Giving the middle finger is a ‘God-given right,’ says Quebec judge

By The Canadian Press on March 8, 2023.

MONTREAL – A Quebec court judge says Canadians have a “God-given,” constitutionally protected right to flip off obnoxious neighbours.

Judge Dennis Galiatsatos made comments in a February ruling acquitting a Montreal-area man of criminal harassment, adding that the fact the man was arrested and prosecuted at all was a bewildering injustice.

Police arrested Neall Epstein in May 2021 after he flipped two middle fingers at a neighbour, Michael Naccache, who had threatened him while holding a power tool.

Naccache, 34, claimed that Epstein had been harassing him and his family for months, but the judge concluded that the Naccache family tried to weaponize the criminal justice system to take revenge on Epstein for perceived slights.

The judge wrote that Naccache was fortunate he wasn’t charged for uttering threats, adding that the man’s father, mother and brother were also lucky they hadn’t faced charges for their actions.

Galiatsatos wrote in acquitting Epstein that he wished he could literally – not just figuratively – throw the case out of court.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 8, 2023.

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