Defenders of the Land is a network of Indigenous Communities united in defense of our lands, Indigenous rights, and Mother Earth. more »
Seven Mohawk protesters will have to wait until Sept. 27 before an Ontario Court Justice will decide if they will serve jail time for their involvement in heated clashes with police and the orchestrated blockade of several roads in April 2008.
On Monday, Justice Geoffrey Griffin found seven of the 12 Mohawk protesters guilty of mischief-related charges, while five were found not guilty on all counts. Some of the accused were also found guilty of more serious charges such as obstructing a peace officer and assault causing bodily harm.
Griffin told the 12 accused, along with a packed courtroom of more than 40 Mohawk supporters from the Mohawks of the Bay of Quinte, that after 39 days of proceedings in the Napanee Ontario Court of Justice "this trial sets a record for being both the longest (in Napanee) in terms of duration as well as the most complex in terms of multiple accused on an information involving 67 charges alleged to occurred over six days in April 2008."
Daniel Doreen, Steven Chartrand, Clint Brant, Jerome Barnhart, Kathy Baptiste, Curtis Fox and Jason Maracle were all found guilty of mischief to property for their participation in the illegal blockade of several roadways during the protest.
Continue reading here.