Calgary preacher guilty of mischief for urging truckers to continue Coutts border protest
CBC
Calgary pastor Artur Pawlowski is guilty of mischief for encouraging truckers to continue blocking the Canada-U.S. border crossing during a 2022 protest that lasted more than two weeks, a Lethbridge judge has ruled.
"Mr. Pawlowski intended to incite the audience to continue the blockade — intended to incite protesters to commit mischief," said Justice Gordon Krinke in delivering his decision on Tuesday afternoon.
Pawlowski was also charged criminally under Alberta's Critical Infrastructure Defence Act (CIDA) for remarks during a 20-minute speech to protesters in Coutts, Alta.
Krinke found Pawlowski "counselled other persons to interfere with the use of Highway 4 in a manner which rendered it useless." However, he reserved issuing a ruling on the charge of willfully damaging or destroying essential infrastructure until the defence's constitutional challenge of CIDA has been dealt with.
Lawyers Sarah Miller and Chad Haggarty previously issued a notice to challenge CIDA as unconstitutional.
On top of the mischief conviction, Pawlowski was also convicted of breaching a release order to keep the peace and be of good behaviour.
The bulk of the Crown's case against Pawlowski consists of the video of the pastor's speech on Feb. 3, 2022, during which he urged protestors to hold their ground.
On that day, protesters made a deal to leave the border crossing and head to Edmonton. In his speech, Pawlowski told them not to give up and said there were not enough RCMP officers to deal with the situation.
"The eyes of the world are fixed right here on you guys. You are the heroes. Don't you dare go breaking the line," Pawlowski said in the video.
The protesters ultimately decided to stay and continue their on-again, off-again blockade.
The defence argued during the trial that Pawlowski was expressing his opinion and didn't incite the crowd to do anything.
The blockade began in late January 2022 to protest COVID-19 health restrictions. It impeded Alberta's main U.S. border crossing for more than two weeks.
More than a dozen people were charged in connection with the protests and blockade, including four men accused of conspiracy to commit murder.
Pawlowski was also charged with violating COVID-19 protocols nearly two years ago, but the charges were stayed by the Crown in December.
Doreen Freeland used to be what's known as a “land girl” in Britain during the Second World War. She was one of thousands of women recruited to work in orchards and on farms to help keep food production going while men went off to fight.
According to McMaster researchers on aging, walking speed could be considered a vital sign of sorts for seniors.
The Windsor Public Library’s most-borrowed books of 2025 reflect the growing popularity of celebrity book clubs and a growing interest in “romantacy,” according to one public service librarian there.
An election, a Blue Jays World Series run and a plane crash.
Summer clothes. Shoes for children. Baby diapers.
For Islanders looking to get outside more this winter, trail groups say the colder months are actually one of the best times of year to explore Prince Edward Island’s outdoor spaces.
Updates to the air passenger bill of rights appear stuck on the tarmac more than two years after the federal government promised changes — something that may come as unwelcome news for Canadian air travellers facing their own delays.
This First Person article is the experience of Kristine Thoreson, who lives in Calgary. For more information about CBC's First Person stories, please see the FAQ.
The United States carried out airstrikes against Islamic State militants in northwest Nigeria at the request of Nigeria's government, U.S. President Donald Trump and the U.S. military said on Thursday, claiming the group had been targeting Christians in the region.
King Charles's annual Christmas Day message highlighted the importance of unity in diversity as wars and tensions put communities around the world under strain.
More than 80 centimetres of snow fell at Marmot Basin over the last two weeks — and the impact is felt beyond the ski resort.
B.C.'s police oversight agency is investigating after a female pedestrian was killed following a collision with a Surrey police vehicle on Christmas Day.
Peel Regional Police are searching for a man in his 30s after an unprovoked stabbing in Mississauga on Wednesday evening.