MISSING PERSON CASE RENEWED............2 One year after British tourist Tom Billings disappeared in Vancouver, police are asking the public to come forward with any information they may have. engusomnprot » tin Vancouvelz NICH JOHANSEN photo Around 100 people took part in a protest at the Vancouver Art Gallery Tuesday after a U.S. grand jury’s decision not to charge Darren Wilson in the shooting of Michael Brown. Protesters gather north of the border after shooting officer avoids indictment in the U.S. By NICH JOHANSEN he heavy rain could not dampen the candles or the spirits of those gathered on the steps of the Van- couver Art Gallery to show their support for the people of Ferguson, Mis- souri on Tuesday. Approximately 100 people gathered at the corner of Robson and Hornby to show their solidarity with African- Americans in Ferguson and abroad who have been the victims of police violence. There were large peaceful demon- strations across many major cities in the United States, with rioting in some parts of Ferguson on Monday in re- sponse to a grand jury decision not to press criminal charges against officer Darren Wilson. Wilson shot and killed Michael Brown, an unarmed, black teen- ager, on August 9, 2014. The event began with words of soli- darity from the two organizers, Sunny Chui and Ely Levitt. This was followed by a four and a half minute moment of silence from the crowd, which represented the four and a half hours that Brown’s body was left in the street. The floor was then opened up to any- one who wished to talk. A number of people of all races, genders and ages spoke, capturing the attention of those gathered. Khalil Equiano, an African-American man from Seattle, Washington, was one speaker. He said he was initially fright- ened by the jury’s decision. “They’re legally saying its OK to kill you,” he said. “I remember sitting up last night thinking I probably won’t make it to 2016, if its legal they’re just going to shoot us in the street and I hat- ed that feeling.” “T found out there was going to be a rally here and there’s going to be other people that felt that as a species I count and I wanted to be somewhere where those people were because I’m tired of feeling like that,’ Equiano continued. “And I’m not willing to stay that way.” Many people spoke of the problem of structural racism in our culture and the need for changing attitudes throughout society. While the speakers talked about seri- ous and sombre topics, they all had a tone of positivity and hopefulness that was cheered on by those gathered. 66 They’re legally saying it’s OK to kill you KHALIL EQUIANO PROTESTER Court lifts publication ban Judge allows media access to Nuttall/Korody case By NATASHA CHANG Association successfully argued to relax a publication ban for the case on a couple charged with planning an attempted terrorist attack outside of the B.C. legislature last year. John Nuttall and Amanda Korody are the couple accused of planting home- made explosive devices near the legisla- ture during the 2013 Canada Day cele- brations in Victoria, B.C. David Crerar, partner at Borden Lad- ner Gervais LLP, represented the BC- CLA on Tuesday morning to challenge the publication bans and sealing order. He argued for the public’s right to T: British Columbia Civil Liberties i) know important information from the proceedings of these trials. Crerar’s challenge was successful, but there are still restrictions on reporting some of the information in the interest of peo- ple’s privacy in the case. BCCLA’s objective is “to promote, de- fend, sustain, and extend civil liberties and human rights,” according to the constitution found on their website. B.C. Supreme Court Justice Cathe- rine Bruce ruled that accredited media, the BCCLA, and members of the Cana- dian Bar Association are permitted ac- cess to approved exhibits filed at trial, with both the Crown and the defence agreeing that the media should have ac- cess to information to report to the pub- lic. A BCCLA news release from July said, “the media are the eyes and ears of the public. The Supreme Court of Canada has re- peatedly stated that any publication ban must only limit public access to the courts to the extent necessary to pro- tect the fair trial rights of the accused and other valid concerns.” Under the judge’s ruling, the media would have access to view problematic exhibits, however information from these exhibits is not publishable. Additionally, some potential exhibit items may not have copies or photo- graphs made, and both the Crown and the defence agreed they would not take time to create copies for the media. Bruce ruled in those cases the media are responsible for making their own copies and own photographs. A publication ban on pre-trial infor- mation, including the submissions made to court by both sides yesterday, never- theless stands. “JOE MABEL photo. The BCCLA successfully won a lift on a publication ban at B.C. Supreme Court Tuesday.