Fines, jail time, loss of licences possible for defiant protesters under state of emergency

Defiant protesters could face fines, jail time and the loss of their driver or commercial vehicle operator licences under details of the province's emergency declaration hammered out Saturday morning by cabinet.

After Premier Doug Ford declared the province-wide state of emergency Friday - and his warning of severe" consequences - police began moving on blockades at Windsor's Ambassador Bridge the next day.

Under the emergency orders approved Saturday, protesters cannot block highways, airports, canals or ports, railways, power facilities, water/gas and other utility infrastructure, international or interprovincial bridges or crossings - nor any hospitals or COVID-19 vaccination clinics.

With regards to highways, including the 400 series, the orders say no person shall impede access to or egress from, or the ordinary use of, any highway, walkway or bridge where such impediment has the effect of, (a) preventing the delivery of essential goods or services; (b) severely disrupting ordinary economic activity; or (c) causing a serious interference with the safety, health or well-being of members of the public."

The emergency orders also state that no person shall provide assistance to an individual to knowingly aid the individual to do anything prohibited ... including by providing supplies, fuel or other materials," as has happened in Ottawa where protesters have been set up for the past two weeks.

Police may order individuals to disperse and remove any object that the individual used in the contravention" and individuals are expected to promptly comply with it."

If not, police have the power to remove the vehicle or object and protesters can lose their driver's licence, plate permits or commercial vehicle and operator licences.

Fines are set out in the Emergency Management and Civil Protection Act, and now specifically apply to the infrastructure sites named in the orders, and range from $750 to $100,000 with the possibility of a one-year jail term.

Ford had warned that consequences will be severe" for those who continue to flout the law.

He called the prolonged protests in Ottawa a siege ... an illegal occupation. This is no longer a protest. With a protest, you peacefully make your point and you go back home. And I know that the vast majority of the people did that. They came, they peacefully demonstrated, they made their point and they left."

However, he added, to the very small groups who have chosen to take a different path, to those who have chosen to take a city of one million people hostage for the past two weeks, to those who've attempted to disrupt our way of life by targeting our lifeline for food, fuel and goods across our borders, to those trying to force a political agenda through disruption, intimidation and chaos, my message to you, is this: Your right to make a political statement does not outweigh the right of hundreds of thousands of workers to earn their living. It does not outweigh our right to get food across our borders.

Your right to make a political statement does not outweigh the rights of a million people in Ottawa to live peacefully free of harassment and chaos in their own homes. So let me be as clear as I can. There will be consequences for these actions and they will be severe."

The emergency orders last for two weeks, and can be renewed, but Ford also said we have every intention to bring new legislation forward that will make these measures permanent in law."

On Friday, Ford was also asked about photos that surfaced of him at his Muskoka cottage last weekend, snowmobiling, during the ongoing crisis.

He said he has been working around the clock in discussions with all levels of government as well as U.S. ambassadors.

When asked about the issue Saturday, his executive director of media relations Ivana Yelich said the premier was advised by his OPP detail to leave the city on Saturday given the repeated protests outside his home and in light of the planned demonstration in Toronto."

The homes of Ford, Health Minister Christine Elliott and Education Minister Stephen Lecce have been targeted by anti-lockdown protesters for months, disturbing and harassing neighbours.

Opposition critics have called out the premier for not acting sooner on the Ottawa and border blockades.

Earlier last week, Liberal Leader Steven Del Duca said the situation in Ottawa has gone far beyond what can be considered a protest and the occupation must be dealt with using strong action" and urged the premier to declare a state of emergency, and create safe zones" around hospitals and schools.

Schools were not included in Saturday's orders.

Reports of protests outside schools is frightening and wrong," NDP Education Critic Marit Stiles said via Twitter.

Emergency regulations passed by cabinet (Saturday) define hospitals and vaccine clinics as critical infrastructure but offered no new protections for schools."

Nomi Claire Lazar, a University of Ottawa professor and author of States of Emergency in Liberal Democracies" said the government's strategy is likely to pick away at the number of people participating in the convoy. Fines will now be astronomically higher and there's now the threat of jail and licence suspensions."

However, she added big deterrents only work if there's a real chance of enforcement. So we're still reliant on the police. Ideally, at least some won't want to risk their livelihood and will move on. As it's likely any use of force will turn bloody, the more folks can be convinced to leave before force is necessary, the better."

Kristin Rushowy is a Toronto-based reporter covering Ontario politics for the Star. Follow her on Twitter: @krushowy