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In a cliffhanger ruling that mixed references to film noir and pulp fiction, Justice Ramez Khawly of the Ontario Court of Justice took two hours yesterday, in a court packed with 100 people, to get to his decision: David Chen, the vigilante grocer, is not guilty on all charges.

“David Chen tried to fill the void where the justice system failed,” Judge Khawly said.

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Friday Mr. Chen walked out onto the steps of Toronto’s Old City Hall courthouse a free man, and, as the clock on the red sandstone tower struck the reverberating bells of noon, breathed the air of acquittal.

“I am relieved it is over and relieved with the right results,” he said in halting English, while dozens of supporters cheered around him.

Mr. Chen and two fellow grocers, whom Toronto police charged in May 2009, after they tied up a shoplifter, became what the judge called a “cause célèbre,” a symbol across Canada of honest, hardworking people at odds with a justice system that coddles criminals.