Raising the middle finger may not be polite, but it’s not a crime either. On the contrary, obscene gesture falls under freedom of expression and is therefore a fundamental right. This was recently determined by a Canadian court.
The ruling is dated February 24, but it is now only being released via local media.
The defendant, a teacher and father of two, was arrested in May 2021 for threatening and berating his neighbor in Beaconsfield, Quebec after the latter threatened him with power tools. It took the judge 26 pages to explain why the man could not be prosecuted for his act.
The judge ruled that the gesture “may not be respectful, it may not be polite, it may not be civil, and yet it does not give rise to criminal liability.” The court described the fact that the accused was arrested and tried at all as an “amazing injustice”. The judge called it “unfortunate” that the prosecutor had abused the criminal justice system “in an attempt to exact revenge on an innocent man”.
In response to the verdict, local police said they are investigating the decision to arrest and prosecute the man to prevent such cases from occurring in the future.
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