Nice friends...
...ya got there, Shawn...
An interesting element of the situation, the judge said, was the fact that two out-of-town men who aren’t aboriginal were protesting in support of native issues — only to injure two aboriginal men — the police officers — in the process.[more]
For his part, VanHooser claimed his mother was a Mohawk and he had a Dutch father, while Kloestra said he was in a relationship with an aboriginal woman.
Given the pair’s lengthy criminal history, Burgess said both require “a significant penalty” for their actions.
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[full article follows]
Pair to be sentenced for assault on officers
By Jeremy Ashley
Two men who pleaded guilty for their role in last month’s blockade of the Skyway Bridge near Deseronto will learn next week whether they'll spend a year behind bars, as called for by the prosecution.
But, the judge in the case said the pair shouldn't bank on the Crown's request.
“I’m telling you now... it’s not going to be what’s suggested,” Judge Geoff Griffin told Charles E. Kloestra and Paul VanHooser at the conclusion of the pair’s sentencing hearing in Belleville court Wednesday.
Earlier in the day, both men pleaded guilty to assaulting Tyendinaga Mohawk police officers during a melee that broke out June 13 as police moved in to disband a five-day-old blockade that closed the bridge connecting Deseronto to Prince Edward County.
The two — who have remained in custody since their arrest — were among 13 protesters charged in connection to the blockade and are the first to be dealt with in local courts.
At the time of the incident, protest organizer Shawn Brant said the blockade was intended as a peaceful show of solidarity for Akwesasne natives in opposition to the presence of armed custom officers on their reserve.
Crown prosecutor Lee Burgess, however, painted a different picture of the agenda of local protesters — noting that several times those involved were told, both formally and informally, their actions were not wanted by community members or leaders in either Tyendinaga or Akwesasne.
In fact, the majority in both communities felt the action “left a stain on the Tyendinaga community” and compromised progressive talks with the government in dealing with the Akwesasne situation, Burgess said.
The anger of local Mohawks boiled over during a confrontation with the protesters on June 11, Burgess said, when as many as 100 people from Tyendinaga showed up and told the protesters to disassemble the blockade.
The protesters, including Kloestra, 38 and VanHooser, 44, ignored the requests, which led to police action on June 13.
During a scuffle on that date, both men jumped Tyendinaga Mohawk police officers from behind, with Kloestra putting one in a headlock while VanHooser assaulted another officer.
One of the officers was treated for a minor injury as a result, he said.
Both men “seem to have very little connection to the Tyendinaga Territory,” Burgess said, adding that Kloestra was formally banned from the area by the band council in 2007.
Griffin said a compounding issue in dealing with the men is the fact neither is considered aboriginal.
“I’m being asked to treat these guys as aboriginals ... because they have sympathies for the aboriginal cause,” Griffin said.
An interesting element of the situation, the judge said, was the fact that two out-of-town men who aren’t aboriginal were protesting in support of native issues — only to injure two aboriginal men — the police officers — in the process.
For his part, VanHooser claimed his mother was a Mohawk and he had a Dutch father, while Kloestra said he was in a relationship with an aboriginal woman.
Given the pair’s lengthy criminal history, Burgess said both require “a significant penalty” for their actions.
Defence lawyer Greg Brant said his clients — both of whom breed rodents and snakes for a living — deserve credit not only for the 27 days of pretrial custody, but for accepting responsibility for their actions by pleading guilty.
Referring to the charge of assaulting police, Brant said “we’re not talking about punches to the head here ... to my understanding, it was a tussle.”
Griffin agreed, to some extent.
“All I’ve heard so far is Shawn Brant, Shawn Brant, Shawn Brant ... I can’t have this (situation) fall at the feet of these two individuals alone,” he said.
“I want some time to think about this,” Griffin added, putting the matter over to July 16 for his decision.
jashley@intelligencer.ca
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It's a shame these 'men' are allowed to breed as it says in the article, but their offspring don't have to grow up like them.
Shawn will now find out what Fantino was chicken to do to him. Make him pay for breaking the law.
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