Crown drops charges against former MP, MPP, pastor in Aylmer, Ont. COVID-19 rally
Global News
The charges against former MP Derek Sloan, former MPP Randy Hillier, Pastor Henry Hildebrandt and private citizen Dan Stasko have been dropped.
Over a year after a former MP, former MPP, and pastor of the Church of God in Aylmer, Ont., were charged with violating public health orders amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the Crown announced that all charges have been dropped.
The Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms (JCCF) announced the news Monday that the charges against former MP Derek Sloan, former MPP Randy Hillier, Pastor Henry Hildebrandt and private citizen Dan Stasko have been dropped.
According to the JCCF, the three men were allegedly involved in “peaceful rallies” against COVID-19 measures in June 2021 and were charged with violating the Reopening Ontario Act.
Last year, the province implemented attendance and gathering limits on events under Ontario’s stay-at-home order.
During that time, religious services had a limit of 10 people. The outdoor demonstration against pandemic measures and restrictions in Aylmer involved approximately 200 to 300 people.
The Crown said Hillier, Sloan, Hildebrandt and Stasko “were concerned with the Covid restrictions (and) health orders which significantly curtailed the right to peaceful protest.”
After negotiations with Bally Hundal, a lawyer retained by the JCCF, the Crown dropped all charges, stating that prosecution was no longer in the public interest.
The offences carried potential fines of up to $100,000 for each individual as well as up to one year in prison.