Arson charge stayed against artist

A charge of arson has been stayed against a former Niagara Falls artist less than four months after Ontario’s court of appeal granted her a new trial.

Jeannette Tossounian was found guilty of arson and being in possession of incendiary materials in 2012 in connection with a fire that destroyed her art gallery at 107 Welland Ave. in St. Catharines.

The Crown stayed the charge last Wednesday in Ontario Superior Court in St. Catharines. A stay means the case is essentially on hold. Stayed charges can be resurrected within 12 months from the day they are stayed.

“I am extremely happy to end this,” Tossounian said. “I didn’t want to go through a re-trial as it would have re-victimized me and I have gone through more trauma than what most could handle.”

Tossounian, 41, has always maintained her innocence.

“Continuing to try to convict an innocent person, who never has had any actual evidence against them and is the victim of the crime, I don’t think is in the public interest.”

After her conviction, Tossounian spent 191 days in custody at the Vanier Institute in Milton. She said she was put into solitary confinement for defending her civil right not to be forced to wear a bra.

“Spending two years locked in maximum security and solitary confinement has changed me forever,” she said.

Tossounian was arrested on Feb. 15, 2012, after a fire at her art studio.

Three people in a passing car noticed the blaze and saw a female walking away from the site carrying a gas can. When police arrived, they arrested Tossounian and found the empty gas can on the route she had taken. She had two lighters in her possession and smelled of gasoline.

She represented herself at trial. The Crown called 16 witnesses. Tossounian didn’t call any.

The only real issue at trial was her identity.

The Court of Appeal for Ontario ruled in July the Crown violated Tossounian’s charter rights by not taking adequate steps to ensure she received the full disclosure.

Tossounian was handed an initial 144-page package by the Crown in court in March of 2012. The Crown also delivered an additional package of more than 500 pages of disclosure to the Vanier Institute on June 25 — only eight days before the beginning of the trial.

Justice Russell Juriansz of the Court of Appeal for Ontario, who wrote the decision for the threejudge panel, said there was evidence in the disclosure that Tossounian could have used to cross-examine and “diminish the reliability” of the witnesses who identified her.

The appeal court also found that the trial judge didn’t provide Tossounian with adequate assistance — particularly in failing to make sure she understood her right to full disclosure and the remedies available for the infringement of that right.

She wrote nine books while behind bars, including Songs from the Slammer, The Human Kennel

Jail Essays.

After her court appearance Wednesday, Tossounian set up an easel across from the court house and painted a picture of the court building. She called the work Victory at the House of Persecution.

In Ottawa on Friday, Tossounian received the 2017 Civil Liberties Award from the Ontario Civil Liberties Association. She spoke about her work and life experience related to civil rights and liberties.

“I have been publicly speaking about all this for some time and continue to advocate for prisoners, particularly incarcerated women, as well as continue to make changes to unjust policies,” she said.

While she now lives in Ottawa, she still considers Niagara her home.

“I may return to Niagara in the future if I feel safe from my haters who did this to me.”

Tossounian tried her hand at politics and ran unsuccessfully for Niagara Falls council in 2010 and as an independent in the October 2011 provincial election. alangley@postmedia.com twitter.com/nfallslangley