Court Pitches Out Dumpster Diving Case

by Andrew Ainsley

On January 20, 2006, I filmed two homeless men in a dumpster
who were trying to find food to eat.  I was never on the property
and was only there to document the plight of homeless people in
Victoria.

 

Today, the Crown stayed the charges.  I am, and always have been, an innocent man.  The stay of the charges against me is
confirmation of my innocence.

 

The Police arrived and arrested the two homeless men.  They then
arrested me, even though I was never on the property.  I did not
commit any criminal offense.  I merely filmed the homeless men
and their interactions with police.

We have a crisis of homelessness in this country.  Poor people have no place to live and no food to eat.  It is shameful that such poverty exists in a country of such wealth.


It is also shameful that instead of doing something to alleviate the problems of poverty, the government instead chooses to prosecute homeless people.  It is also of great concern that the resources of the state are used to prosecute those of us who document the plight of the homeless.


On June 16, 2008, in the Supreme Court of British Columbia, the City of Victoria will be defending their bylaws that prevent homeless people from sleeping or providing shelter for themselves. 

It is a sad day for the justice system, and for this country as a whole when we choose to spend time prosecuting homeless people seeking food and shelter rather than expending the resources to help them.


more info: www.loveandfearlessness.com
contact: sandboxproductions@gmail.com


Andrew Ainsley

 

-0-

"Chris (formerly Kalanu) Johnson"

kalanubuffalo@yahoo.com


Food security activists in Victoria declared victory today in a 2 1/2 year old dumpster diving court case.

Charges against four people who were arrested in January of 2006 were stayed after one of the Crown's witnesses failed to appear.

Dozens of supporters gathered on the courthouse lawn with Food Not Bombs and Homeland Food Security (groups that re-distribute recovered food) to have a picnic and give away food.

Local television media attended and filmed the excessive amount of food that one day's dumpster diving had yielded.

Homeland Food Security spokesperson Chris Johnson explained to the media present that the dramatic increase in the cost of living has created a hunger disaster.

• "It's not just homeless people who need access to free food," Johnson explained. "People from all walks of life are finding themselves effected by hunger and malnutrition. Our group has formed as a response to this disaster."

Victoria Police briefly attended the picnic and inquired as to whether the event might escalate into a tent city. The police were thanked for their suggestion and informed that the picnic would end when the court proceedings were over.

Inside the courthouse, proceedings that were slated to start at 9:30am were adjourned until 2pm while bench warrants were issued for the two security guards who were on duty at the supermarket at the time of the arrests.

Charges were stayed shortly after 2pm when only one of the security guards had been located.

The arrests made headlines when they happened because they were caught on video by one of the defendants.

Of the four defendants, two of them were arrested at the dumpster, while the other two were arrested across the street, where they had been filming the action.

While the mainstream media chose to focus on the case as violation of freedom of the press, anti-poverty activists have found it to be yet another disturbing example of police repression of the poor.

Attention is now being turned to the tent city charter challenge that begins June 16th. This is the long awaited court date that will challenge the City of Victoria's anti-camping by-law.

 

 

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:  MAY 26, 2008

 

 

 

[I wrote about this case at the time, and more particularly about the dismal media "coverage" of it. Read it here. - lex]