Trespass notice revoked
Protection Services allows student back on campus
AS OF JAN. 11, physics master’s student Joseph Hickey was allowed back onto University of Ottawa property, but still faces charges. A letter from Director of Protection Services Claude Giroux stated that the no-trespass notice issued on Dec. 7 has been revoked.
The notice was originally given to Hickey after he was accused of painting on the walls of Morisset Hall. After receiving the notice, Hickey then went to President Allan Rock’s office on Dec. 11 in an attempt to make an appointment to have the restriction revoked. Hickey was then handcuffed and escorted out of Rock’s office.
Hickey had his first appearance in court on Jan. 12 and faces charges of mischief under $5,000. His second appearance will be later in January. Hickey said he will plead not guilty to the charges.
Hickey also has a court date set for March 1, when the trial for the trespass ticket that he received while trying to make an appointment with Rock will commence. The cost of the trespass ticket is $65. Hickey noted that he will be calling Rock as a witness.
“I spoke to [Rock] at that time when I was arrested and handcuffed and waiting for the Ottawa police to arrive, kind of held a little bit by Protection Services,” Hickey said.
In the Jan. 11 letter to Hickey, Giroux stated the following: “In the meantime, the university expects you to refrain from engaging in any criminal activity. Should this fail to occur, the university would likely, among other things, issue a notice of trespass against you once again. You can expect, however, that the effective period of that notice will be much longer.”
“This letter also implies that I’m guilty. It affirms the university’s position to use trespass as a political tool,” said Hickey.
Hickey, who is employed by the university as a teaching assistant, resumed work on Jan. 13.
