“In my assessment, the damage caused by the cyber protection order to Mr. (Jonathan) Baha’i’s constitutional right to free speech and to his property right to use his own equipment outweighs the potential harm to Mr. (Anton) Self if Mr. Baha’i is able to communicate freely,” Justice Gerald Moir wrote in his decision released Friday.
“Justice requires that the order be revoked,” the judge continued.
Moir’s finding, following a hearing held at Supreme Court in Halifax in early March overturns a decision made last November by Justice of the Peace Judith Gass.
Gass rendered her decision against Baha’i based on YouTube video and e-mail postings attributed to him by Self, the former Dienfenbunker owner who lost the facility to the County of Colchester because of outstanding taxes.
Baha’i subsequently purchased the bunker in a tax sale.
After the cyberbullying order was issued against Baha’i, Moir said, Self applied to expand it and also filed a lawsuit against him.
“The application to the justice was made after Mr. Baha’i offered to remove offensive content within his control from the internet and after Mr. Self sued him in defamation,” Moir said.
In his ruling, Moir also said that information provided to Gass during the original hearing regarding some offending material attributed to Baha’i was determined to have come from [email protected]. But he said Gass “did not have the benefit of Mr. Bahai’s testimony that he had nothing to do with it” despite the fact her finding on cyberbullying “relied heavily” on that e-mail.
Ultimately Moir ruled that evidence presented to him “satisfies me that malicious repetition by Mr. Baha’i (as suggested as a possibility by Gass) is unlikely.”
Moir also said that the cyberbullying ruling prevented Baha’i from defending himself against the lawsuit initiated by Self and, further, that the Cyber-safety Act was not law when Mr. Baha’i was active on the present subject.”
Twitter: @tdnharry
“In my assessment, the damage caused by the cyber protection order to Mr. (Jonathan) Baha’i’s constitutional right to free speech and to his property right to use his own equipment outweighs the potential harm to Mr. (Anton) Self if Mr. Baha’i is able to communicate freely,” Justice Gerald Moir wrote in his decision released Friday.
“Justice requires that the order be revoked,” the judge continued.
Moir’s finding, following a hearing held at Supreme Court in Halifax in early March overturns a decision made last November by Justice of the Peace Judith Gass.
Gass rendered her decision against Baha’i based on YouTube video and e-mail postings attributed to him by Self, the former Dienfenbunker owner who lost the facility to the County of Colchester because of outstanding taxes.
Baha’i subsequently purchased the bunker in a tax sale.
After the cyberbullying order was issued against Baha’i, Moir said, Self applied to expand it and also filed a lawsuit against him.
“The application to the justice was made after Mr. Baha’i offered to remove offensive content within his control from the internet and after Mr. Self sued him in defamation,” Moir said.
In his ruling, Moir also said that information provided to Gass during the original hearing regarding some offending material attributed to Baha’i was determined to have come from [email protected]. But he said Gass “did not have the benefit of Mr. Bahai’s testimony that he had nothing to do with it” despite the fact her finding on cyberbullying “relied heavily” on that e-mail.
Ultimately Moir ruled that evidence presented to him “satisfies me that malicious repetition by Mr. Baha’i (as suggested as a possibility by Gass) is unlikely.”
Moir also said that the cyberbullying ruling prevented Baha’i from defending himself against the lawsuit initiated by Self and, further, that the Cyber-safety Act was not law when Mr. Baha’i was active on the present subject.”
Twitter: @tdnharry
