Charlottetown man charged with shoving housing minister back in court

A 62-year-old Charlottetown man charged with assault after shoving P.E.I.'s housing minister at a public meeting was back in court Wednesday.

Video taken by a CBC News journalist showed Mark Anthony Brown shoving Rob Lantz at the July meeting. It was held to discuss adding a supervised injection site to the Park Street Emergency Shelter. 

Lantz could be seen staggering back from the force of the push, liquid spilling from the cup he was holding, but he was not injured.

On Wednesday, defence lawyer Daniel Tweel asked Judge Nancy Orr to allow the assault charge to be dealt with by alternative measures, outside the usual criminal court process. 

No details about what those measures might be were discussed in court, but people whose offences are handled this way are sometimes asked to write an apology or do a certain amount of community work.

"Alternative Measures is a program that diverts adults from the criminal court system while still holding them accountable for a criminal code offence," the provincial Department of Justice and Public Safety says on its site.

Tweel said Brown has no prior record and has accepted responsibility, adding that the assault was not severe. He also said his client has a positive attitude. 

Brown, who is Charlottetown Mayor Philip Brown's brother, has not yet entered an official plea but will be back in court Oct. 4.

Orr was not the judge originally assigned to Brown's case. Brown first appeared before Judge Jeff Lantz, who is the housing minister's brother. The case was delayed by a week because Lantz could not preside over a matter involving his brother.