On Feb. 14, 2022, the federal government invoked the Emergencies Act for the first time since its passing in 1988.

The right to protest is one of the four fundamental freedoms included in Section 2 of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

By the time police cleared the truckers’ protest in downtown Ottawa in February, more than 100 people were facing charges.

A democratic nation should not fear protests from citizens.

Judges and lawyers are key players when a case goes to trial. But there is an equally important group of people who take part in each case and they are the members of the public.

The Youth Criminal Justice Act (YCJA) applies to youth who are at least 12 but under 18 years old, alleged to have committed criminal offences.

As a criminal lawyer who has been practising for more than a decade, I regularly appear in courtrooms in Ottawa, L’Orignal, Brockville, Perth and Pembroke, defending clients against a wide array of charges including assault, impaired driving, sex offences and fraud.

In essence, the Charter of Rights and Freedoms protects people from government overreach.

Going to court is one way to settle a dispute but it is certainly not the only avenue.

This is the second of a multi-part series examining basic principles in Canadian criminal law.