Winter convoy leader behind bars

Lich held in custody after alleged breach of bail conditions

Tamara Lich, a prominent leader of the protests that occupied downtown Ottawa this winter, is back behind bars in the nation’s capital as demonstrators from the socalled “freedom movement” arrive in the city to mark Canada’s birthday.

Lich, 49, made a brief appearance by video in an Ottawa courtroom on Thursday, after she was arrested in Alberta and transferred to Ottawa police custody for allegedly breaking her bail conditions.

She was charged with breaking one of her bail orders, which barred her from making contact in “any way” with other organizers of the so-called “Freedom Convoy” protests that paralyzed the streets around Parliament Hill this winter.

Lich was also remanded in custody through the Canada Day weekend, when “freedom” groups that denounce COVID-19 health restrictions and claim basic liberties are eroding in Canada plan a series of events that have prompted local police to call in backup from other law enforcement, prepare riot squads and create a “control zone” for vehicles through much of the downtown core.

She is scheduled to return to court on Tuesday for what Crown lawyer Moiz Karimjee said Thursday should be a full-day bail hearing.

Karimjee also said he would seek to cancel a previous order that allowed Lich to await trial on her various charges in Medicine Hat, Alta., instead of behind bars.

Charges against her include: counselling convoy participants to commit mischief; counselling to commit intimidation; counselling to obstruct police; compelling others to obstruct one or more highways; and mischief.

Lich appeared by video in front of a concrete wall on Thursday. She wore a grey hoodie with block letters printed in white that read: “Freedom Over Fear.”

After Justice of the Peace Mahamud Elmi told Lich she would stay in custody until next week, she walked off camera. Then a voice stated from the video feed: “How unfair.”

Lich’s defence lawyer, Eric Granger, said in a statement to the Star that Lich is “eager for the opportunity to regain her liberty” and that Tuesday was the earliest chance to schedule a new bail hearing.

“It is unfortunate that what this means is that a woman who still has no criminal record, remains presumed innocent of all charges, where the only new charge she’s been arrested on is a single charge of breaching a single bail condition, will be on her ninth day in custody since her arrest before she even gets the opportunity to regain her liberty,” Granger said.

This is the second time Lich has been accused of breaching her bail conditions. In May, a Superior Court judge ruled Lich did not break the conditions of her release for accepting an award for her role as a key leader of the convoy protests.

Another condition of her release barred Lich from supporting anything related to the so-called “freedom convoy,” but Justice Kevin Phillips disagreed. He concluded the intent of the bail conditions was to avoid a repeat of the disruptive protests in the capital, and that accepting the award was a “barely perceptible” show of support for the movement.

Lich was one of the main leaders for the convoy protests, having organized fundraisers and repeatedly urging participants to “hold the line” against pleas from police, politicians at the city, provincial and federal levels, and local residents to stop disrupting the capital.

She was first arrested in February, initially denied bail, then released on March 7 after spending 18 days in jail.