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But, again, sometimes fairness does win out, even if it takes more than a decade to do so. This summer, the Montagues finally won back from the government some of the respect they always deserved. Faced with the couple’s unwavering determination to stand up for their rights — and the rights of all Canadians — the government of Ontario finally backed down. The Montagues will keep their home (which Bruce built with his own hands), and unlike many other unfortunate victims of civil forfeiture abuse in Ontario, who are subjected to gag clauses that prevent them from warning others about the injustices they have suffered at the hands of government, the couple will be free to tell their story.

It might appear that the result was inevitable given how clearly out of proportion the government’s punitive measures were to the severity of the crime. Sadly, that is not the case. The Montagues might easily have been overwhelmed, as others have been, by the severity of the challenge they faced and the disparity in their resources against those of the government. However, they happen to be an unusually moral and vocal couple, and stubbornly put their principles above their personal interests. With the help of the non-profit legal charity, the Canadian Constitution Foundation (CCF), they pursued the case both in court and in the court of public opinion, despite the heavy toll. For most Canadians, landing on the wrong end of a government civil forfeiture attempt — which can happen even to individuals who, unlike Bruce Montague, have never been suspected of, let alone convicted of, a crime — is unlikely to end happily.