Canadians who refused to comply with the mandated ArriveCAN app during the COVID-19 pandemic had their charges and fines dropped or substantially reduced.
After fighting charges laid against them for allegedly violating the Quarantine Act or failing to comply with the ArriveCAN mandate during travel, 8 Canadians successfully challenged their fines last month.
The Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms, a registered national charity aiming to defend the rights of Canadians who were mistreated by the government, has provided a defence council to the individuals in court.
In total, the 8 Canadians received 13 tickets regarding the ArriveCAN app, accumulating a total of $54,815 in fines.
The Justice Centre negotiated with the Crown, managing to decrease the fines by $53,599, leaving a total of $1,216 owed.
Disclosing private health information
The individuals stated they felt uncomfortable downloading the app and uploading private medical information, even offering to provide the details on paper instead.
Cory Thorn, along with his wife, Guiseppina Lamacchia, requested to submit their health information on paper at the Canadian border but were denied the opportunity to do so.
Similar to the others, they were told to download ArriveCAN and upload the medical information required, or they would be fined.
The couple, along with the other Canadians, received a fine of $6,255 each under section 58 of the Quarantine Act for not using the ArriveCAN app.
Additional fines were given to certain individuals for allegedly violating other legislations or rules.
Mandatory 14-day quarantine
Lead counsel on the case, Chris Fleury, stated that “each and every Canadian who refused to provide their vaccination status via ArriveCAN was also subject to a mandatory 14-day quarantine in addition to their ticket.”
“The quarantine had no scientific or public health basis and was a breach of Canada’s Charter right not to be arbitrarily detained,” he added.
Fleury said that while he would have preferred no one to be charged in the first place, he’s satisfied with the outcome for the individuals.
