Located near the Canadian Parliament, in Ottawa, the Supreme Court of Canada is generally a haven of peace and serenity. The vast entrance hall is sober and elegant. The main courtroom, paneled in black walnut panels, oozes decorum.
On August 8, 1989, however, this worthy institution was the site of a real twist, a turnaround that amazed judges, lawyers and journalists. On this day, Chantale Daigle must ask the Supreme Court to break the injunction which prevents her from having an abortion.
The case is so urgent and important that Chief Justice Brian Dickson recalled several judges from vacation to present a full bench to hear arguments from counsel for both sides.
It’s a chilly morning. On the lawn, in front of the Supreme Court, several dozen anti-abortion demonstrators are already there with signs. A few words catch the eye: “Gifts for Chantale and Jean-Guy’s baby”. In front, stuffed animals, a stroller.
We journalists prepared ourselves, we read all we could about the cause.
We know they are not a nice little couple who are having a hard time. It is rather about a young woman who fears the violence of her ex-husband and who does not want him to continue to play a role in her life by taking the pretext of a common child.
The message and the gifts offered therefore seem totally disconnected.
PHOTO ARCHIVES PRESS
Chantale Daigle, in July 1989
Chantale Daigle is not present in the courtroom, which is quite normal. In the Supreme Court, we mainly debate legal points, the interpretation of the law. The facts are already established.
Jean-Guy Tremblay, a tall man, is however in the room, attentively observing his lawyer, Mr.e Henry Kelada.
Chantale Daigle’s lawyer, Mr.e Daniel Bédard, from Val-d’Or, is relatively inexperienced. He represented the young woman throughout the process, but he has never pleaded in the Supreme Court. Constitutionalist Robert Décary came to lend him a hand.
During the morning, M.e Bédard presents a solid argument. Then it’s the break. We take this opportunity to interview the president of Campagne Québec-Vie, former retired diplomat Gilles Grondin. He is leading the charge to ban abortion. In the heat of the questions, he speaks of women who “give birth”. The expression, normally reserved for animals, shocks us. We don’t know if this is a simple clumsiness or a contemptuous way of looking at women.
The hearing is due to resume at 2 p.m., but there is a delay, which is rare in this institution. When the proceedings finally resumed, Mr.e Bédard stands up, looking distraught.
He announces, his voice uncertain, that he has just learned that Chantale Daigle had an abortion in the United States a week earlier. A clap of thunder could not have had more effect. We don’t believe our ears.
The judges retire immediately, then return after half an hour to ask the lawyers whether to proceed with the case.
Me Kelada says it needs to end because this “private matter” is over. The lawyers of M.me Daigle rather argue in favor of pursuing the case because it is of general interest: other women could find themselves in the same situation as Chantale Daigle. Additionally, M.me Daigle is liable to prosecution for contempt of court.
The judges retire to reflect and discuss among themselves, to finally return and continue the hearing of the case.
At the end of the day, they render a decision on the bench and reject the famous injunction which prevented Chantale Daigle from having an abortion.
In the entrance hall, we surround Jean-Guy Tremblay to get his reactions. A journalist asks him a little awkwardly if he still loves Chantale Daigle. Mr. Tremblay glares at him furiously. “How can you ask me that? She just killed my child, ”he bursts before leaving the scene.
We are flabbergasted by the aggressive tone of this response. The journalist who asked the question will admit a little later that, for a few seconds, he was afraid.
We never thought we would live such a day, especially in this sober place that is the Supreme Court.
Abortion in Canada in seven dates
Before 1969
Inducing an abortion is a crime. The maximum penalty for a doctor (or anyone else) who helps a woman terminate her pregnancy is life in prison. If the woman is found guilty, her sentence is two years in prison.
1969
Pierre Elliott Trudeau amends the Criminal Code to authorize doctors to perform abortions, but only under certain conditions: the pregnancy must threaten the health or life of the woman. A committee must also approve the procedure. In all other circumstances, abortion remains illegal.
1973
Doctor Henry Morgentaler is being prosecuted for performing unauthorized abortions. He was acquitted by a jury, but the case was appealed. Both the Quebec Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court of Canada overturned the jury’s decision, and Henry Morgentaler ended up in jail.
1988
Henry Morgentaler is again prosecuted for providing abortion services. The case goes all the way to the Supreme Court. This time, she concludes that the Criminal Code’s abortion provision violates a woman’s right to “life, liberty and security of the person” under the Canadian Charter of Rights. and freedoms. The law against abortion is then repealed. No other law replaces it, so abortion becomes legal. It is now a state-funded medical service. But accessibility remains uneven, particularly limited in the Atlantic provinces.
1989
A real legal battle shook the country with the Tremblay v. Daigle case. Despite decriminalization the previous year, Jean-Guy Tremblay obtained a provisional injunction from a judge of the Superior Court of Quebec prohibiting Chantale Daigle from having an abortion. The case goes to the Supreme Court, which rules that only a person has constitutional rights, and that those rights begin at the time of live birth. In short, that the fetus has no legal status as a person and that a father has no right of ownership over a fetus.
1990
A bill introduced by Brian Mulroney’s government to re-criminalize abortion is tabled. An attempt is made to restrict the process to women whose pregnancy threatens their health. The bill died in the Senate the following year. Since then, other courts have tried to limit women’s right to abortion, but all these legal attempts have failed.
2020
The debate resurfaced during the Conservative Party leadership race. Candidate Leslyn Lewis has made the prohibition of certain abortions the central element of her campaign.
Source: The Canadian Encyclopedia
Silvia Galipeau. The Press