Ottawa woman seeks to sue ‘Freedom convoy’ protesters in $9.8M class action
With their GoFundMe account now frozen, the participants in the Freedom convoy" in Ottawa are now also facing a lawsuit from an Ottawa woman who has opened her case up for others to join as a potential class action.
On Friday, Ottawa resident Zexi Li filed a lawsuit in Ontario Superior Court, seeking damages for emotional and mental distress, headaches, sleeping difficulties, difficulty concentrating and interference with quiet enjoyment of her home.
The Class Members are living in daily torment caused by the incessant blasting of truck horns," reads the statement of claim.
The suit seeks $9.8 million in damages plus costs for participants in the potential class action.
The suit names Chris Barber, Benjamin Dichter, Tamara Lich and Patrick King as organizers of the Freedom convoy," based on them being listed as such on social media accounts used to organize the event.
A further 60 people listed as John Doe" who own the trucks currently parked in the protest area are also named, but their exact identities were unknown at the time of the filing, says the statement.
A week ago, the convoy reached Ottawa after travelling across Canada to protest COVID-19 restrictions - in particular vaccine mandates for truckers crossing the Canada-U.S. border. Since then, demonstrators have remained in the city's core near Parliament Hill, honking semitruck, automobile and train horns.
The statement of claim says the use of horns 12 to 16 hours per day has taken its toll on Li. It alleges the horn honking is being done to cause distress to those living in downtown Ottawa, but also alleges harassment by convoy members.
When the Plaintiff ventures outside, she is almost immediately subjected to heckling by members of the Freedom Convoy, yelling at her to remove the mask she wears to protect herself and others from contracting COVID-19," the claim says.
When she ignores the heckles, members of the Convoy respond by honking their horns which invariably causes the Plaintiff to flinch. When the Plaintiff flinches, the hecklers cheer loudly."
It says the lack of action by Ottawa police, who have told her they can't do anything about the noise, has contributed to her anxiety, pointing out she has contacted them 14 times.
The suit is open to any residents in Ottawa who live within a specific area of Ottawa most affected by the protest.
The Star asked Chris Barber, named as a defendant in the suit, if he was aware he is being sued. He replied in a message: haha for what. My truck hasn't ran since Saturday. Tamara doesn't own a truck and BJ has been in and out. Good luck."
Barber, a trucking company owner from Swift Current, Sask., according to court filings, also said he's tried multiple times" to get people to stop honking.
The suit notes the estimated damage of someone who joins the lawsuit is $100 per day, adding some have incurred special costs, such as those for seeking as alternative accommodations.
Jeremy Nuttall is a Vancouver-based investigative reporter for the Star. Follow him on Twitter: @Nuttallreports