MUN student protesters plan Charter challenge after charges dismissed

Abby Cole · CBC News

· Posted: Mar 11, 2025 3:37 PM EDT | Last Updated: 1 infinitesimal ago

Three Memorial University students, who were arrested and charged with trespassing aft occupying a gathering connected the St. John's field arsenic portion of pro-Palestine protests past summer, person had their charges dismissed by a judge.

But the trio accidental they're asking the Newfoundland and Labrador Supreme Court for a judicial reappraisal of what happened, and program to record a Charter challenge arguing the assemblage violated their close to escaped expression.

They were arrested successful MUN's arts and medication gathering successful July, while demonstrating arsenic portion of a nationwide pupil movement demanding universities divest from companies tied to Israel and supply much enactment to Palestinian students.

The concern of the building's lobby started successful aboriginal June. Eventually, MUN asked them to leave, but their lawyer requested the play to respond. Instead of waiting, constabulary showed up connected the evening of July 5 to wide them out.

They were charged with trespassing, but connected Tuesday — much than 8 months aboriginal and after consulting the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary and MUN — the Crown decided it was nary longer successful the nationalist involvement to prosecute the case.

The Crown made it wide the determination was not owed to a deficiency of evidence. 

"These charges ne'er should person been laid. These students ne'er should person been evicted from their assemblage portion they were peacefully protesting," said Kyle Rees, the lawyer representing the radical of protestors.

Rees said the view is that MUN is simply a authorities actor, truthful the Charter of Rights and Freedoms applies to them.

Precedent acceptable for protest

Sadie Mees, 1 of the radical charged, said she's blessed to perceive the Crown believes the lawsuit is not successful the nationalist involvement to pursue.

"We consciousness that Memorial University was successful the incorrect to usage the constabulary against peaceful protesters. And it seems similar to immoderate grade the tribunal agrees, which is simply a bully sign," she said.

WATCH | The Crown ruled it was nary longer successful the nationalist involvement to prosecute the case: 

However, she said she isn't wholly satisfied.

"The crushed we were protesting successful the archetypal spot is inactive occurring. There is inactive a genocide happening successful Palestine and our schoolhouse is inactive actively invested successful that genocide," she said.

Another subordinate of the group, Devoney Ellis, said it's important to admit the precedent acceptable by MUN's determination to call the constabulary connected protesting students.

"Anyone who protests, anyone who's funny successful protesting for immoderate crushed should beryllium acrophobic astir that," said Ellis.

The lawsuit was scheduled for a five-day trial, and Mees and Ellis had planned to reason they were exercising their Charter close to escaped look erstwhile they were arrested.

In a statement, MUN spokesperson Chad Pelley said field enforcement called constabulary aft the students refused to leave.

"It is inaccurate to construe this incidental arsenic Memorial not allowing protests. Memorial afloat supports the rights of students to protestation connected campus," Pelley said in the statement.

He said MUN allowed the students to proceed protesting aft the charges were laid, adding the assemblage is closed aft hours owed to information and information concerns.

Mees said they volition protestation again.

"We don't judge that our instauration should beryllium invested successful genocide and warfare crimes and weapons manufacturing," she said.

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