[van-announce] Support the Hastings 7 - Back in court Mon, Feb 6-16

[jess]

The Hastings 7 Trial Resumes this Monday, Feb 6th
- Please come out to show your support!

:: Trial Dates:  Feb 6-10, Feb 13, Feb 16 ::
:: Court begins at 09:30 am ::
:: At the Courthouse at 222 Main Street ::
:: Please check the court roster under "Megan Oleson" to determine which
courtroom the trial is being held in ::

Because of the prolonged nature of these proceedings (they
have been going on for nearly 2 years now), some of the lawyers who had
originally agreed to represent defendents have since removed themselves
from the case.  This means that some of the defendents will be in court
representing themselves, and therefore require court support.  If you are
able, bring note paper and a pen, to assist those who are defending
themselves by taking notes, if necessary.  Furthermore, it is all the more
stressful and difficult for the defendents - they need us there to give
practical and emotional support!

Donations for legal defense are still also desperately needed. Please make
money orders or cheques out to "Hastings Legal Defense" and mail to P.O.
Box 15810 #104-12 Water St. Vancouver, BC  V6B 1A5

Background info on the case:

7 eastside residents (5 of them women) were brutally attacked by members
of the Vancouver Police Department on February 29th, 2004, and were
subsequently given criminal charges themselves.  While two of the
individuals are no longer facing charges, 5 are still in the court
process.  On February 6th, court resumes for the defendants, and the
remaining defendants are seeking a stay of proceedings for a number of
reasons, including:

-  They have been denied their right to a speedy trial: The Crown was
unable to provide full disclosure of information necessary for the
defense, because the VPD were not forthcoming with the information the
were required to give.  The trial, originally scheduled for February of
last year, was postponed until February 2006 so that all information
pertinent to the case could be disclosed to the defense.

-  The defense has not been granted the full disclosure material that they
are entitled to:  The Judge ordered in February 2005 that certain VPD
correspondence (and other material) related to the case be given to the
defense.  At the pretrial hearing in December 2005, the Crown informed the
Judge and the Defense that, in fact, much of the disclosure information is
not available because it has been mishandled by the VPD.

The original news release and photographs from the February 29th, 2004
incident can be found at http://resist.ca/~vpdbrutality.

Reports detailing VPD abuses by PIVOT, PACE (Prostitution Alternatives and
Counselling), and Human Rights Watch can be downloaded at
http://www.pivotlegal.org/complaint/index.html.