Greetings,

With this website and newsletter, I will provide brief summaries of each day’s events at my daughter Caylan Ford’s trial.  I am partisan, but the reporting on events is intended to be an accurate account of what transpired during each day, and I shall report the proceedings as I heard and understood them to the best of my limited and fading abilities.

Each day’s post will finish with a comment which may reflect my partisanship. You can read them all in the Blog section of this site. The most recent posts are visible at the bottom of this page, and to access all posts, simply click on “Blog” above.

If you are not familiar with the case or its history, or would like more information, see Reference Documents, [the tab in the top right corner of this page] for informative articles which provide relevant information about the case.  The titles describe the contents: Events Leading to Trial, The Legal Case, Of Certain Defendants, Key Exhibits, andCaylan’s Biography.

There is also a Glossary in Reference Documents which defines names or terms, many of which have broader than normal meanings, allowing me to limit the number of names I type.  I have also begun a page in which I will add Key Exhibits relevant to the day’s events that are referenced in my posts.

This newsletter is still a work-in-progress and it will evolve and hopefully improve as the trial progresses.

To watch a live stream of the trial, visit https://albertacourts.webex.com/meet/virtual.courtroom91
(YOU MUST TURN OFF YOUR MICROPHONE BEFORE LOGGING IN.)

Thank you,

Lyle Ford

Day-by-Day Summaries

Featured
Day 23

Examination of John von Heyking by Mr. Harrison, Caylan’s Counsel
Mr. von Heyking has a PhD in political science and is a professor at Arizona State University.  In 2020 he was a professor and chair of political science at University of Lethbridge. 

Examination of Eric Kaufmann by Mr. Harrison, Caylan’s Counsel, regarding Expert Qualification

Mr. Harrison advised the Court that he wished to qualify Dr. Kaufmann as an expert witness qualified to provide the Court with opinion evidence in the fields of sociology, political science and history, with particular expertise in nationalism, ethnic identity, demography, cultural conflict, and elite discourse.

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Day 22

Continued Cross-Examination of Jivraj by Mr. Harrison

Telephone Conversation Between Jivraj and Defendant Luke Lebrun (Press Progress)

On March 18, 2018, Jivraj had a telephone conversation with Defendant Luke Lebrun, then the editor of Press Progress, working under contract with the Broadbent Institute. Press Progress recorded the call, and the recording was played in court. The following quotations come from the official transcript.

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Day 21

Examination of Karim Jivraj by Mr. Harrison

At the outset, the Court ruled that Mr. Harrison’s questioning of Mr. Jivraj would begin as a direct examination but would convert to cross‑examination if Jivraj provided testimony inconsistent with his prior sworn evidence. His earlier testimony included:

  • His examinations for discovery

  • His testimony at a previous trial

  • The judgment from that earlier proceeding

Within minutes after starting to testify Jivraj made a statement inconsistent with his prior evidence. Mr. Harrison then applied to have him declared a hostile witness, and the Court granted the application. The remainder of the examination was conducted as a cross‑examination.

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