Freedom Convoy organizer Tamara Leach will be out on bail again after being arrested earlier in July for allegedly breaching her previous bail conditions.
Ontario Superior Court Justice Andrew Goodman granted Leach another bail hearing after he ruled that an earlier July 8 order for Leach’s detention was “manifestly inappropriate.”
Read more: ‘Freedom Convoy’ organizer Tamara Leach back in court for bail review
Leach was re-arrested after hooking up with fellow protest leader Tom Marrazzo at a gala in Toronto last month. The Crown argued the contact breached Leach’s bail conditions because she was ordered not to communicate with key organizers of the convoy except through a lawyer or in the presence of a lawyer.
In court Monday, Leach’s attorney, Lawrence Greenspon, argued that the two organizers did little more than shake hands and pose for a photo together at the gala hosted by the Justice Center for Constitutional Freedoms, where she received a “Freedom Award ‘ for his role during a convoy that occupied downtown Ottawa for weeks in February. The occupation was in protest of COVID-19 restrictions, including vaccine mandates in the workplace and for truck drivers.
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0:34 Convoy protest organizer Tamara Leach arrested, lawyer says Convoy protest organizer Tamara Leach arrested, lawyer says – June 28, 2022
Goodman said Justice of the Peace Paul Harris made “wrong” conclusions and “misunderstood” the evidence against Leach when he decided she had breached her bail conditions.
Read more: Maskwacis to ‘Freedom Convoy’ protesters during Pope’s visit: ‘Your agendas have no place’
Leach will be released on Tuesday after spending more than 48 days in jail. She faces charges of mischief, obstructing police, advising others to commit mischief and intimidation. Leach is due back in court on July 28.
Goodman cautioned Leach to abide by the terms of her bail, as he does not expect her to be released a third time if her bail is again called into question.
About a dozen of Leach’s supporters were seen gathered from a white pickup truck parked outside the courthouse, where they appeared to be broadcasting the trial live over a loudspeaker.
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“Thank you judge,” shouted one supporter after learning the decision. “She’s coming out!”
— with files from Marc-André Cossette and The Canadian Press
© 2022 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
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