Judge moves Tiny House Warriors leader's trial to Kamloops to avoid delays

Photo: Kanahus Manuel/Twitter

Kanahus Manuel will stand trial in Kamloops next year on a breach charge alleging she had contact with a security guard at a Trans Mountain worksite in Blue River, contrary to a release order.

A judge has approved a change-of-venue application that will move the upcoming trial of a Tiny House Warriors leader from Clearwater to Kamloops.

Kanahus Manuel, also known as Amanda Soper, is facing a breach charge, accused of violating the conditions of a release order by having contact with a Trans Mountain security guard last year at a worksite in Blue River.

Crown prosecutor Andrew Duncan was seeking to move the trial from Clearwater to Kamloops to avoid delays. He said a two-day trial in Clearwater wouldn’t be able to take place until September, but it could be set for May in Kamloops.

Defence lawyer Brent Anderson was not opposed to moving the trial. He said he is based in Vancouver and Manuel travels regularly.

Provincial court Judge Marianne Armstrong ordered the trial moved to Kamloops.

Manuel is regarded as the leader of the Tiny House Warriors, a First Nations protest group opposed to the construction of the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion.

She was last in court earlier this year, when a Kamloops provincial court Judge acquitted her and a co-accused on mischief charges after an RCMP corporal pointed the finger at the wrong woman in court. In that case, she was accused of harassing workers at a Blue River construction site.

Lawyers will return to court on Monday to set a date for trial.