VICTORIA, BC: The Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms announces that the trespass prosecution against Canadian academic Dr. Frances Widdowson arising from her December 2025 arrest at the University of Victoria (UVic) has been stayed.
Dr. Widdowson was arrested and ticketed for trespass on December 2, 2025, after attending UVic with OneBC Leader Dallas Brodie to engage members of the campus community in discussion concerning disputed claims of unmarked graves in Kamloops.
Prior to Dr. Widdowson’s planned attendance on campus, UVic advised that Dr. Widdowson and Ms. Brodie were not permitted to attend UVic property for the purpose of speaking publicly and issued public statements opposing their planned campus attendance.
When Dr. Widdowson arrived on campus, she encountered a large protest near Petch Fountain, where she intended to speak. Following interactions with UVic security and Saanich police officers, she was served with a trespass notice. After declining to leave, she was arrested, detained for approximately two hours, and charged under British Columbia’s Trespass Act.
Constitutional lawyer Chris Fleury said, “The stay concludes the prosecution but leaves unresolved broader questions that had been expected to arise through the litigation.”
“The stay relates only to the legal proceeding arising from the trespass allegation prosecuted by the Saanich Police Department. It does not determine whether Dr. Widdowson is permitted to return to the UVic campus,” he added.
UVic was not a party to the prosecution that has now been stayed. Dr. Widdowson had previously received a written warning under provincial trespass legislation and may face further enforcement action if she returns to campus.
In the view of Dr. Widdowson’s legal team, one of the most significant unanswered questions was whether the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms applies to universities in British Columbia. Because the prosecution is being stayed, that question will not be decided in this case.
The Justice Centre is Canada’s leading civil liberties organization defending Charter rights and freedoms in the courts of law and in the court of public opinion. Founded in 2010, the Justice Centre funds lawyers across Canada, relies entirely on voluntary donations to carry out its mission, and issues official tax receipts to donors.
