Police Powers, Trespass and Expressive Rights Under the Canadian Constitution

Abstract

This paper traces the history of the ancillary police powers doctrine in Canadian police law/ constitutional law over the past 40 years. It identifies a doctrine creep wherein a heading of police power which had modest origins has expanded massively. The expansion is spatial and conceptual and reached its reductio ad absurdum when the entire central area of Quebec city was zoned into no-go areas by police acting without legislative authority, claiming the right to erect barricades in public streets, to issue passes (or not) as necessarily ancillary to police powers. The paper includes the only English translation of the Tremblay case, in which this power was considered and an analysis of both Tremblay and other authorities on the matter. Other matters considered include the Emergencies Act, Riot Act, the notion of public forum, trespass law, anti-globalization protests and aboriginal land claims as giving colour of right to be present on lands.

Keywords: aboriginal claims, ipperwash inquiry, police powers, constitution, public forum, trespas law, riot act, emergencies act

JEL Classification: K00, K10, K11, K19, K42