Trial of key convoy figures Lich, Barber nears end of the road
Closing arguments start this morning in the trial of key Freedom Convoy fig‐ ures Tamara Lich and Chris Barber - the beginning of the end for a slow-rolling legal drama that began two and a half years ago.
For the accused, it's been a long and uncertain road that keeps leading them back to Ottawa.
"For a city that sure does‐ n't want me to be here, would like to get rid of me forever, they can't seem to let me go," Lich, 50, told CBC News from her home in Med‐ icine Hat, Alta., earlier this year. "Like, they won't let me leave."
Lich and Barber are jointly accused in connection with their roles in the 2022 protest that clogged Ottawa's downtown core and prompted the federal gov‐ ernment to invoke the Emer‐ gencies Act, an unpreceden‐ ted move.
Despite efforts by all par‐ ties to keep the trial focused, the sidewalks outside Ot‐ tawa's Court of Justice have become a forum for protests by both supporters and op‐ ponents of vaccine man‐ dates.
Barber, 48, who has made several trips to the capital from his home in Swift Cur‐ rent, Sask., since 2023, said he's baffled by the slow "wheels of justice."
"I've never been in the law before, I've never been in the back of a police car, I've never been in custody, never had handcuffs on in my life until 2022," he told CBC.
He and Lich are charged with committing mischief, obstructing police, coun‐ selling others to commit mis‐ chief and intimidation.
If convicted, the two could face up to ten years behind bars.
The defence team - back‐ ed by well-funded libertarian and right-wing organizations - has signaled that it would appeal a guilty verdict. The Crown also could appeal if Lich and Barber are found not guilty.
Both Barber and Lich have said they expect to re‐ turn to Ottawa many more times in the months and years to come.
Accused acted together during protest: Crown
One aspect that has made this trial unlike other misde‐ meanor-type trials is the prosecution's attempt to use the same set of evidence against both Barber and Lich.
Through what's known as a Carter application, the Crown is seeking the court's permission to use its evi‐ dence against Barber in its case against Lich.
While the two co-accused have become close acquain‐ tances and have shared legal and fundraising resources, they've always had different public personas - with Barber taking on a more provoca‐ tive, aggressive tone in his social media statements dur‐ ing the 2022 protest than Lich.
Crown prosecutors are re‐ lying on videos to demon‐ strate that Lich and Barber had control and influence over the protest in their ca‐ pacity as leaders.
On different occasions, the two urged supporters to come to the city's designated "red zone" surrounding Par‐ liament Hill after authorities had told people not to do so.
Prosecutors showed court a recording of a Feb. 14 press conference during which Lich promised the protest would stay peaceful even as the federal government was preparing to use the Emer‐ gencies Act to clear the streets.
"No matter what you do, we will hold the line," Lich said in the video.
But the court saw more instances of Barber's social media.
He was arrested with his cellphone and text messages found on it were used as evi‐ dence against him. The police never got Lich's phone; on the advice of lawyers, she left it behind before her ar‐ rest.
Police were able to pull for Crown prosecutors text messages Barber sent to supporters. In one, he told a supporter the protest was "to cause grief," and in a text to a different recipient, Barber said protesters had "train‐ wrecked traffic" after their ar‐ rival in the city.
telling them the protest is "to cause grief" and that they "trainwrecked traffic" after the convoy's arrival in the city.
Some of those watching the trial said they sense there is a stronger argument for convicting Barber. They said having evidence against him apply to Lich would strength‐ en the Crown's chances of winning - if it can convince the court to approve the Carter application.
High-flying defence
Although the trial took nearly a calendar year to reach this point, defence lawyers for Lich and Barber didn't call any evidence after the Crown closed its case.
They did object fre‐ quently, however, trying to poke holes in the prosecu‐ tor's case at every turn.
Backed by The Democracy Fund (TDF) and the Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms (JFFC), the two ac‐ cused have been able to cov‐ er a legal bill that is creeping towards $750,000.
Closing presents final chance to amplify argu‐ ments
This week's closing argumen‐ ts provide an opportunity for both parties to refocus the court's attention after a lengthy hiatus and some le‐ gal back-and-forth.
In the months prior, both the Crown and the defence engaged in various side argu‐ ments, known as voir dires, to hash out legal theories and what can or can't be ad‐ mitted as evidence.
It all led to a jagged narra‐ tive that was at times hard to follow for observers - like try‐ ing to follow a movie with a commercial interruption every few minutes.
The trial has gone on for so long that some in the courthouse have taken to calling it the "trial of the cen‐ tury."
Several other convoy-re‐ lated trials have already come and gone. Those that resulted in guilty findings typ‐ ically did not come with jail time. Instead, the courts have leaned on probation in more than one case.
In the event of a guilty de‐ cision, the Crown might cite victim impact statements to call for a more severe penalty.
Whatever happens, this won't be Lich and Barber's fi‐ nal trip to Ottawa. Not by a long shot.