Taking mask off to prevent a migraine becomes $2,000 legal headache

Fight The Fines

Reporting on and fighting the pandemic fines.

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Here at Rebel News we have one of the largest civil liberties initiatives, called Fight The Fines. Through the registered Canadian charity The Democracy Fund, we crowdfund legal defence for those facing egregious COVID-related tickets and fines.

Much of this campaign features peaceful protesters or people engaging in civil disobedience who were fined for breaking public health orders, but in this story today I bring you a mother out buying diapers with her child. And she was complying with COVID restrictions, namely the mask mandate.

It’s a classic case of someone who should probably be exempt from masking, as prolonged use gives her migraines. The enforcement of masking, with very little respect for those who may struggle with it, has been so heavy-handed that most comply sometimes to their own detriment. Which contradicts the actual regulations set out by various provinces.

For instance, the Ontario regulation says that the mask requirement does not apply to a person who needs to remove one “as may be necessary for the purposes of health and safety.”

At least British Columbia clearly lays it out by saying that “A person may not be able to wear a mask for a psychological, behavioural or health condition, or due to a physical, cognitive or mental impairment.”

On page five of their decision order, Alberta lists the medical reasons that exempt one from masking, which includes mental health, conditions such as anxiety and acute respiratory distress.

Even Quebec stipulates that one can be exempt from wearing a face covering if it causes significant disorganization or distress.

But this woman was wearing her mask. She took it down while grocery shopping with her small child to prevent a migraine. Surely this counts as causing distress, and may be necessary for the purposes of health and safety…

Except that she was fined for doing that, and charged criminally! Even after she put her mask back on when asked to do so. And because this client is in the process of an adoption, where she must comply with all COVID mandates or else risk not being approved as a happy, loving adoptive home, we wanted to err on the side of caution and keep her anonymous.

Stay tuned as we follow this case and fight this fine and criminal charge — all for a mother simply out trying to purchase some diapers and catch her breath to avoid a migraine.