:33:44.580 with the money

00:33:45.720 that was raised

00:33:46.220 in the Hong Kong

00:33:46.820 Coddle Bitcoin campaign

00:33:48.220 and Keith Wilson

00:33:50.140 was the lawyer for Ben

00:33:51.200 in the class action

00:33:52.020 at the time

00:33:52.580 and he knows full well

00:33:54.380 that all of that Bitcoin money

00:33:55.900 is now being held

00:33:57.120 by the court

00:33:58.720 I shouldn't say money

00:33:59.500 Bitcoin assets

00:34:00.660 are being held by the court

00:34:01.960 in an escrow

00:34:02.760 and Ben cooperated with that

00:34:04.720 but yesterday

00:34:05.220 he made up some facts

00:34:06.220 saying I don't know

00:34:06.740 what happened

00:34:07.140 to the Bitcoin assets

00:34:08.920 it was very unfortunate

00:34:09.860 I don't think anyone

00:34:10.800 when they hire a lawyer

00:34:11.680 they expect to see

00:34:13.100 the lawyer

00:34:13.640 not know the facts

00:34:15.760 of the case

00:34:16.440 and throw their

00:34:17.780 former client

00:34:18.320 under the bus

00:34:18.920 I see

00:34:19.700 what do you think

00:34:20.840 is the reason

00:34:21.240 why some people

00:34:21.980 left Ben

00:34:22.840 out of the decision

00:34:23.620 making process

00:34:24.520 withheld information

00:34:25.760 from him

00:34:26.200 throughout the convoy

00:34:26.960 I think that

00:34:28.480 they were all

00:34:29.660 left out of it

00:34:30.200 I think the evidence

00:34:31.000 that was shown today

00:34:32.520 was that

00:34:33.080 you had Dean French

00:34:33.960 first chief of staff

00:34:35.800 for Doug Ford

00:34:36.400 working with

00:34:37.180 Tom Maratso

00:34:38.300 not an original director

00:34:40.160 a friend of Randy Hilliard's

00:34:42.160 and Keith Wilson

00:34:43.240 and they went off

00:34:44.640 and they tried

00:34:45.060 to do their own thing

00:34:45.840 and the board

00:34:47.140 wasn't at that meeting

00:34:48.000 there's no signature

00:34:50.860 on whatever deal

00:34:52.980 letter was there

00:34:53.920 and there were

00:34:55.780 four people

00:34:56.400 in communications

00:34:57.460 and none of them

00:34:58.340 were briefed

00:34:59.000 so it's very clear

00:35:00.440 to me that they

00:35:00.960 weren't operating

00:35:01.740 on behalf of the board

00:35:04.000 of directors

00:35:04.860 of the Freedom Corporation

00:35:06.040 they had other interests

00:35:08.020 in play

00:35:08.640 I see one last thing

00:35:10.200 you know you're the leader

00:35:11.000 of the New Blue Party

00:35:11.680 I know that you went

00:35:12.260 to law school

00:35:12.740 prior to staff

00:35:13.320 what was the reason

00:35:14.760 why you're the person

00:35:15.780 representing Ben Dichtert's day

00:35:17.980 Ben Dichtert's day

00:35:18.980 instead of someone else

00:35:20.940 for instance

00:35:21.500 I think I'm the best lawyer

00:35:24.540 for it

00:35:24.980 I know the facts

00:35:26.660 very very well

00:35:28.020 and I know what it's like

00:35:29.680 to be surrounded

00:35:30.460 by a bunch of parties

00:35:31.500 and Ben reached out

00:35:33.220 he needed help

00:35:33.840 he was supportive

00:35:36.800 and I don't like

00:35:38.400 to see people

00:35:39.100 getting left behind

00:35:40.340 at the end of the day

00:35:41.140 getting scapegoated

00:35:43.220 thrown under the bus

00:35:44.100 it's very difficult

00:35:45.540 for people

00:35:46.880 in this situation

00:35:48.200 to find a lawyer

00:35:48.900 I mean most lawyers

00:35:50.500 you know

00:35:51.500 are not going to be

00:35:52.040 comfortable representing

00:35:52.880 someone that was

00:35:53.740 involved in the protest

00:35:54.600 and on top of that

00:35:57.020 most lawyers

00:35:57.720 won't know the facts

00:35:58.540 and so he reached out

00:36:00.300 and he needed help

00:36:01.800 and I agreed to come here

00:36:02.960 today to help him out

00:36:04.300 and I'm representing him

00:36:05.740 on the class action

00:36:06.540 as well

00:36:06.960 with Mr. Gera

00:36:07.920 Chris Gera

00:36:08.820 who's the startup

00:36:10.720 the Adopt a Trucker

00:36:11.640 campaign

00:36:12.100 and what did you hope

00:36:13.460 to see come out

00:36:13.980 of his testimony

00:36:14.540 today

00:36:15.000 the truth

00:36:16.220 that's all we can

00:36:17.080 hope that comes out

00:36:18.620 is the truth

00:36:19.800 and he had nothing

00:36:21.020 to hide

00:36:21.420 he pointed to documents

00:36:23.340 we were able

00:36:24.500 to file new evidence

00:36:25.560 it's unfortunate

00:36:26.260 that

00:36:26.680 you know

00:36:28.460 he found out

00:36:29.560 after the fact

00:36:30.440 that

00:36:30.740 he wasn't being represented

00:36:32.260 by the lawyers

00:36:33.240 of the Freedom Corporation

00:36:34.380 at the Inquirer

00:36:35.200 the class action anymore

00:36:36.120 because if he had standing

00:36:37.260 would have given us

00:36:38.520 the opportunity

00:36:39.020 to cross-examine

00:36:39.760 the others

00:36:40.280 both the government

00:36:42.060 of Canada

00:36:42.560 cross-examine

00:36:43.380 Keith Wilson

00:36:44.020 cross-examine

00:36:45.000 many others

00:36:45.720 but he wasn't given

00:36:46.820 that opportunity

00:36:47.380 so we did

00:36:48.020 the best we could

00:36:49.020 in the limited time

00:36:49.700 we had

00:36:50.100 to get the truth out

00:36:51.920 for a witness

00:36:53.420 who obviously

00:36:55.400 put in a lot of time

00:36:56.440 had a broken ankle

00:36:58.260 a car crash

00:36:59.100 didn't get anything

00:37:00.360 out of it

00:37:00.860 and is getting thrown

00:37:01.680 under the bus

00:37:02.400 by Doug Ford's

00:37:04.920 buddy Dean French

00:37:05.780 by Keith Wilson

00:37:07.200 who endorsed

00:37:07.800 Jason Kennedy

00:37:08.440 to be the premier

00:37:09.120 of Alberta

00:37:09.640 we all know

00:37:10.100 how that went

00:37:10.680 turned out

00:37:11.400 and by Tom Maratzo

00:37:13.320 who's friends

00:37:13.900 with Randy Hillier

00:37:14.700 and I think you

00:37:15.960 followed very closely

00:37:16.920 all the work

00:37:17.480 that Randy Hillier

00:37:18.180 did in Ontario

00:37:18.900 to undermine

00:37:19.440 the new blue party

00:37:20.180 so these guys

00:37:20.780 have ulterior

00:37:21.520 political agendas

00:37:22.460 and they like

00:37:24.780 piling on

00:37:25.560 people like

00:37:26.800 Ben Dichter

00:37:27.440 and others

00:37:29.220 and they like

00:37:30.340 to corner people

00:37:31.500 in defenseless situations

00:37:33.200 the way they teamed up

00:37:34.580 on my wife

00:37:35.100 when she was

00:37:35.600 in the legislature

00:37:36.620 and never gave her

00:37:38.020 any support

00:37:38.640 never gave her

00:37:39.340 any backup

00:37:39.840 and you know

00:37:42.000 we got the JCCF

00:37:43.140 and the head

00:37:43.560 of the JCCF

00:37:44.340 chairman of the board

00:37:45.000 is Tonya Granik

00:37:45.680 Allen's husband

00:37:46.200 and you know

00:37:46.740 not a supporter

00:37:47.820 of the new blue party

00:37:48.520 so what their motivations are

00:37:50.660 it was pretty obvious

00:37:51.460 when you see that line

00:37:52.400 in the email

00:37:52.880 from Keith Wilson

00:37:53.620 saying Trudeau

00:37:54.760 is going to be pissed

00:37:56.200 he's got other interests

00:37:58.020 he's trying to pin

00:37:58.940 all the mandates

00:37:59.660 on Justin Trudeau

00:38:00.620 Dean French

00:38:02.000 helping his friend

00:38:03.160 Doug Ford

00:38:03.680 so everyone forgets

00:38:04.680 that a lot of the mandates

00:38:05.680 were against Doug Ford

00:38:07.000 and they're driven

00:38:09.220 by politics

00:38:09.980 and today

00:38:10.560 we had to cram

00:38:12.100 as much as we could

00:38:12.860 in three hours

00:38:13.780 to get the truth out

00:38:14.760 so that they

00:38:16.020 couldn't walk away

00:38:16.840 out of this

00:38:17.320 throwing Ben under the bus

00:38:18.380 and how do you think

00:38:19.320 the whole inquiry

00:38:19.940 is going

00:38:20.220 last question

00:38:20.760 how do you think

00:38:21.140 the whole inquiry

00:38:21.720 do you think

00:38:22.140 we're seeing

00:38:23.120 a justification

00:38:23.880 for the invocation

00:38:24.880 of the Emergencies Act

00:38:25.620 of course not

00:38:26.720 it's unfortunate

00:38:29.760 the way the inquiry

00:38:30.500 is going

00:38:30.760 because I think

00:38:31.180 there's close to

00:38:31.660 20 parties

00:38:32.340 that have standing

00:38:33.280 and you really

00:38:34.680 only have one party

00:38:35.860 that's representing

00:38:37.560 the Convoy Corporation

00:38:38.820 and Chris Guerra

00:38:40.300 is not part of that

00:38:41.080 who started up

00:38:42.040 Adopt-a-Trucker

00:38:42.760 Ben Dichter

00:38:43.460 who you heard today

00:38:44.660 was the spokesperson

00:38:45.380 of the corporation

00:38:46.920 he's not part of it

00:38:48.800 Chad Eros

00:38:50.120 who Keith Wilson

00:38:51.800 threw under the bus

00:38:52.500 yesterday

00:38:52.880 was the treasurer

00:38:53.720 he's not part of it

00:38:55.060 and the inquiry

00:38:56.460 has only given

00:38:57.000 one position

00:38:58.660 of standing

00:38:59.220 to the protesters

00:39:00.440 right

00:39:00.920 so they want it

00:39:02.340 both ways

00:39:02.820 they want to say

00:39:03.480 in the inquiry

00:39:04.120 there was all these

00:39:04.780 different groups

00:39:05.520 and it was out of control

00:39:07.560 but then when it comes

00:39:08.800 to giving them

00:39:09.420 a seat at the table

00:39:10.280 they're only giving

00:39:11.560 one view

00:39:12.560 and that's the view

00:39:13.560 of Keith Wilson

00:39:14.220 and Tamara Leach

00:39:16.120 who's under a lot

00:39:16.700 of pressure

00:39:17.160 it would have been

00:39:18.600 nice to see

00:39:19.260 two or three other

00:39:20.200 parties given standing

00:39:21.640 we did everything

00:39:22.780 we could

00:39:23.320 to balance

00:39:24.100 the scales

00:39:24.680 here

00:39:24.940 to get

00:39:25.360 the other

00:39:25.760 narrative out

00:39:26.420 the story

00:39:27.340 of Chris Guerra

00:39:27.940 the story

00:39:28.520 of Ben Dichter

00:39:29.320 we applied

00:39:30.920 for standing

00:39:31.500 late

00:39:31.880 when both

00:39:33.000 those individuals

00:39:33.600 found out

00:39:34.040 they weren't

00:39:34.440 going to be

00:39:34.740 included

00:39:35.060 in the decision

00:39:35.580 making

00:39:35.880 we applied

00:39:37.140 to have

00:39:37.920 Ben's

00:39:39.440 evidence

00:39:40.020 led by me

00:39:40.820 both of those

00:39:42.180 things were dismissed

00:39:42.940 I'm grateful

00:39:43.960 that the commissioner

00:39:44.560 gave me extra time

00:39:45.500 today

00:39:45.780 to get to the

00:39:46.560 bottom of some

00:39:47.040 stuff

00:39:47.260 but we only

00:39:47.840 had three hours

00:39:48.520 and this inquiry

00:39:49.840 is going to focus

00:39:50.460 most of its time

00:39:51.540 on the government

00:39:52.820 players

00:39:54.180 and only a limited

00:39:56.340 time

00:39:57.060 for those

00:39:58.420 who were there

00:39:59.840 on the ground

00:40:00.300 in the beginning

00:40:00.800 the first seven days

00:40:01.840 before they got

00:40:02.800 pushed aside

00:40:03.340 by others

00:40:03.820 that had

00:40:04.140 political objectives

00:40:05.120 this version of event

00:40:06.600 is quite different

00:40:07.460 from what Tom Ratton

00:40:08.600 and Keith Wilson

00:40:09.300 recalled during

00:40:10.680 their testimony

00:40:11.320 while convoy lawyer

00:40:12.960 Brendan Miller

00:40:13.780 cross-examined

00:40:14.940 Ben Dichter

00:40:15.580 everyone could clearly

00:40:16.800 see the tension

00:40:17.720 the inquiry

00:40:18.860 will be continuing

00:40:19.780 for nearly

00:40:20.540 three more weeks

00:40:21.620 Dichter and his

00:40:22.580 counsel

00:40:22.940 Karajalios

00:40:23.640 were not given

00:40:24.480 standing by the commission

00:40:25.660 which means

00:40:26.600 they will not be allowed

00:40:27.800 to cross-examine

00:40:28.900 any other witnesses

00:40:30.380 who will be appearing

00:40:31.720 on the stand

00:40:32.540 thank you for watching

00:40:33.860 this was William Diaz

00:40:35.180 here with Rebel News

Rebel News Podcast - November 05, 2022

LEVANT： Three peaceful Coutts trucker protesters who are now facing 10 years in prison

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