The Ontario Court of Appeal has ruled that provincial restrictions on peaceful protests during the COVID-19 pandemic were unconstitutional, overturning a ruling by a lower court that dismissed the Charter challenge by former Ontario MPP Randy Hillier.
Hillier had faced several charges in the spring of 2021 for organizing protests against pandemic measures in cities like Kemptville, Cornwall, Peterborough, and Belleville. The Province of Ontario had made it illegal for multiple people to gather outdoors because of the pandemic, while other provinces allowed 5 or 10 or more people to gather together outdoors.
