Final prosecution from 26 charges in 2021 Halifax housing protest ends in acquittal

The last of 26 charges laid after a 2021 Halifax housing protest has ended with an acquittal, capping a two-and-a-half-year legal saga.

The last of 26 charges laid after a 2021 Halifax housing protest has ended with an acquittal, capping a two-and-a-half-year legal saga during which just a handful of prosecutions proceeded.

The provincial court found 44-year-old Amanda Rekunyk not guilty Tuesday of obstructing a police officer. The Crown hasn’t indicated if it will appeal the verdict.

In his oral decision, Judge Kelly Serbu noted Rekunyk’s testimony that she was attempting to return to her car to retrieve her cellphone at the time of her arrest, rather than attempting to block the transfer of a man into a police paddy wagon.

The judge said Rekunyk’s testimony asserting she was “in the wrong place at the wrong time” remained “uncontradicted” by the Crown, raising a reasonable doubt of the police allegations.

Rekunyk, who uses both male and female pronouns, said in an interview Wednesday the ruling was the end of a personal ordeal that began with his six-hour detention following the protest outside the former public library in downtown Halifax on Aug. 18, 2021.

During the demonstration, hundreds of people gathered to oppose the removal by city workers of small shelters for homeless people. Police and demonstrators clashed on streets lined with shops and cafés, and some protesters were sprayed in the face with chemical irritants.

Rekunyk said the legal process has been exhausting and has left him with frequent back pains and migraines. “It was about time (for the verdict) … I shouldn’t have even had to be there,” the Halifax resident said.

The Canadian Press has tracked the charges the police laid and found that the majority of the cases were dismissed or dropped after the demonstration.