The Public Prosecution Service of Canada (PPSC) has terminated the private criminal prosecution filed on Roxham Road against the Prime Minister of Canada by the former contender for the leadership of the Parti Québécois (PQ), Frédéric Bastien, who argues that Justin Trudeau broke the law by encouraging “illegal immigration” to the country.
This decision was made by the federal Crown because there was neither “sufficient evidence” to support the prosecution, the PPSC said in a statement released Monday, nor a “reasonable prospect” of successfully convicting Justin Trudeau.
Mr. Bastien, who also teaches history at Dawson College in Montreal, had signed his criminal information in January. A lawsuit is called “private” when it is initiated by an individual and does not stem from the recommendations of a police force.
The private tip was based on two public statements attributed to the Canadian prime minister.
First, one of his tweets dated January 27, 2017, in which he allegedly violated the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA) “by illegally aiding, inducing or encouraging several people to enter Canada”, may -we read in the press release.
That day, the Prime Minister wrote on his Twitter account: “To those fleeing persecution, terror and war, know that Canada will welcome you…”. The tweet followed announcements by Donald Trump, then President of the United States, indicating that he would take more coercive measures to deport immigrants from American soil. Many have attributed the growing migratory flow to Roxham Road to this statement by Mr. Trudeau.
To those fleeing persecution, terror and war, know that Canada will welcome you…
— Justin Trudeau (@JustinTrudeau) January 28, 2017
According to the private prosecution, this message violated section 117 of the IRPA which provides that “no person shall arrange for the entry into Canada of one or more persons or induce, assist or encourage them to enter it knowing that their entry is or would be in contravention of this Act or reckless to that fact. »
Then, Mr. Bastien’s information also referred to comments made by Mr. Trudeau in May 2022 in which he “allegedly unlawfully communicated false and misleading information with a view to encouraging immigration to Canada, contrary to the IRPA “Summarizes the SPPC. These are his words that the closure of Roxham Road would not change anything, “because people would go elsewhere,” said Mr. Bastien.
On Monday, the historian also denounced the fact that during the hearing in the Court of Quebec in the morning, he was not authorized to speak and was unable to file his evidence: “I was not questioned on the facts that I alleged and could not explain why there was a violation of the law. When an immigrant crosses the border, he has the right to a hearing before the judge. “Me, I was not entitled to it. They should have at least let the judge question me. It’s ‘double standards’,” he said indignantly in an interview. According to him, there is “appearance of bias. »
The law allows the federal Crown to terminate a private prosecution at this stage. The analysis of the evidence had already been done, said a spokesperson for the PPSC.
Mr. Bastien says he is considering the possibility of an appeal of this stay of proceedings.
In its press release, the federal Crown explains that it receives and handles private complaints from citizens, but will suspend them if, after examination, “there is not sufficient evidence or if it is not in the public interest to move forward. What was his conclusion on the denunciation of Mr. Bastien.