The B.C. Supreme Court has indicated that the Honourable Mr. Justice Harvey will deliver his judgment with respect to Betty Krawczyk on October 8, 2003.

At trial, lawyer Cameron Ward advanced Charter and procedural arguments, opposed the Crown’s submission that Ms. Krawczyk be convicted for criminal contempt of court, and sought her outright release. Ms. Krawczyk, a 75 year-old great grandmother, author and environmental activist, enters her 105th day of imprisonment today awaiting disposition of the case. She has not been charged with a Criminal Code offence, but instead faces allegations by the Attorney General of British Columbia that she defied an Order of the Court made in a civil lawsuit commenced by Hayes Forest Services.

The trial of Betty Krawczyk on allegations that she violated a Court Order made in a civil case initiated by Hayes Forest Services (a Weyerhauser subcontractor) ended Friday, September 12, 2003. Mr. Justice Harvey of the Supreme Court of British Columbia has reserved judgment. Ms. Krawczyk, a 75 year old great-grandmother, environmentalist and author, was arrested on May 8, 2003 and has spent a total of 103 days in jail awaiting disposition of her case.

The civil lawsuits against the Vancouver Police Department as a result of the so-called “Riot at the Hyatt” in December, 1998 are finally set for trial commencing September 22, 2003 at B.C. Supreme Court in Vancouver. Five Vancouver residents, including a lawyer and a teacher, claim members of the VPD’s Crowd Control Unit assaulted them and are seeking general and punitive damages. The case is scheduled to be heard by judge and jury and is expected to last several weeks.

The B.C. Supreme Court has rejected an application brought by a number of Vancouver police officers to have Mr. Ward’s allegations against them dismissed. Mr. Justice Romilly ruled that the allegations, if true, would constitute gross negligence or wilful misconduct on their part. A year ago, Mr. Ward was handcuffed, arrested, strip-searched jailed and his car was seized and impounded because police apparently thought he might throw a pie at the Prime Minister of Canada. Although the police acknowledged that all this occurred because of mistaken identity, they refused to apologize. Mr. Ward has sued for general and punitive damages. No trial date has yet been set.

A complete copy of the judgment is available here.

Regional Crown Counsel has advised us that no criminal charges will be laid against two VPD officers who shot and killed Thomas Evon Stevenson on December 7, 2002. Cst. Foster and Sgt. Milligan fired six bullets at Mr. Stevenson, killing him, as he sat in a disabled car on East Pender Street in Vancouver. Mr. Stevenson’s family, including two young children, have commenced a civil action and are pressing for a Coroner’s inquest into the death.