Powley Case
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Métis hunting case before Ontario's top court
(From CBC Website)
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TORONTO - The highest court in Ontario is dealing with a case
that Métis people hope will bring them a step closer
to recognition of their hunting rights in the province.
It's the second appeal of a case against two Métis
men in the Sault Ste. Marie area. They were first acquitted
in 1998 of illegal hunting and possession of moose meat.
But the Court of Appeal for Ontario probably won't be the
last stop for the case, which stems from charges initially
laid in 1993.
"We expect that however it goes, it'll likely end up
in the Supreme Court of Canada," said Gerald Morin, president
of the Métis Council of Canada. "And of course
that's going to be binding throughout the country."
In October, 1993, Steve Powley decided he couldn't continue
to hunt the way he had been.
"I went eight years and just got calf licenses, and you
can't feed a family of six on a calf," he said. "So
whatever you saw, you shot, and you smuggled it home."
But that fall, when Powley and his son Roddy shot a bull moose,
they didn't bother with the smuggling part of the equation.
They just put it on the roof of their truck and headed home.
Powley wasn't surprised when he was caught, but he was fed
up with the sneaking around.
The Métis are recognized in the Constitution as an
aboriginal people. They say that means they should have traditional
hunting rights. Many provinces don't agree with that.
Powley says he would rather not fight it out in court. He
wants the province to sit down with the Métis and negotiate
the hunting rights.
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