A non-profit organization has taken up the case of a Windsor man who claimed he was arrested for a peaceful protest.
According to the Canadian Constitution Foundation (CCF), Spencer Allossery was escorted away from Windsor City Hall in handcuffs on the evening of January 5 for holding up a sign criticizing the City's budget process.
Allossery skated on the rink outside City Hall, within view of councillors holding a meeting inside, with a large handwritten sign that read, "Under the 2001 Ontario Municipal Act, you're legally required to provide a complete budget."
Security guards and Windsor police officers approached him and ordered him to leave, according to the CCF. When Allossery refused, he was cuffed, escorted away from the building, and cited under the Trespass to Property Act.
As written in a letter to the City of Windsor and Windsor police, obtained by Windsor News Today, it was to call attention to what Allossery believed was a lack of transparency on the budget.
The CCF is representing Allossery in the matter.
"This protest was clearly protected by the Charter of Rights and Freedoms," read the letter by CCF Chief Counsel Josh Dehaas. "Municipalities cannot limit this type of expression without a valid public purpose."
The CCF has asked police and the City of Windsor for an apology and a dismissal of the charge.
"Windsor's security guards had no reason to order him to leave the property, and police had no business handcuffing him because he exercised his free speech rights," said Dehaas.
Dehaas hinted that additional legal action against Windsor police and the City may take place if there is no apology.
Mayor Drew Dilkens announced on January 6 that he would request a review of the budget items discussed during in-camera sessions, after the group Engage Windsor asked the Ontario Ombudsman to review the City's decision to withhold 54 items from the public budget document.
"I believe in transparency, and with permitting as much of the proposed budget to be made public as is responsible and legally possible," Dilkens said at the time. "I appreciate the time and effort that City staff have put into preparing these complex documents once again this year, and the extra effort that has gone into this thorough review of the in-camera items. With a zero per cent budget proposed for 2026, it is understandable that City staff exercised an abundance of caution when it comes to sensitive discussions around items like labour relations, security, contract negotiations, and more."
Both the City of Windsor and Windsor police declined comment when reached by WindsorNewsToday.ca, each saying that they do not discuss matters that may be before the courts.
-with files from Maureen Revait
