Lawyer accused of Chrétien pie plot was wrongfully jailed: judge

A well-known Vancouver lawyer who was jailed and strip-searched becausepolice thought he was about throw a pie at Jean Chrétien, then prime minister, has won his lawsuit against the city and province.

Cameron Ward,whobecame well-knownacross the country when he represented someof student protesters during the APEC inquiry, has been awarded $10,100 in damages in a ruling handed down Wednesday.

Police had arrested Ward in Vancouver's Chinatown at a ceremony attended by Chrétien on Aug. 1, 2002, after getting a report that someone was planning to "pie" the prime minister.

Police first told Ward he was being investigated for assault.He was thenarrested for an alleged breach of the peace, taken to the city jail, strip-searched and kept in a tiny cell for hours.

Ward sued.Now 4½ years later, Justice David Tysoe of the B.C. Supreme Court has ruled that Ward's Charter rights were violatedand that he was wrongfully imprisoned and strip-searched.

Despite his victory, Ward said hestill finds the officer's actions disturbing.

'I certainly didn't have a pie anywhere.… Either they didn't care what my lawful rights were as a citizen, or they knew what they were and acted recklessly.' -Lawyer Cameron Ward

"I certainly didn't have a pie anywhere. Nor did anyone else for that matter. Either they didn't care what my lawful rights were as a citizen, or they knew what they were and acted recklessly."

The judge said the police officers sincerely believed that Ward had a pie and said the arrest was not a malicious act.

Wardis best-known for representing some of the students who protested during the 1997 Asia Pacific Economic Co-operation conference inVancouver. During the conference, protesters were pepper-sprayed and arrested while taking part in peaceful demonstrations.

After his arrest, Ward had said he wondered whether there was any connection between his APEC work and his arrest.