Breaking News: Federal Court Rules Quarantine Hotels Are Constitutional

Breaking News: Federal Court Rules Quarantine Hotels Are Constitutional

June 18, 2021 ctn_admin

The Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms says a federal court has ruled that Canada’s quarantine hotel program is constitutional.

The centre said in a statement that it’s “disappointed” with the ruling, and said the decision “will be reviewed thoroughly with a view to appeal.”

The Justice Centre was in Federal Court on June 1 – 3 on behalf of 11 clients who are challenging the government’s policy of forcing returning Canadians into federally chosen quarantine hotels and quarantine facilities at their own expense. The Justice Centre argued that these oppressive measures violated numerous Charter rights and freedoms. Specifically the Justice Centre argued that mandatory quarantine of law abiding Canadian citizens in federally mandated facilities violated their rights to enter and leave Canada freely pursuant to their rights under S. 6(1) of the Charter, it violated their rights not to be arbitrarily detained, their right to speak to counsel upon their detention and their rights to be presumed innocent until proven guilty and the right to have their detention contested in court.

On February 14, 2021, the Federal Government issued an Order In Council forcing international Canadian air travelers to be quarantined for three days in a federally mandated hotel at their own expense, while waiting for Covid PCR test results. If individuals test negative they are allowed to go home to complete the remainder of their 14 day quarantine, however if they test positive for Covid they may be directed to further confinement at another quarantine facility, to complete the remainder of their 14 day quarantine.

The new measures took effect on February 22^, 2021. To date thousands of Canadians have been detained against their will in quarantine hotels and quarantine facilities, and thousands more have received large fines for refusing to be detained.

“Never in post Charter history have law-abiding Canadians been detained en masse against their will, with no regard for the fundamental freedoms this country was founded on,” states Justice Centre Litigation Director, Jay Cameron.

“The Federal Courts finding that these heavy-handed measures are constitutional is deeply concerning. Canadians continue to wait anxiously for the courts of the land to draw boundaries around the increasingly authoritarian measures of government regarding Covid. We are reviewing the decision carefully.”