VANCOUVER — The RCMP say a photojournalist who is suing the force was not exempt from complying with a court injunction while reporting on protests over the Coastal GasLink pipeline that's nearing completion in northern British Columbia.
In a response to a lawsuit filed by Amber Bracken and news organization The Narwhal, the Mounties say Bracken's status as a journalist would not place her outside the scope of the injunction that prohibits interference with the pipeline.
Bracken has said she was already behind the boundary of a police "exclusion zone" and she had chosen the tiny house as the best vantage point for taking photos. The Mounties' response to the claim says Bracken identified herself as a member of the media immediately after her arrest, not before. It says an RCMP media relations officer, Staff Sgt. Janelle Shoihet, replied saying, "As long as is clear with the members on the ground there shouldn't be any issues. I will pass along the information to the officers out there."Bracken's actions "went beyond her role as a journalist," the RCMP response to the lawsuit says.
A statement from The Narwhal on Thursday says the Mounties' response to the lawsuit "indicates freedom of the press is severely endangered in Canada."
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