Men convicted in Coutts border blockade want convictions overturned, Crown wants new trials

The two men convicted of mischief and firearms offenses in connection with the 2022 Coutts border blockade are now seeking to have their convictions overturned by the Alberta Court of Appeal. Anthony Olienick and Chris Carbert were found guilty of mischief over $5,000 and possession of a weapon dangerous to the public peace, with Olienick also being convicted of possessing a pipe bomb. Despite being acquitted of the more serious charge of conspiring to murder RCMP officers, the two men were handed six-and-a-half year sentences by Court of King’s Bench Justice David Labrenz.

Both the Crown and the defense have filed appeals in the cases of Olienick and Carbert. The Crown is seeking new trials on the conspiracy charges, while the defense is hoping to have the weapons and mischief charges acquitted or their sentences reduced. The arrests of the two men came after RCMP discovered guns, ammunition, and body armor in trailers near the Coutts border blockade, which was organized in protest against government-imposed pandemic health restrictions and vaccine mandates.

During the trial, jurors heard that Olienick and Carbert believed they were standing up against political tyranny and injustice. However, Judge Labrenz emphasized in his sentencing that individuals cannot take the law into their own hands.

The appeals filed by both parties raise various grounds for reconsideration. The Crown argues that the trial judge erred in excluding relevant evidence and in his instructions to the jury, while Olienick and Carbert’s defense teams claim similar errors and inconsistencies in the jury’s verdicts. Carbert’s lawyer, Katherin Beyak, also plans to argue that evidence obtained from improperly issued search warrants should have been excluded.

Beyak further contends that the sentences imposed on the two men were unfit, as they were based on findings of fact that were unreasonable and unsupported by the evidence. Both Olienick and Carbert received credit for the time they had spent in custody since their arrests in February 2022.

No dates have been set for the appeal arguments as of yet. Earlier this year, two other protesters involved in the Coutts border blockade, Christopher Lysak and Jerry Morin, pleaded guilty to lesser firearms offenses and were sentenced to time served, similar to the time Olienick and Carbert had already spent in custody.