FEBRUARY 15, 2008

On 15 February 2008, former chief Robert Lovelace was sentenced to 6 months in jail for refusing to comply with a court injunction while following Algonquin law to protect Creation. The charge stems from his participation in the Ardoch Alliance protest against uranium exploration on unceded Algonquin land near Sharbot Lake, Ontario.

The judge in the case handed down this harsh sentence along with heavy fines, saying "compliance with the orders of this court are not optional". The underlying issue, however, is that the government of Ontario did not consult with the First Nation community before issuing exploration licenses in Algonquin territory.

Co-chief Paula Sherman and Honorary Chief Harold Perry, who were also charged agreed to abide by the terms of an injunction which forbids them from blocking Frontenac Ventures Ltd from drilling test holes on the site or encouraging others to do so. In this way they avoided Bob Lovelace's fate. Perry is age seventy-eight and has heart problems while Paula Sherman is a single parent and would stand to loose her children if she went to prison.

Earlier in the hearing Chief Doreen Davis and Earl Badour of the Shabot Obaadjiwan First Nation agreed to abide by the terms of the injunction of September 27, 2007. They must reappear in court on March 18, 2008.

The Ardoch and Shabot Defense/Counterclaim, that was struck from the court record, can be seen by clicking on this 15 page PDF file.