Hostile judge rejects Rob Hoogland’s plea agreement with BC Attorney General in “criminal contempt” case for breaking gag order. Sentences Rob to six months in prison and $30,000 fine!
Judge claims that a lesser punishment would “bring the administration of justice into disrepute.”
Bizarre 2-day court proceeding after Rob had pleaded guilty (per plea agreement).
Judge angrily berates Rob for giving MassResistance “banned” information.
April 16, 2021
Rob Hoogland, a British Columbia father trying to protect his daughter from sex-change procedures, takes a last look outside of the Court building before turning himself in on March 16.The radical transgender agenda targeting children has become a national nightmare in Canada. The education system, the medical establishment, and now the courts are brutally enforcing this lunatic movement.
As we reported earlier Rob Hoogland, a British Columbia father, has been jailed without bail since mid-March. He was to go on trial on April 13. His crime: violating a gag order intended to cover up the gruesome “sex-change” procedures his 15-year-old daughter was undergoing – against his will. The court is now the enforcer for those ghoulish medical practitioners.
Plea bargain announced last week!
However, several days before the trial Rob’s lawyer, Carey Linde, announced that he and the Crown (Attorney General) had reached a plea bargain. On April 13, Rob Hoogland would admit to willfully breaching certain orders of the Supreme Court. He would accept 18 months probation and one month for time spent in custody. Thus, Rob would be released from custody on that day!
When the Court convened on the morning of April 13, everyone figured it would all go pretty quickly. Rob’s friends showed up, and were planning to drive him home soon afterwards and celebrate his freedom.
British Columbia Supreme Court Justice Michael Tammen got right to business. He put Rob on the stand, had the clerk read the charges, and asked, “How do you plead?” Rob answered, “Guilty.” The judge asked Rob if he understood that he is giving up his right to a trial. Rob answered, “Yes.”
… But then the judge rejected the deal!
Then, in a shocking (and frankly dishonest) move, Justice Tammen harshly announced that he was rejecting the plea bargain! He felt that Rob’s actions required much greater punishment – certainly more imprisonment – than the plea bargain called for. Otherwise, he said, “It would bring the administration of justice into dispute.” Rob’s friends in the courtroom were aghast.
Tammen clearly wanted to make an example of Hoogland, in case other parents got similar ideas of resisting if this happened to their children. So he opened up discussion between the two opposing lawyers to help him decide how much more punishment to give.
The “sentencing” debate begins
Over the next two days the “sentencing” debate between the Crown, Carey Linde, and Justice Tammen went on. Tammen was clearly hostile toward Rob and Linde, and much of the time it seemed like the judge was playing the part of a second prosecutor.
Justice Michael Tammen was unbelievably hostile and biased.
Attorney Carey Linde, Rob's lawyer, fought hard for him.The Crown lawyer, Daniel Pruim, spoke first. He was well prepared. It appeared that he had prior knowledge that the judge would do this.
Describing every breach. The Crown started out by describing in lengthy detail every article and interview that Rob had participated in, and every piece of information that Rob had given out. Tammen was very focused on this, following it closely, and took notes.
Denunciation and deterrence required. The Crown went on to cite numerous cases where a “just cause” didn’t justify breaching court orders. The principles of sentencing demand that “denunciation and deterrence” are needed, and that precedents supported this. A court must “uphold the Rule of Law.”
Victim impact statement. Then the Crown announced that he had a “victim impact statement” from Rob’s daughter about how her father’s actions have harmed her. Rob’s lawyer objected, saying that there is no way to determine if the statement was actually written by one of the LGBT lawyers “supporting” the girl’s case. The statement was not allowed to be read in court, but a quote from it appeared in the Toronto Star newspaper the following day. Many people have since observed that it is unlikely this was written by a 15-year-old:
I am out as transgender only in some parts of my life and it terrifies me that I might be outed as a result of my dad’s actions. It would be very embarrassing to be outed as trans to people who know me only as male. Over and over private stuff about me was published online because of my dad. I have lost my faith that the courts can protect me. That makes me feel really vulnerable.
Judge’s angry outburst against MassResistance. The daughter’s impact statement caused Justice Tammen to let loose an angry outburst against Rob and his lawyer over the fact that MassResistance had been given several key documents by Rob, including the original hospital consent form for sex-change procedures signed by the daughter and mother (but not Rob) – and that MassResistance stubbornly refused to take it down. The judge said that this information was hurting the child, and the fact that the doctors’ names were on it was also a major violation of the gag order.
From the BC Children's Hospital "Gender Clinic" website. This is what Justice Tammen wants desperately to protect from being exposed!This was a bit unnerving, since Carey Linde had previously pointed out that all of this “personal” information was already known in the general community, and that the idea that it “harmed” her was an invention of the prior judge in collaboration with the LGBT lawyers. Moreover, the doctors have widely advertised that they do these procedures, so it is no secret.
Linde phones MassResistance. During the lunch break, Carey Linde telephoned MassResistance to get clarification as to why we weren’t taking down the material. We reminded him that Rob has specifically asked us to post it, and that he later said he was glad that it would be there to educate the world about what is really happening. And we obviously agree this needs to happen.
Rob’s fundraising for legal defense costs. After lunch, the Crown lit into Rob’s “GoGetFunding” page raising money for his legal defense. He noted that Rob has raised over $56,000, and had a photo of himself with his daughter (as a young girl) on that page. Thus, he said, that money was “ill-gotten gains” and should be confiscated in some way. Justice Tammen heartily agreed that Rob was “profiting” off his crime, and said that he would take that into consideration. (It is contemptible that Tammen and the Crown actually believe that an accused person should not be able to raise money to pay for lawyers or related expenses.)
Rob takes the stand. Next, Justice Tammen asked Rob to take the stand and explain why he ignored the court “gag orders.” He said he wanted to tell the world how his daughter was tricked by the school transgender program into deciding she should “transition” to a boy. He said his child was too immature and irresponsible to understand the dangers and risks of cardiovascular disease, bone decalcification, cervical cancer, sterility, botched surgery, and perpetual hormone imbalance - all side effects of experimental hormone therapy. He added that so-called transgender people do not find peace, but continue to contemplate suicide at an alarming rate. He knew it was too late to save his own child, but he felt he HAD to tell his story to save other families from this tragedy.
Justice Tammen was unsympathetic. He was angry that Rob’s full story was still displayed on the Mass Resistance website. He claimed Rob could have told his story without naming his daughter. (Actually, Rob did not ever name her; her name was written on a document).
Comparing Rob to Gandhi, etc. Rob’s lawyer ended the first day with an argument comparing Rob’s civil disobedience to Diogenes, Mahatma Gandhi, and Martin Luther King. As one person there told us, “It was very unconvincing. We left the court very, very discouraged.”
What the hospital consent form warned about. The next day, Carey Linde wanted to discuss the hospital consent form for the sex-change procedures that the mother and the daughter had signed. The judge angrily said no, because Rob had given it to MassResistance to post. There was a heated exchange over that, and the judge finally relented.
Linde said that the consent form clearly states that the cause of gender dysphoria is unknown. And if the cause of gender dysphoria is unknown, how is the diagnosis and proper treatment determined? He said the consent form also states that the impact of puberty blockers and testosterone are unknown, and that reproductive organs may need to be removed in the future. “How can a child consent to this?” he asked.
Linde said it’s important that the judge understand why Rob did what he did. But Tammen responded by chastising Linde, basically questioning his ability as a lawyer.
Jenn Smith allowed to address the Court with bizarre rant. Near the end of the second day, Linde asked Jenn Smith, a left-wing transgender activist who has supported Rob Hoogland, to address the Court. Jenn Smith is a very strange cross-dresser – a man who wears women’s clothes in public, but still refers to himself a man. Jenn Smith has befriended Rob and Carey Linde in this case. The Crown objected to his speaking, but the judge decided to allow it.
Jenn Smith stood up and gave a bizarre rant attempting to explain why Rob talked to MassResistance and other conservative groups. Smith said that Rob suffered “emotional trauma” and had nowhere to turn but to “right-wing grifters and nut jobs,” and that they’re “contaminating Rob’s brain with right wing propaganda.” He said that this should be a mitigating factor in sentencing.
Jenn Smith (right), a cross-dressing man, is interviewed outside the courthouse by Rebel Media reporter on April 14. Smith continued his rant against MassResistance, and even our Organization Director Arthur Schaper!The judge seemed pleased to hear bad things about people helping to expose the case. But the Crown objected to that reasoning, saying that Rob has made it clear numerous times that he did this on his own, and is responsible for his actions.
Rob certainly hasn’t appeared to be “in trauma” up until now. In fact, Rob had been very outspoken and enthusiastic about MassResistance and other groups getting the word out for him. In our March 11 video, he said:
We’ve all got to get to get behind this. I want to thank MassResistance. You guys are one of the leading examples of how we need to fight this. We’re beyond diplomacy on this matter. We’re at war. And people have to wake up. You can’t negotiate with terrorists who are experimenting with our children. That’s why I love what you do at MassResistance because you recognize that.
As Rob was going into the courthouse on March 16 to turn himself in, he was interviewed by Laura-Lynn Tyler Thompson and said:
I’m definitely getting the word out in the United States, because that’s where word travels fast. And I can be more candid there than I can be here in Canada, for obvious reasons. I don’t want Canadians to get in trouble. So let the Americans help me in that way.
Rob responds to Jenn Smith’s remarks – even more bizarre! Then the judge asked Rob if he wanted to respond to what Jenn Smith had said. It was really weird to hear how Rob responded this time. It was completely different than what he had testified the previous day.
Rob said that the first day he was incarcerated he was able to reflect on what he’d done, and that he’s regretting his civil disobedience. He said that he had just wanted to help his daughter, not hurt her. He thinks children should have to wait until they’re eighteen. He acknowledges what he did, and regrets it deeply. He said that “in hindsight" he would "navigate things differently." He wants to close this chapter and move on with his life, he said.
Someone who was there wrote, “This feels like a prisoner confessing under duress.” It certainly looks that way to us – and many others. It was surreal. (People who were there have said all this did more harm than good, in their opinion, given Rob’s sudden switch from the day before.)
At that point the judge concluded the court proceedings, and said he would announce the sentence on Friday, April 16.
The sentencing
Judge goes over the “history.” On Friday morning, Judge Tammen started off by going through the history of the case and the various breaches. He mentioned that the previous judge in the case had stated that if Rob referred to his daughter as a girl that it would constitute “family violence” – and Tammen seemed to agree with that.
MassResistance helping expose the horror is “most serious.” Tammen also recounted that Rob stated in interviews that he felt it was important to break the gag order. And Rob “instructed Americans to keep the story alive.” But in particular, Tammen insisted that the “most serious breech and gross violation” was Rob giving MassResistance the hospital “gender clinic” consent form and the hospital’s memo to Rob where they claim the 13-year-old daughter is “mature enough” to decide to have sex-change procedures. (That’s because these documents reveal how horrible all of this really is – something the government wants covered up.)
Thus, more punishment required. Judge Tammen said that agreeing to the plea bargain and merely giving Rob 45 days in prison is inadequate, and would “bring the administration of justice into disrepute.”
Shocking sentence. Tammen sentenced Rob to six months in prison. In addition, he fined Rob $30,000 - which he estimated Rob's GoGetFunding legal defense page had raised since his arrest - and Tammen said he is giving it to the Ronald McDonald House. The courtroom was stunned. (With time served and other factors, Rob is expected to serve about 4½ months in prison. But one never knows for sure.)
From what we’re already hearing it’s likely that the activism in British Columbia on Rob’s behalf is only just beginning. We’ll keep you informed!
Activists across Canada - in British Columbia, Alberta, and Ontario - are prepared to post thousands of these stickers in public areas to keep Rob's fight alive while he is in jail.Please help us continue to do our uncompromising work!
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