Latest news with #LawrenceGreenspon
National Post
24-07-2025
- Politics
- National Post
Sentencing hearing continues for Freedom Convoy leaders Lich, Barber
The sentencing hearing for Freedom Convoy leaders Tamara Lich and Chris Barber continues in Ottawa today, months after the two were found guilty of mischief. Article content Lich's lawyer Lawrence Greenspon is expected to deliver sentencing submissions during this morning's hearing. Article content Article content The Crown is seeking a prison sentence of seven years for Lich and eight years for Barber, who was also found guilty of counselling others to disobey a court order. Article content Article content Article content Barber's lawyer Diane Magas said she wants an absolute discharge for her client because he has been on bail for the last three and a half years without incident. Article content Lich and Barber were both found guilty of mischief in April for their key roles in the convoy protest, which saw activists fill much of downtown Ottawa for three weeks beginning in late January 2022 to protest vaccine mandates and other pandemic measures. Article content
CTV News
24-07-2025
- Politics
- CTV News
Crown to respond at sentencing hearing for ‘Freedom Convoy' leaders Lich, Barber
Freedom Convoy organizer Tamara Lich is seen outside the courthouse in Ottawa on Wednesday, July 23, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld OTTAWA — The sentencing hearing for 'Freedom Convoy' leaders Tamara Lich and Chris Barber continues in Ottawa today, months after the two were found guilty of mischief. Lich's lawyer Lawrence Greenspon is expected to deliver sentencing submissions during this morning's hearing. A Crown prosecutor is expected to respond to defence submissions before the judge begins her deliberations. The Crown is seeking a prison sentence of seven years for Lich and eight years for Barber, who was also found guilty of counselling others to disobey a court order. Barber's lawyer Diane Magas said she wants an absolute discharge for her client because he has been on bail for the last three and a half years without incident. Lich and Barber were both found guilty of mischief in April for their key roles in the convoy protest, which saw activists fill much of downtown Ottawa for three weeks beginning in late January 2022 to protest vaccine mandates and other pandemic measures. This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 24, 2025.
CTV News
15-07-2025
- CTV News
Ottawa lawyer raises concerns about how police name suspects in news releases
Ottawa lawyer Lawrence Greenspon is raising concerns about the Ottawa Police Service not naming suspects in some news releases.
CTV News
15-07-2025
- CTV News
Ottawa lawyer raises concerns about police naming suspects in news releases
Ottawa lawyer Lawrence Greenspon is raising concerns about the Ottawa Police Service not naming suspects in some news releases.
Ottawa Citizen
13-07-2025
- Ottawa Citizen
Ottawa lawyer opposes police withholding suspect's names from news releases
A prominent Ottawa criminal defence lawyer is raising questions after police withheld names from some crime-related press releases but not others in recent weeks. Article content Lawrence Greenspon has been advocating for the non-publication of names in news releases since he was in law school, arguing that publicly associating a name with charges will take a person's right to presumption of innocence away. Article content Article content Article content In 1983, he tried to petition the Superior Court of Ontario to put a publication ban on his client's (who was accused of first-degree murder) name. He then made a similar application in 2022 when he was representing a high-profile television personality who was accused of making threatening charges. Article content Article content He was unsuccessful both times. Article content 'My primary position is that no names of anybody should be published or broadcast prior to a finding of guilt, because when that happens, the presumption of innocence goes out the window,' Greenspon told the Ottawa Citizen in an interview. Article content 'But given that that I've been unsuccessful at least twice in trying to convince the courts of that conflict between the presumption of innocence and the freedom of the press, it surprises me and disappoints me to think, to look, to find out that the Ottawa police have taken it upon themselves to decide which names are going to be published and which names are not going to be.' Article content Article content His comments comes after the Ottawa Police Service did not publish names in two separate press releases where the accused were charged with harassment charges. Article content In one release, which was sent on June 30, police withheld the name of a man accused of targeting a 'symbolic flag' with paintballs for several days in Kanata. He was then arrested and charged with two counts of harassment by threatening conduct towards another person and three charges of mischief/damage to property not exceeding $5,000. Article content In another, police withheld the name of Iain Aspenlieder, a former City of Ottawa lawyer accused of vandalizing the Holocaust memorial with red paint in June. Aspenlieder, 46, was charged with mischief to a war monument, mischief exceeding $5,000 and harassment by threatening conduct in relation to the incident. Article content Justice of the Peace Stephen Dibblee said at a bail hearing on June 28 that Aspenlieder's name and charges were not subject to a publication ban. Article content The OPS has disclosed names of accused individuals in the past. Article content Police accused Saleh Garebi, 25, of possession of property obtained by crime, dangerous driving and failure to stop for police in a media release on July 11. Article content They also accused Michael Colborne, 46, of robbery and weapons possession in a media release on July 4. Article content Julie Kavanagh, a spokesperson for the Ottawa Police Service, said the service 'strives to balance transparency with our duty to protect the privacy, safety, and legal rights of everyone involved.' Each case is assessed individually and the decision to withhold a name is guided by 'legal, ethical and operational considerations.' Article content This includes mental health, she said, where disclosure could worsen an individual's mental health and reinforce stigma and cause further harm. Article content Kavanagh said this also includes integrity of investigation or court proceedings — where sharing a name too early could interfere with ongoing investigations or fair trial — and impact on families — where public identification could have unintended consequences for family members, including children and other vulnerable individuals. Article content Article content She added the individual's personal safety would be considered, especially in cases where they may face retaliation or risk for harm. Article content 'While certain information may be publicly available through the courts, it is up to the police service to decide whether to proactively release that information — and whether doing so serves the public interest,' she wrote in an email. Article content 'Our approach reflects a broader trend among police agencies in Ontario and across Canada, where the release of names is determined on a case-by-case basis.' Article content Why some and not others? Article content Greenspon said criminal charges are public information and police have temporarily made it more difficult to access. There is nothing stopping journalists and members of the public from going down to the courthouse to get that information. Article content 'There was one where (the police) mistakenly thought that there was a (publication ban) on a name … There was never any pub ban on his name. There is a pub ban on the evidence that comes out (at) cause bail hearings that's always in place. That's statutory, but it doesn't preclude any media or anybody, for that matter, from broadcasting or publishing the name of the accused person,' he said. Article content Article content He also had concerns about the police withholding names because of concerns about the victims, especially when the accused is presumed innocent until proven guilty. Article content 'Once you allow publication, the name is used. It's certainly not up to the police to decide whose presumption of innocence is going to prevail and whose is not. They have no business picking and choosing on a case-by-case basis, whose life they're going to ruin, whose presumption of innocence they're going to completely respect or not respect based on the quality or the nature of the victim,' Greenspon added. Article content The lawyer also raised questions about the criteria the police use to determine whether to publish the name of an accused individual. Article content 'They've decided we're going to do it on a case-by-case basis. Yeah, according to who?' he said. Article content What are the best practices? Article content Greenspon urged Ottawans to understand that just because someone was charged doesn't mean they committed the crime. Article content This is especially important in the age of social media where someone's charges will be seen and shared by thousands of people, he said. Article content 'The average person on the street should appreciate that when a person is charged with a crime, they are just charged and they are innocent. Part of that presumption of innocence is that their name should not come out, because if and when it does, they will begin to suffer the consequences long before there's been a determination by the court,' he said. Article content 'I think if you talk to the average person on the street … There's an immediate assumption of guilt rather than presumption of innocence.' Article content A Canadian Association of Journalist paper published in May 2022 also urged newsrooms to rethink practices of always naming accused people in crime stories, especially for minor offences. Article content However, journalists should not be bound by police decisions on whether to name those accused of crimes. Article content Article content 'We must stress again that journalism should not involve decisions or practices whereby reporting is based on a police decision to withhold the name of an accused. Journalists should still seek the name of an accused person even if they know they're unlikely to publish it. Decisions about the elements of a story are a core aspect of editorial discretion, and while police may be sources of information, they do not make news decisions about a story,' the paper reads.
