Occupy Toronto eviction hearing ends

A hearing to decide whether Occupy Toronto demonstrators will be allowed to stay at St. James Park has ended after passionate arguments from both sides. 

Judge David Brown will announce his decision at 9 a.m. Monday.

During Friday’s hearing, lawyers for the movement argued that occupying the park is central to protesters’ freedom of expression.

Susan Ursel, a lawyer for Occupy Toronto, said “living together” is part of the movement’s message.

She argued that to live there as a community “on a continual basis” is central to their freedom of expression.

“Let’s talk about sharing the park,” Brown countered Friday at Ontario Superior Court.

“In Toronto we are tightly packed. We’re living together. We’re on top of each other,” he said. “And when one group puts up tents, others can’t enjoy the grass and birds.”

Brown took issue with Occupy Toronto’s use of the word “eviction,” noting that demonstrators will still be allowed in the park — they just can’t bring tents, and must leave between 12:01 a.m. and 5:30 a.m. Officials are enforcing already existing bylaws, Brown said.

Hundreds of protesters have been camped out at St. James Park since Oct. 15.  

Deputy Mayor Doug Holyday said Friday that if the judge rules in the city’s favour, bylaw officers will move in, but he “wants to keep things peaceful.”

“It’s time they moved on,” Holyday told CityNews.

Below is a Tweeter feed following the hashtag Occupy Toronto.

On Friday, about 70 demonstrators marched from the downtown park to Yonge and King streets, where they inflated a large rat in the intersection and gathered at the building that houses Labour Minister Lisa Raitt’s office. They began to return to the park around 12:30 p.m.

The city issued an eviction notice on Tuesday, which required the protesters to remove their belongings and leave the park between 12:01 a.m. and 5:30 a.m. The notice was stayed by Brown, who postponed his ruling to Monday from Saturday.

Lawyers for Occupy Toronto are asking for an injunction, arguing that the eviction would violate their freedom of association under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

The city says the demonstrators have violated bylaws and are trespassers.

Occupy Toronto announced Friday it would hold an “Evict Rob Ford” rally at 2 p.m. Saturday, but organizers aren’t saying where the event will take place.

Earlier this week, Mayor Rob Ford said he was disappointed by Brown’s decision to stay the eviction and had hoped the demonstrators would leave the park.

“People’s patience [is] running a little thin,” Ford said at Tuesday night’s Chief’s Gala.

“We want everything to remain peaceful. They should just remove themselves from the park as soon as possible.”