When the highly anticipated trial of Tamara Lich and Chris Barber finally gets underway this week, there likely won’t be much arguing about what happened or what roles the two infamous figures played during the 2022 “Freedom Convoy” protests in Ottawa.
That winter, the two led thousands of trucks and other vehicles to the capital. They rallied the protesters, and told them to “hold the line” when police tried to break up the honking crowds. They also raised millions of dollars for the movement.
Through every turn, Lich and Barber stood as leaders — documenting themselves in a barrage of selfies, livestreams and social media posts. Lich even published a book in April about her experience.
These facts won’t be disputed.
What will be, however, is whether what they did was criminal. The legal consequences of this trial’s outcome will be the stuff of many disputes to come — both on the national political stage and in smaller gatherings between friends and family.
Guilty or not, the judge’s decision will almost certainly divide public opinion.
Lich’s supporters waved Canadian flags outside the city’s courthouse in July 2022 and protested the fact she was in custody. (David Richard/CBC)
Charges of mischief, obstructing police
Lich, from Medicine Hat, Alta., has spent the days ahead of her trial relaxing with friends and supporters in a cottage in western Quebec — apt, considering the criminal accusations against her might be seen as no big deal.
In one sense, this is true.
The charges against Lich and Barber include mischief, obstructing police, counselling others to commit mischief and intimidation — mostly misdemeanors in another judicial setting, and certainly not the kind of court matter that would normally captivate an international audience.
Still, jail time is a possibility, and at an earlier bail hearing Crown lawyers suggested a finding of guilt could lead to a sentence of up to ten years behind bars.
Lich smiles as she stands with her lawyer Lawrence Greenspon after being released from jail in July 2022. (Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press)
The legal ramifications may not end there. A slow-moving, $300-million lawsuit launched by Ottawa residents against Lich, Barber and others involved in the convoy looms over the group.
Lich, who will turn 51 during her trial, has already spent 49 days in jail spread across two stints: the first when she was initially arrested, then again after she was picked up on a Canada-wide warrant for violating her bail conditions.
That came about after she attended a gala last year in Toronto honouring her actions.
Lich appears in front of a judge for a bail hearing on Feb. 19, 2022. (Lauren Foster-MacLeod/CBC)
‘Mayhem’ expected at Ottawa courthouse
A sizable crowd is expected to gather outside the Ottawa courthouse starting Tuesday, and staff are preparing for the courtroom to be full.
Melissa McKee, co-pastor at the Capital City Biker’s Church, which became a hub during the convoy, said she’s expecting “mayhem” on the first day of the trial.
McKee has continued to support adjacent movements. She’s also regularly attended court proceedings to support lesser-known individuals arrested after the federal government invoked the Emergencies Act to clear out the convoy.
While those courtrooms were often empty, McKee expects Tuesday will be different.
“I don’t think that’s going to be the case for Chris and Tamara,” she said. “I think it’s going to bring as many people out that can make it. And I think that there will be protesters as well.”
Melissa McKee is co-pastor at the Capital City Biker’s Church, which became a hub for protesters during the multi-week demonstrations. (CBC)
A friend of both Barber and Lich, McKee says the two co-accused are feeling optimistic ahead of their trial.
They’re expected to have the support of not only those who participated in the convoy, but also the backing of various libertarian and civil liberties groups — some of which are raising money for the defence team.
Trial of the convoy?
Superior Court Justice Andrew Goodman has called the Crown’s case “very broad” and noted the offences against Lich and Barber can be charged in many different ways, with several paths to a conviction.
But Ontario Court Justice Heather Perkins-McVey, who is overseeing the matter, is committed to not allow the focus to be lost to fanfare or scorn.
The trial is expected to sit for at least 16 non-consecutive days. Barring any delays, it will likely wrap in October.
“We do not expect this to be the trial of the Freedom Convoy. The central issue will be whether the actions of two of the organizers of a peaceful protest should warrant criminal sanction,” reads a joint statement from Lawrence Greenspon and Diane Magas, who are representing Lich and Barber, respectively.
A protester walks through an encampment near Parliament Hill shortly before being arrested in February 2022. (Evan Mitsui/CBC)
The Crown will likely focus more on the ways in which the two allegedly broke the law.
It’ll fall on the prosecution team to try and prove Lich and Barber played a role in creating the incessant honking that accompanied the convoy’s arrival in Ottawa. They’ll also have to make the case that, as leaders, Lich and Barber raised illegal money to fuel an illegal unrest, ignored police orders and refused the leave even after the government invoked the Emergencies Act.
Lich and Greenspon attend last November’s Public Order Emergency Commission in Ottawa. (Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press)
Convoy supporters doubt justice system
McKee said she’s anxious about the trial, but also optimistic.
The pastor said she believes convoy leaders are being made out to be “sacrificial lambs” in a justice system she feels is failing Canadians.
“Even if you don’t like these people, and you’re against the Freedom Convoy, the precedent that’s being set for all Canadians, that should be something that we’re all paying attention to,” she said.
Danny Bulford, a former RCMP officer who quit the force during the COVID-19 pandemic and became a spokesperson for the convoy during its stay in Ottawa, says Barber and Lich have become catch-all targets for those who oppose what the protesters represented.
“I don’t know what grounds ever existed to pursue criminal charges against Chris and Tamara,” said Bulford, who was arrested himself but released shortly after and isn’t expected to face further prosecution.
“I know. I tried my very best to operate within the confines of the law.”
Danny Bulford is a former RCMP officer who was on the prime minister’s security detail and quit after refusing to get vaccinated for COVID-19. He says Barber and Lich have become catch-all targets for those who opposed the protests. (CBC)
An exoneration of Lich and Barber in the judge-alone trial will likely be viewed by their supporters as a clear win for the entire entourage of truckers and protesters who occupied the streets of Ottawa for nearly four weeks.
“It seems like what rules the most right now is the court of public opinion,” said Bulford. “I think a lot of government policy is formulated that way. I think the police and the courts conduct themselves based on what they see as the popular public opinion.”
Bulford worries a guilty decision will lead to a deeper divide among Canadians, and a “much deeper mistrust of the current existing legal system from the people that already feel disenfranchised, that supported the convoy.”
“If we have a favourable outcome from the trial, I think that will help recover some of that mistrust.”
World champion Ilia Malinin won Skate America on Sunday for the third consecutive year, altering his free skate on the fly after an early mistake and punctuating the program with a backflip that had been banned in competition until this season.
The two-time and reigning U.S. champion scored 290.12 points to finish ahead of Kevin Aymoz of France, whose career-best free skate left him with 282.88 points and earned a standing ovation inside Credit Union of Texas Event Center in Allen, Texas.
Kao Miura of Japan, who was second after his short program, finished third with 278.67 points.
“It was a pretty challenging moment for me, just stepping on the ice. I felt way more nervous than usual,” said Malinin, the early favorite for gold at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy. “That may have played a part in the whole program.”
Vancouver’s Wesley Chiu placed ninth in the free skate with a score of 140.08 points, he finished ninth overall with a total of 206.94 points.
The ice dance competition was to be decided later Sunday in the final event of the season-opening Grand Prix. Lilah Fear and Lewis Gibson of Britain had the lead over American world champs Madison Chock and Evan Bates after the rhythm dance.
Malinin and Miura were separated by a mere 0.15 points after their short programs, but it was Aymoz who challenged Malinin for the top of the podium. The 27-year-old from France, who struggled mightily at the end of last season, landed a pair of quads in an error-free program to score 190.84 points — the best of all the free skates — and vault into first place.
Nika Egadze of Georgia was next on the ice but fell on his opening quad lutz and stepped out on his quad salchow, and those two mistakes kept him from medal contention. He wound up fourth with 261.71 points.
Miura, the 19-year-old former world junior champion, landed three quads during a program set to “The Umbrellas of Cherbourg,” the 1964 musical romantic drama film. But Miura lost points for an under-rotated triple axel and on a step sequence that led into a quad toe loop-triple toe loop combination midway through his free skate.
Malinin was last to take the ice, performing a program set to “I’m Not a Vampire” by the rock band Falling In Reverse.
He opened with a perfect quad flip and then hit a triple axel, even though Malinin remains the only skater to have landed the quad version of the jump in competition. Then came the mistake, when he doubled a planned quad loop, leaving Malinin to make changes on the fly over the second half of the program in an attempt to make up the lost points.
After putting his hand down on his triple lutz, Malinin landed a quad toe loop-triple toe loop combination before a quad salchow-triple axel in sequence — a pair of huge jumping passes that sent his technical score soaring.
Malinin capped the recovery of his program with a backflip during his choreographed sequence, a move that had been banned until this season because of its inherent danger. It was expected all along but nonetheless sent a roar through the crowd, just as Malinin’s program came to an end and a steady stream of stuffed animals were thrown onto the ice.
“It was really hard for me in the middle of the program to think what I have to do — what I need to do,” Malinin said when asked about the early mistake. “I just went full autopilot through there and I’m glad I made it out.”
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Charles Leclerc earned Ferrari its first United States Grand Prix victory since 2018 with a clever start and a commanding drive Sunday, and Red Bull’s Max Verstappen strengthened his lead in the F1 season championship by finishing third ahead of McLaren’s Lando Norris.
Verstappen earned the podium only after Norris was given a five-second penalty for leaving the track to pass Verstappen in the final laps.
Verstappen immediately complained about the move, while Norris insisted Verstappen also left the track. Norris’ pass came after the two drivers had battled for the final podium spot and critical championship points over several laps and Verstappen had stubbornly refused to give ground.
The penalty and fourth place finish cost Norris valuable points in the title chase. Verstappen stretched his championship lead over Norris from 54 points to 57 with five grand prix and two sprint races left.
Leclerc earned his third win of the season and Ferrari pulled a 1-2 finish with his teammate Carlos Sainz in second. Kimi Raikkonen had been the last Ferrari winner at the Circuit of the Americas in 2018.
But the bigger battle was raging behind them as Verstappen and Norris fought over every inch of the final dozen laps.
Verstappen has not won a grand prix since June and Norris has steadily chipped away at his lead as the Red Bull car has faded. Yet Verstappen still stretched his lead by five points over the weekend by also winning Saturday’s sprint race.
Norris will leave Austin knowing he squandered a big chance to gain ground. He had even earned pole position for Sunday’s race.
Verstappen started right beside him, and it was their battle into the first turn that saw both cars run wide, leaving room for Leclerc to pounce on the opening.
The Ferrari driver jumped from fourth and straight into the lead.
Norris complained Verstappen forced him off the track at the start to begin a battle that would be fought over the entire race.
