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2w ago

Calgary Judge Grants Bail to Convicted Coutts Protester Pending Appeal

Justice Jo’Anne Strekaf found no substantial risk to public safety in granting bail to Carbert pending his September appeal.

Anti-COVID-19 vaccine mandate demonstrators leave in a truck convoy after blocking the highway at the busy U.S. border crossing in Coutts, Alta., Tuesday, Feb. 15, 2022.THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jeff McIntosh
A truck convoy of anti-COVID-19 vaccine mandate demonstrators block the highway at the busy U.S. border crossing in Coutts, Alta., on February 2, 2022.
Protesters at the road block on Highway 4 outside of Milk River heading towards the Coutts border crossing on Tuesday, February 8, 2022.

Overview

  • Justice Jo’Anne Strekaf ruled there is no substantial likelihood that Chris Carbert will reoffend or obstruct justice if released pending appeal.
  • The Parole Board of Canada had warned that Carbert presented an undue risk to society, but the court deemed continued detention unnecessary for public protection.
  • A Lethbridge jury convicted Carbert of possessing multiple firearms—including a prohibited semi-automatic rifle—ammunition and body armour under a lifetime weapons ban in connection with the February 2022 Coutts blockade.
  • He was sentenced last September to the equivalent of 6½ years with credit for remand time reducing his term to roughly two years and eight months, and his applications for day and full parole were denied in April 2025.
  • Carbert’s conviction appeal is scheduled for September 11, 2025, with a potential subsequent sentence appeal, and specific conditions for his bail remain to be set before his release.