(OTTAWA) The lawyer for the organizers of the “freedom convoy”, Brendan Miller, was expelled from the room where the Commission on the state of emergency is being held after questioning the authority of Judge Paul Rouleau.
The judge asked security to come and escort him back from a late morning break, but the lawyer ended up leaving the room on his own. The Minister of Public Security, Marco Mendicino, was then to continue his testimony.
A spat had taken place between Me Miller and Judge Rouleau just before the break. The lawyer made an oral request to have Minister Mendicino’s press secretary, Alex Cohen, testify immediately after his boss.
PHOTO ADRIAN WYLD, THE CANADIAN PRESS ARCHIVES
Judge Paul Rouleau
He believes that the latter wanted to portray the demonstrators as extremists who waved Nazi flags in the media, based on text messages already presented in evidence to the commission. The judge refused to hear his oral request, recommended that he agree with the commission’s attorneys to make his request in writing and reminded him that he had a tight schedule to respect. “Sir, the schedule is not as important as getting the truth,” exclaimed Mr.e Miller.
“There is no doubt that we want to get the truth, replied the judge of the tac au tac. It’s a very complex question and it’s not just about what you want. It’s about what the commission has to do. »
The lawyer returned to the charge after the break and accused the magistrate of having refused several of his requests to remove the redaction of certain documents. The judge then decided to deport him.