Charles Hackland, had declined to convict King on three charges related to the Criminal Code offence of "intimidation," which can carry a sentence of up to five years' imprisonment. The list explicitly includes "block(ing) or obstruct(ing) a highway," which was the very essence of the Freedom Convoy's Ottawa protest. But Justice Hackland, not deterred by the relative simplicity of Section 423.1, let King off the hook on the intimidation charges. (His ruling included no actual Charter analysis at all, mind you; he thought the mere mention of the Charter was enough.) It is settled law, they insist, that "mass obstruction of public highways is not a form of peaceful protest."