One Alberta man gets jail, another community time for 2022 Coutts border protest
CBC
One Alberta man has been sentenced to jail and another ordered to serve community time for their roles in the illegal Coutts border blockade in 2022.
Marco Van Huigenbos was sentenced to four months in jail Friday and Gerhard (George) Janzen received a three-month sentence, which is to be served in the community.
Neither accused showed emotion and spectators packing the courtroom stayed silent as Justice Keith Yamauchi delivered the sentence in Lethbridge Court of King's Bench.
Yamauchi told the pair the illegal blockade affected the lives of many Canadians and said, "The sentence must make it clear that the majority of Canadians denounce their actions."
The pair were convicted of mischief over $5,000 for their part in the blockade, which tied up cross-border traffic with the United States for two weeks to protest COVID-19 pandemic rules and vaccine mandates.
A third man, Alex Van Herk, was to have been sentenced as well. However, Van Herk's lawyer told court Thursday he has been fired by the defendant. Van Herk was granted 30 days to find new legal representation.
During the original trial in April, Mounties testified that as the protest dragged on, officers increasingly turned to the three men to negotiate. The Crown argued the trio became the faces of the blockade and spoke on behalf of protesters.
On Thursday, Crown prosecutor Steven Johnston recommended Van Huigenbos be sentenced to nine months in jail and Janzen six months. Johnston said Van Huigenbos had a higher leadership profile and therefore should get more jail time.
Johnston told court it's about sending a broader message that actions have consequences.
"The most appropriate sentence for these gentlemen is to sentence them to a term of jail — real jail," Johnston said. "You can't break the law and not expect to be punished for it."
Brendan Miller, the lawyer for Van Huigenbos, asked Yamauchi to grant an absolute or conditional discharge. Failing that, Miller asked for a suspended sentence or no more than two months' of time served in the community.
Miller told court Van Huigenbos's underlying motive was political advocacy and the desire to be heard by the government. He noted Van Huigenbos did not steer or incite the blockade and acted no differently than the hundreds of other protesters, but was unfairly singled out because he spoke to and became a liaison to police.
Alan Honner, representing Janzen, said he would also like his client to be given an absolute discharge, a fine or a suspended sentence, saying his client played a minor role.
Janzen apologized to the court Thursday.
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