Andy McMechan has lost his appeal on six charges of disobeying Canada Customs procedures when he trucked his grain across the U.S. border last summer.
The Lyleton, Man. farmer has spent five months behind bars for refusing to turn over the tractor he used to haul grain to the United States without a Canadian Wheat Board export permit.
His border action was part of a demonstration against the wheat board’s export monopoly on selling prairie wheat and barley.
Manitoba Court of Queen’s Bench Justice John Menzies upheld the lower court ruling that convicted McMechan on charges related to running roadblocks at the border and refusing to turn over the tractor. But he deemed McMechan had served an appropriate sentence.
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Serious charges
“There is little doubt that the situation giving rise to these convictions are indeed serious,” Menzies said. “The accused’s actions and flouting of the law cannot be lightly dismissed.”
McMechan was sentenced to four months and a day incarceration, two years of unsupervised probation and $13,000 in fines. However Menzies ruled,”it is clear to this court that the sentences imposed have already been served.”
McMechan has until the end of June to pay the fines, which the appeal judge reduced to $1,000.
Following the March appeal in Brandon, Man., McMechan’s defence lawyer Len Tailleur said the court must question the “lawfulness” of the seizure in light of contradictory rulings for McMechan and fellow Manitoba farmer and border-runner Dave Sawatzky.
The lower court acquitted Sawatzky on charges of failing to provide customs officials with a wheat board export permit. The acquittal was upheld on appeal.
McMechan was convicted of the unlawful removal of goods seized by Canada Customs. In the appeal, Tailleur said if Sawatzky’s acquittal under Section 5 of the Reporting of Exported Goods Regulations was upheld, customs officials had no grounds to seize McMechan’s tractor.
Challenged ruling
Although McMechan is not charged with violating Section 5 of the regulations, his lawyer argued in the appeal the seizure of the tractor was based on a belief by customs officers that Section 5 was violated, and if that section is ruled invalid, the seizure of his tractor is also invalid.
But that’s not how Menzies interpreted the law.
He said McMechan was advised the tractor was being seized for a violation of the Customs Act and pointed out his actions violated Sections 3 and 5 of the regulations.
“A violation of either section renders McMechan’s tractor subject to seizure,” Menzies said in his ruling. “Whether section 5 was invalid or not, the officers had the grounds and authority to effect the seizure of the tractor.”
McMechan was charged with two counts of failing to turn over the same tractor, but the appeal judge overturned one charge, noting it was redundant.
McMechan could not be reached for comment.
