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Charges of mischief have been stayed by the Crown against local politician and animal advocate, Jordan Reichert.
In a statement released today, Mr. Reichert said, “These charges were a gross misuse of public resources and the Crown has recognized this by not proceeding with them. I did not break the law or lie and I’m glad that this has now been affirmed with the charges being stayed.”
On January 1st, 2018, Jordan Reichert was putting together a media release regarding the expiration of the lease agreement between the carriage industry and the city of Victoria. He had checked with a representative of the city. The agreement expired Dec 31st, 2017, so as of January 1st, 2018 the carriage operators would no longer be able to operate from their usual location.
Mr. Reichert took one sign with him to photograph, and after taking the pictures he left the sign up. He later learned that the information he had been given was in error and apologized for any confusion it may have caused. Although the lease agreement had expired, the city was allowing the carriages to continue to operate until a new one could be established.
“I’ve spoken to the individual who misinformed me and while it caused me a great deal of trouble as I would never have done the media release if I had known the truth, I will continue to protect their identity so as not to bring any of this ordeal upon them.”
While the ordeal was a first for Mr. Reichert involving the law, he says it has made him a better politician.
“I owned it. I could have lied and said someone else did it, but I didn’t. You have to have thick skin and maintain your integrity in this line of work. People will do or say anything to discredit you and it is normal for them to lie and take what they think happened out of context to serve their own purpose. You learn who you can trust and who you can’t very quickly.”
Mr. Reichert is running for Victoria city council this year and when asked if the charges deterred him in any way, he responded with a resolute “no.”
“I am absolutely going to run for city council. I won’t be intimidated by those who are trying to suppress legitimate activism in our community or who support the exploitation of animals for profit. There is too much work to do and Victoria city council needs an authentic representative for animal, social, and environmental justice issues, so that is what I’m going to do.”
As for getting back to advocating against the horse carriages, Mr Reichert said that he is looking forward to having them banned. “It is kind of ridiculous, isn’t it? I left up a sign and get charged with mischief. They exploit horses for profit, cause them distress, and endanger the lives of the horses and the public and that is all legal. Something is very wrong with this system.”
Victoria Animal News
Kelly Carson
