Tyson Billings walked out of the Ottawa courthouse waving a Canadian flag on Wednesday, to thunderous cheers and horns, after pleading guilty to a Freedom Convoy-related charge.
“Freedom George” pleaded guilty to counseling to commit mischief, related to his participation in the protest that paralyzed part of downtown Ottawa in February. He was sentenced to a prison term equivalent to the days already spent in preventive detention since February, on the condition of not disturbing public order. He will also have to respect a probationary period of six months.
Nicknamed “Freedom George” by his fellow protesters, Tyson Billings spent 116 days in jail before pleading guilty to counseling to commit mischief. In exchange for that plea, the Crown dropped other charges, including intimidation, obstructing police work, mischief and disobeying a court order.
Crown prosecutor Moiz Karimjee told the court he could have sought to prove the other allegations against Mr Billings and asked for a longer prison sentence, but he chose not to do so given the fact that this accused is the first actor in the convoy to accept responsibility for his actions. The prosecutor was also careful to point out that the accused was not one of the leaders of these demonstrations.
“I regret nothing: I am a freedom fighter,” Mr. Billings said in front of the Ottawa courthouse, a few minutes after his release, under the encouragement of about fifty sympathizers, some of whom had participated with him at the February demonstrations.
Tyson Billings has been a key figure in the three weeks of protests against mandatory health measures aimed at curbing the spread of COVID-19 — but also against the federal government in general.
Protesters in heavy trucks blocked the streets for weeks, setting up camps, forcing small businesses to close and sparking a feeling in downtown Ottawa described as “lawlessness” by police and politicians.
According to an agreed statement of facts read aloud in court, Mr. Billings had appeared in social media videos disobeying police checkpoints erected to prevent protesters from entering downtown Ottawa and encouraging others to foil checkpoints as well. Mr Billings had also recorded himself in videos where he held a belligerent speech towards the police and encouraged other protesters to hold their ground.
“I got carried away by events, of course — who wouldn’t? Mr. Billings said as he left court. ” I regret nothing. »
Before being released by the court, Mr Billings listened to the court proceedings from the dock, his arms crossed over a black t-shirt that read “Fear God, not COVID”.
Mr. Billings was initially co-accused in this trial with one of the main organizers of the protests, Pat King. Now that the other charges against Mr. Billings have been dropped, Mr. King will face those charges alone and his trial is expected to go ahead as scheduled.