Today is the last week of pre-trial hearings before the two men accused of conspiring to kill RCMP officers during a two-week-long anti-Covid-19 protest at the Canada-U.S. border town of Coutts, Alberta, finally proceed to trial next week.
The hearings are taking place inside a newly renovated courtroom with a new cabin constructed for the arrestees, where the two accused, Chris Carbert and Anthony Oilineck, are now seated on a metal board with shackles on their feet.
This uncomfortable renovation has prompted human rights advocates to raise concerns about the compounding physical and mental effects on the accused.