Former Alberta MLA not guilty of threatening teens he chased with truck

Former Alberta MLA Derek Fildebrandt fist-pumped from the prisoner's box as a Calgary judge acquitted him on all four counts of uttering threats to a group of 13- and 14-year-old boys whom he chased in a truck through his southwest neighbourhood last spring. 

Although Justice Allan Fradsham found that Fildebrandt did tell the kids "I protect my property and my belongings with a gun," the judge ruled the comment wasn't intended to intimidate.

The incident happened on April 13 around 9 p.m., when a group of teenage boys were lingering on the sidewalk in front of Fildebrandt's house. They were waiting for a friend to join them so they could head to a convenience store for snacks.

Fildebrandt's lawn ornaments had been stolen in the past, and when he spotted a group of teens outside his house, "he concluded, wrongly, that the complainants were either stealing or damaging the ornaments," wrote Fradsham. 

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Fildebrandt became enraged when he mistakenly believed the four boys were damaging "No Peeing" and "No Pooping" dog signs on his lawn. 

After a few minutes of watching the boys outside his house, Fildebrandt left his home and began yelling at the teens while shaking his cane in the air.

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The boys testified that because he mentioned a gun, they believed the cane he was holding was a rifle. That's what they said caused them to run. 

Fildebrandt then got in his truck and chased the teens. 

'The product of consensus'

He used his truck to block the path of one of the boys who was running away from him. Another boy banged on a neighbour's door for help. 

"Please help, there's somebody that has been following us, he told us he had a gun," the boy told Vanessa Lunse.

• 'I thought I was going to die that day': Teens testify former MLA Derek Fildebrandt uttered threats

Lunse testified that when she confronted Fildebrandt outside her house, he said: "No, I didn't tell them I have a gun. I told them I protect my property with a gun."

Although Fradsham found all of the witnesses credible, the judge ruled that some of their evidence was unreliable, including testimony from Fildebrandt and the boys.

The boys discussed what happened before making police statements "for the innocent purpose of trying to be complete," said Fradsham, but the result was that some of their evidence was "the product of consensus as opposed to actual memory."

Words akin to 'guard dog on duty' sign

The judge also found Fildebrandt's testimony "unreliable."

The former MLA testified he yelled: "Stop, come back here or I will call the police," but the judge ruled he said "I protect my property with a gun."

But Fradsham found that Fildebrandt was "upset" at the time, which caused him to tell a 911 operator his home was being attacked, which the judge described as an "overstatement" of the situation.

Still, Fradsham ruled the words did not constitute a threat. 

Those words are, according to Fradsham, "descriptive of a defensive, protective action embarked upon in response to a threat or attack" and fall into the same category as a "Guard Dog On Duty" sign designed to deter trespassers.

"He did not say he would fire the gun at someone, or fire it at all," wrote Fradsham. "Only shooting at someone has the potential to cause death or bodily harm."

The judge also ruled that even if the words were threatening, Fildebrandt would still be acquitted because the teens were not doing anything that would necessitate the protection of his home.

Fildebrandt did a little dance as he left the courtroom with a group of supporters.