By: Bob Mackin
Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
Prince George Citizen
A defamation lawsuit filed by the wife of Quesnel Mayor Ron Paull against the Union of BC Indian Chiefs (UBCIC) has been dismissed by BC Supreme Court.
“I find that this is a case in which the public interest in preserving free debate and the UBCIC’s right to express its views as it did outweighs the harm, if any, that Ms. (Pat) Morton may have incurred,” Justice Jasmin Ahmad ruled on April 30.
Morton sued the UBCIC last May, citing an April 2, 2024 complaint letter and the events that followed. The UBCIC had objected to former Mount Royal University professor Frances Widdowson speaking at a Quesnel city council meeting. Widdowson is a contributor to Grave Error: How the Media Misled Us (and the Truth About Residential Schools).
The letter also alleged Morton had purchased copies of the book and distributed them to clients through her son’s Q-Tax office in Quesnel “in blatant disregard for the impact this would have on residential school survivors and their families.”
Morton claimed reputational harm, emotional distress and business losses, and sought special damages for loss of professional standing and community trust.
Her lawsuit said she purchased 11 copies of the book, provided one to a school district library and offered another to a local MLA, who returned it unread. She said the remaining copies were given to close friends or family.
The UBCIC argued its statements were protected under the defences of substantial truth, fair comment and qualified privilege, and that the lawsuit improperly sought to limit its free expression on a matter of public interest and debate in Quesnel and across Canada.
Morton said hostility at the April 2, 2024 meeting and the resulting public reaction left her with distress and a fear of appearing in public. She also said it aggravated a pre-existing health condition and contributed to a new issue requiring surgery.
“However, to the extent that the evidence provides some basis for these claims of emotional distress, I am unable to conclude that those harms were causally linked to the UBCIC letter or, specifically, to the impugned statement,” Ahmad said.
The judge also noted the UBCIC was not the only organization to raise concerns. Lhtako Dene Nation, Nazko First Nation, the Superintendent and Board of Education of School District No. 28 (Quesnel), the North Cariboo Métis Association and the BC General Employees’ Union all issued statements or complaints.
The Grave Error book at the centre of the dispute questions the 2015 Truth and Reconciliation Commission report and the widely reported 2021 claim that the remains of 215 children were found at the Kamloops Indian Residential School. The Tk’emlups te Secwepemc First Nation later clarified that ground-penetrating radar detected 200 “anomalies.” The site has not been excavated.
“To be clear, this application is not about Ms. Morton’s right to distribute the book, nor is it about her right to express her views about the book’s content. Neither is at issue,” Ahmad emphasized. “At its core, this application is about whether the public interest in protecting the UBCIC’s right to publicly express its criticism of Ms. Morton for her distribution of the book outweighs any harm Ms. Morton may have incurred as a result of the UBCIC’s letter to Quesnel’s mayor and council.”
The UBCIC is entitled to costs, though Ahmad granted Morton 30 days to file submissions in opposition.