TORONTO, Ontario, May 16, 2011 (LifeSiteNews.com) – Young Canadian pro-lifer Mary Wagner, who was arrested in November for witnessing at a Toronto abortion facility, is off the hook – for now.
Wagner recently stood trial on charges of trespassing and mischief. But after noting irregularities between Mary’s summons, the charge, and the testimonies, the judge decided to drop the charges.
The British Columbia native, well known for her peaceful testimony for the unborn, spent four months in the Milton Vanier Centre last year after an arrest in April.
In November, Mary took long-stem roses with her when she visited the Women’s Care Clinic at 960 Lawrence Ave West in November. Each rose, intended for pregnant mothers awaiting abortion procedures, had a message of love, factual information about pregnancy, an image of a developing baby, and pro-life crisis pregnancy hot-line numbers attached (To read a witness account of her arrest, click here).
After Mary entered the abortion facility to speak with young women seeking abortions, she was arrested for trespassing charge, but was released shortly thereafter. Later in the day, however, Mary returned to the abortion facility and was arrested again, after successfully convincing a couple to keep their unborn child.
On May 6, after many hours of being shuffled among courtrooms and judges, Mary appeared before Judge Jack Grossman at the Ontario Court of Justice around 3:00 p.m. The judge heard testimony from one office worker from the Women’s Care Clinic and one of the two arresting officers.
Representing herself in court, Mary took the opportunity to cross-exam the arresting constable to demonstrate that she was not causing any mischief, but merely talking to a couple while in the lobby of the Centre, at the time of the arrest.
Ultimately Judge Grossman made the decision to drop the charges.