Evan Blackman participated in the Ottawa Freedom Convoy in February of 2022. As a result, he was arrested and charged with mischief and obstructing police.

He was arrested and released the same day, February 18th, only to discover that his three bank accounts had been frozen under the Emergency Economic Measures Order – a means implemented by the government to seize financial assets without a warrant, under the guise of an ‘emergency’.

The evidence used against him included a 14-minute drone video (without audio) combined with the statements of an officer in attendance at the time.

For approximately nine minutes of the video, he can be seen amongst a group of protesters standing face to face with a line of officers, during which he clearly attempts to deescalate the situation by holding other protesters back from confronting police. He then drops to his knees in front of the officers for a further five minutes prior to his arrest, where he removes his hat and, with hand to heart, sings the national anthem.

Blackman plead not guilty to all charges and was scheduled for trial October 23, 2023. Due to the lack of evidence supporting the charges, and poor recollections of the officer, all charges were dismissed.

In a statement issued by his lawyer, Chris Fleury of the Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms (JCCF), he expresses the relief his client feels, “My client and I are thrilled with this outcome,” “after almost 20 months, Mr. Blackman can finally put this matter behind him.”

We are very happy for the outcome of his case but continue to question the hundreds of charges filed against participants of a peaceful protest, the incredible lengths of our government to vilify normal Canadians trying to express concerns over government overreach, and the waste of taxpayer dollars attempting to pursue charges that clearly lack the evidence required to succeed at trial.

We can’t help but wonder if these efforts are purely designed to break the participants (financially and spiritually), along with all Canadians who still believe in the value and power of the inalienable rights and freedoms afforded us by our Charter.