Geoffrey is a young fellow in Southern Ontario. The decision goes into more detail:
Ah yes, Rick Simpson and the Phoenix Tears nonsense again. He's definitely an influence in the canabinoid-OPCA crowd in Canada. Also note that despite calling himself a Freeman he distances himself from the Freeman on the Land label - it really is seen as a pretty toxic label by the OPCA types.[42] He resides in a trailer on his parents’ property in Kilbride, a rural community located in north Burlington.
[43] He is a vegan and a practising Rastafarian.
[44] He reported that the past few years have been emotionally difficult for him. He was depressed. He felt he lost his path, and a sense of optimism and faith. He began to question his role in the world and his goals. He became disenchanted with his career path. His girlfriend broke up with him. He travelled to Banff, Alberta with a friend and found employment as a carpenter there. The time he spent in Banff was a revelation to him. He had time to think about what he wanted to do. He came to the decision that he always wanted to live in the Caribbean and run a farm. He returned home with a renewed sense of motivation and spirituality.
[45] He attended elementary school until grade two when his parents removed him from school and provided homeschooling for him. They wanted to protect him from older students who bullied him. He was homeschooled by his mother and by tutors and he improved significantly. In grade seven he returned to school after his mother was diagnosed with chronic fatigue syndrome and fibromyalgia. He was placed in a private Christian school. There he completed high school without incident and was an honour student.
[46] During the time that he was depressed and questioning his “footprint in society” he began to research Earth friendly products and ethical construction. He became a fervent believer in sustainable eco-friendly construction using salvaged and reclaimed wood. He built a workshop on his parents’ property. He continues to occasionally work on high-end custom renovations, or renovations for friends, but his focus is on establishing his own custom furniture company.
[47] He has been “turned on to” two people on the Internet. They are Russell Means, an American Lakota activist and Rick Simpson, a cannabis activist. Mr. Chandler believes cannabis use cures cancer, improves the immune system and has pharmaceutical properties to secure mood disorders and pain. He applied for a medical marihuana licence but was turned down. He continues to produce his own marihuana and use it daily, in baked goods or juices, or with an inhalation device. He uses cannabis as part of his spiritual practices and meditation as a Rastafarian.
[48] His parents are aware of his use of cannabis and believe that it helps him remain focused and cope with depression. They feel it is no worse than pharmaceutical medications.
[49] Mr. Chandler considers himself a Freeman, a self-governing man and a Rasta man. He does not consider himself a member of the Freeman on the Land organization but he supports their ideas and opinions. He believes that he should not pay the government to renew his licence. He believes it is his God-given right to operate a motor vehicle.
So what did our young Freeman do? Again from the decision
I observe first that Chandler did something earlier that led to a pursuit, and that the court (or more likely the Crown) judged that there wasn't enough continuity to tie Chandler to the earlier pursuit. Second, the facts described don't really seem to make out the charge of assaulting Sgt Briggs that Chandler was charged with, but I don't know if that reflects a very zealous charging decision and guilty plea, or a somewhat inadequate summary of the offence.[36] On January 10, 2013 Mr. Chandler was driving his father’s pickup truck on the Queen Elizabeth Way in the Town of Lincoln. Since this vehicle had been involved in an earlier police chase, officers of the Ontario Provincial Police sought the vehicle out and then followed it as Mr. Chandler exited onto Victoria Avenue. The police officers activated the lights and sirens on their vehicles. Mr. Chandler made a U-turn and drove back onto the Queen Elizabeth Way. As he accelerated to speeds in excess of 120 km/h, other vehicles moved to get out of his way.
[37] The police pursued him for some time. When he did not stop, the police used their vehicle to push his vehicle into a guard rail.
[38] Sergeant Briggs and Constable Chamberlain went to the window of the Chandler vehicle and told Mr. Chandler to get out of the truck. He said “no” and shook his head. The police officers repeated their instructions. Mr. Chandler again said “no” and shook his head.
[39] When Sergeant Briggs grabbed his arm and warned him to cooperate, Mr. Chandler pulled his arm back and tried to wriggle away. Sergeant Briggs and Constable Chamberlain eventually managed to pull him out of the vehicle through the window. They restrained him on the ground and arrested him.
The judge quite accurately describes the serious threat to public safety that pursuits pose, and the dilemma that police find themselves in when there is a pursuit (let's just say that the weight of deterrence has shifted from the police, who are unable to pursue much of the time, to the courts, who have to sentence so as to deter the behaviour).
Will Mr Chandler get jail time for his flight from police and resisting arrest? It doesn't look good for his chances of getting a non-custodial sentence, since
-he doesn't feel he needs a drivers licence to drive
-he openly grows and smokes marihuana, seemingly his main activity
-he has run up three convictions for driving while suspended since this incident
On the plus side, Chandler has abandoned the Freeman defence he apparently tried earlier, consulted with a lawyer, and pled guilty. Nothing helps in court quite like not being a raving loony in court!
But, in the end, the judge decides to Heck with it - 90 days conditional sentence ("house arrest" with the same strict parents who condone his grow op) and some probation. Not an unreasonable sentence for a first time offender in general, but I can't help wondering how deterred he (or any Freeman hearing about this) will be from causing another pursuit, at high speeds, in a town.