The 11 vegan activists who entered a Saint-Hyacinthe pigsty and occupied the premises for a few hours in December 2019 were convicted of breaking and entering on Thursday.
Posted at 5:00 a.m.
Lawyers for the defendants tried to argue during the trial in October that entering the pigsty was the only way for the protesters to show and denounce the conditions in which the animals were kept. Judge Marco Labrie, of the Court of Quebec, did not accept their arguments and argued that the co-defendants could have asserted their rights in a public place.
The Crown, for its part, argued that the activists had committed wrongdoing during their sit in. They would have disturbed a thermostat, left doors open and poured water into a generator, argued the prosecutor. However, the judge was not convinced beyond a reasonable doubt that these acts had been committed by the activists.
He said, however, that the protesters were indeed guilty of breaking and entering causing mischief, as they prevented farm workers and owners from accessing the herds. The defendants – ten women and one man – were also found guilty of obstructing the work of a peace officer. Another defendant, a minor, faces the same charges in the Youth Division.
“It is a decision which comes to say that expressing disagreement is legal, but that freedom of expression and the right to demonstrate, there are limits when it involves the commission of a criminal offense”, said M.and Émilie Gadbois, Crown prosecutor responsible for the file, on the telephone.
One of the defense attorneys, Mr.and Gary Martin, argued that the sole purpose of the protesters was to “communicate the distress of animals”. “The main point, that the animals were eating from their own excrement, was not even addressed. The goal [des militants]it was to denounce this situation,” the lawyer told The Press.
Mand Martin does not know if he will appeal the case. He intends to study the judgment and consult the defendants before making a decision.
Penalty to be determined
Lison Primas, who was among the co-defendants, said she was disappointed, but not surprised when she left the Saint-Hyacinthe courthouse. “We relied mainly on the intention behind the gesture. There were no bad intentions. It was to bring to light a situation a bit like whistleblowers, ”explained the anti-species activist in a calm voice, on the phone.
Following the decision rendered in the morning, the Union of Agricultural Producers (UPA) recalled that visitors who enter an animal farm must submit to a strict protocol to avoid putting the livestock at risk. ” [Ce jugement] must send the message that there are places and times to protest. But walking in and disrupting farm operations is clearly not the way people should make their voices heard,” Ms.and Rémi Jolicoeur, UPA litigation lawyer.
Anne Bartosek, James Christopher Clapis, Jennifer Donovan, Anne Gibouleau, Susan Jennifer McQueen, Cassey Croteau Phaneuf, Lison Primas, Cheryl-Lee Trottier, Valérie Trottier-Harrison, Ann Valerio and Sarah Wells will return to court at a later date , to know their sorrow.
They face up to ten years in prison for breaking into the farm and up to two years in prison for obstructing the work of a peace officer.