DR. BRUCE CLARK APPEALS CONVICTION: BC COURT OF APPEAL HOSTILE
On Tuesday, March 11, the case of "Regina v. Bruce Clark" proceeded before
an openly hostile panel of judges at the BC Court of Appeals in Vancouver.
Native rights lawyer Clark was appealing the February 20th decision of BC
Provincial Court Judge Nicholas Friesen which convicted Clark of criminal
contempt of court and sentenced him to three months imprisonment.
Observers reported to S.I.S.I.S. that Dr. Clark's defence lawyer
Manuel Azevedo faced constant interruptions and hectoring from presiding
Justices Proudfoot, Gibbs and McFarlane. The panel moreover challenged
Azevedo's assertion that there was "a reasonable apprehension of bias" on
the part of Judge Friesen. Friesen effectively acted as witness,
prosecutor and judge party to the action, since it was he who charged
Clark with contempt in the first place. Azevedo argued that this was
highly improper and that the integrity of the process was breached.
Senior counsel Harry Rankin, a Queen's Counsel, also submitted that
Friesen was not impartial. Rankin pointed out that before this case, no
lawyer here has ever been jailed for contempt of court.
In his final summation, Rankin QC said: "It is hard to substantiate
the requirement of objectivity or at least the perception of it with
Clark's counsel Azevedo being badgered throughout his submissions and then
veritable silence for the crown's presentation.
"The procedure is the safeguard of the person. And in a case where
the integrity of the procedure is in question, it behooves the court to
ensure that the appearance of justice is maintained. In a case involving a
more public or controversial figure where the conduct of the courts has
been less than exemplary, it creates a situation where something stands
out like a beacon. And inferences can be drawn from that."
The Justices of the BC's highest court refused to hear or
entertain any jurisdictional arguments, the defence for which Clark is
known.
The contempt charges stem from Clark's September 15, 1995 attempt
to file a motion on behalf of clients arrested in connection with the
month-long RCMP siege on sacred Ts'peten (Gustafsen Lake) Sundance grounds
objecting to the jurisdiction of the BC court. According to Margaret
Clark, Dr. Clark's wife and legal assistant, Judge Friesen confirmed in
court on February 20, 1997, that the reports widely broadcast by the media
saying Dr. Clark "threw a sheaf of papers at the judge" are false.
The Ts'peten trial, already the longest in Canadian history,
continues in Surrey, BC. Its alarming revelations so far include video
footage of senior RCMP planning a "smear and misinformation campaign"
against Ts'peten Defenders and their lawyer Clark, as well as evidence
that RCMP instigated and in one case even fabricated incidents blamed on
the defendants. Defendant and Shuswap elder Wolverine, who has been
imprisoned without bail since September 1995, has recently called his
jailed counsel of choice Clark to appear instead as an expert witness.
The Court of Appeal has reserved judgment on Clark's appeal until
Friday.
=-=-=-=-A FULL AND COMPREHENSIVE INQUIRY INTO GUSTAFSEN LAKE NOW!-=-=-=-
+++FREE WOLVERINE+++FREE DR.BRUCE CLARK+++FREE THE TS'PETEN DEFENDERS+++
Links to politicians' email and a more comprehensive list of addresses
for protest letters are at:
http://kafka.uvic.ca/~vipirg/SISIS/GustLake/letter.html
Please send a copy of your letter to S.I.S.I.S. so the Defenders can know
people are acting on their behalf
Prime Minister Jean Chretien
Phone: (613) 992-4211 Fax: (613) 941-6900
Faxing by email:remote-printer.Jean_Chretien@16139416900.iddd.tpc.int
email:pm@pm.gc.ca
WWW comments: http://pm.gc.ca/english/pmo/e_corres.htm
Canadian Human Rights Commission
email:info@chrc.ca
Select Standing Committee on Aboriginal Affairs
Attn: Committee Members
email: ClerkComm@lass.gov.bc.ca
SUPPORT ORGANIZATIONS
Ts'peten Defence Committee
Spokespeople: Splitting the Sky - Phone/Fax: (604) 543-9661
Bill Lightbown - Phone: (604) 251-4949
174-1472 Commercial Drive, Vancouver
Salish Territory, V5L 3X9 Canada
Phone: (604) 322-7934, Fax: (604) 323-0224
Ts'peten Legal Defence Team:
Manuel Azevedo, phone: (604) 687-0231, fax: (604) 687-0241
Margaret Clark, c/o phone: (604) 687-0231, fax: (604) 687-0241
Canadian Alliance in Solidarity with Native Peoples (CASNP)
Attn: Kahn-tineta Horn
Phone: (416) 972-1573 Fax: (416) 972-6232
email:casnp@io.org
AND
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S.I.S.I.S. Settlers In Support of Indigenous Sovereignty
PO Box 8673, Victoria, BC Canada V8X 3S2
Email: <uc389@freenet.victoria.bc.ca> or <riwaasa@indiana.edu>
WWW: http://kafka.uvic.ca/~vipirg/SISIS/SISmain.html
SOVERNET-L is a news only listserv concerned with indigenous
sovereigntist struggles around the world. To subscribe, send
"subscribe sovernet-l" in the body of an email to
<majordomo@speakeasy.org>
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