Caribou hunting charges against 7 Innu men stayed in Happy Valley-Goose Bay court

Charges against seven Innu men accused of illegally hunting and possessing caribou have been stayed in provincial court, because the case took too long to get to trial.

Charges were first laid against the group — who were hunting in three different locations — in 2022.

In the court's decision on Wednesday, it said the earliest opportunity to hear the case would be in June — three years after the charges were first laid.

Canada's Jordan ruling states that charges must be heard in provincial court within a presumptive ceiling of 18 months of charges being laid.

The provincial court would need to prove that "exceptional circumstances" happened to go against the Jordan ruling, according to the decision, but noted those didn't occur.

As a result, the charges were stayed.

The hunters were originally charged with possession of caribou contrary to the province's Wild Life Act. The province banned hunting of the George River caribou herd in 2013.

The Innu Nation has long argued that caribou possession charges are unconstitutional, as its people have an Aboriginal right to hunt and possess the animal.

In a news release issued Thursday, Deputy Grand Chief Chris Rich said the Innu Nation welcomes the stayed charges and hopes it presents an opportunity for the province to "turn the page" on what it calls an unconstitutional approach to caribou conservation efforts.

"We are glad to see the court has stayed these charges against our people. The best path forward now is for the government of Newfoundland and Labrador to sit down with us to discuss how to protect caribou in a way that respects the rights, protocols and way of life of Innu," Rich wrote.

This isn't the first time Innu hunters have been in court, charged with violating a provincial ban on hunting caribou.

In March, 2023, charges were stayed against six Innu hunters in a case that dated back to 2013.

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