The criminal case against former Lanark Frontenac Kingston M-P-P Randy Hillier
over his role in the Freedom Convoy protests has been reinstated.
The charges were stayed after exceeding the 30-month time
limit, but an appeal court ruled additional delays should be
excluded.
The Ontario Court of Appeal found some delays were
unavoidable and within exceptional circumstances, bringing the case
back within legal limits.
The case will return to Superior Court.
Hillier served in the provincial legislature for 15 years, the last three as an independent.
He was charged in March 2022 with nine offences connected to his alleged role in the Freedom Convoy
demonstrations that flooded Ottawa’s downtown core for weeks.
The protests opposed COVID-19 measures and the federal government.
The charges include assaulting a peace officer, mischief, counselling others to commit mischief
and resisting or obstructing a peace officer. The assault charge stemmed from allegations that Hillier
pushed a metal gate into an officer while trying to enter Parliament Hill.
FILES FROM THE CANADIAN PRESS
