Police, city officials to testify in 'Freedom Convoy' organizers' trial

Police, city officials and former mayor Jim Watson will be among 22 witnesses called at the criminal trial of 'Freedom Convoy' organizers Tamara Lich and Chris Barber.

Police, city officials and former Ottawa mayor Jim Watson will be among 22 witnesses called at the criminal trial of "Freedom Convoy" organizers Tamara Lich and Chris Barber.

As their trial got underway at the Ottawa courthouse Tuesday, Crown attorney Tim Radcliffe said he will also submit more than 100 exhibits. That will include dozens of videos, photos and letters from the Freedom Convoy protest, which gridlocked the city of Ottawa in winter 2022.

Given the mountain of material expected at the trial the opening morning was largely spent with lawyers explaining how they expect the trial to unfold over 16 days of testimony.

"We're trying to put this case on the rails," Justice Heather Perkins-McVey told the court.

Jim Watson, who was the mayor of Ottawa during the protest, was at the courthouse Tuesday and confirmed he expects to testify.

Lich and Barber were part of the original group that mobilized a convoy of big rigs and other trucks and cars to drive to Ottawa in winter 2022 to protest COVID-19 public health restrictions and the Liberal government.

Hundreds of vehicles blocked downtown streets and thousands of protesters entrenched themselves for three weeks, hosting all-night parties with open fires, honking their horns at all hours and filing the streets with the smell of diesel.