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Good morning! I’m heading to BC Supreme Court to cover latest hearing in #Huawei Meng Wanzhou extradition case for @starvancouver. We expect lawyers to argue she was unlawfully detained at #yvr airport last December at the direction of US authorities. thestar.com/amp/news/canad…
And just for fun it is pouring rain! Photographers outside, wearing black, have been here for an hour already. #Huawei @starvancouver @TorontoStar 
Lots in suit jackets outside this courtroom. About 3 dozen+ in line, plus 9 very official-looking (legal team?) huddled in a circle at the back of the line. #Huawei
Sheriff with awesome sleeve tattoos, Apple Watch and a silver faux-hawk just came by to say “There’s no pictures eh? Anyone taking pictures, they’re out” and he points to the exit. #Huawei
Meng Wanzhou just walked by. She is wearing sparkly silver heels, and a brown long coat cinched at the waist. She smiled as she walked past the lineup outside court room, waving and saying “thank you” and flanked by officials in front and back #huawei
She is now in line again, I’m standing basically beside her. She has a French braid, navy blue velvet hair piece, brand name brown purse and is talking quietly with her team. Inside courtroom now, her coat is off, she is wearing a bright purple dress. Looks relaxed, smiling lots.
#huawei's Meng Wanzhou now sitting in semi-walled off glass booth in middle of room, along with another man. Lawyers talking amongst themselves, and two court sketch artists are now at work. #Extradition #cbsa
Two court sketch artists are at work now at desks off to the side. Both artists have curly short hair and are women! One is sketching vigorously, the other looking through binoculars to get close up view of #Huawei's Meng Wanzhou even though she's only sitting ab. 6 metres away!
Room has gone quieter now, some chatter and last minute lawyer paper hand overs, hearing lots of clicking on keyboards from journalists, judge will be coming in any second. #Huawei
Did I mention, the one thing that was unusual about #Huawei CFO Meng Wanzhou's outfit is that she has a large tracking device strapped around her ankle. She is quite small, and the box is about the size of a small pack of cigarettes and the strap is a but loose on her ankle.
In session now, Meng's lawyer introducing the legal team. A stack of four 4-inch binders sit on the judge's desk. There's a media lawyer here representing more than a dozen outlets to argue against any efforts from Meng Wanzhou or the crown for a publication ban. #Huawei
Crown counsel explains there's an affidavit from a "Donna Chan" that has been submitted, more than 1,000 pages long. There are also CCTV videos that they've submitted, which they say shows the whole story of what happened (assumably of when Meng was arrested).
Very very hard to ear what's actually being said by the lawyers at front of courtroom, above the din of press gallery's clacking key boards. Why are the mic volumes always SO low in the court rooms? Journos are starting to self-correct and typing less or more quietly now. #huawei
#Huawei's Meng Wanzhou's lawyers want lots of docs from CBSA, RCMP, government...anything related to her arrest. Lawyer says two main categories of docs 1) from the arrest on Dec 1 2018, and 2)what happened in the U.S. before the arrest. Meng's lawyers seek docs related to arrest
Meng's lawyers argue: Officials collaborated and arranged a plan to deal with Meng in a way that violated the provisional arrest warrant. #Huawei
Meng's lawyers: The plan delayed the implementation of her rights and afforded CBSA the opportunity to interrogate her and the info was arranged to be shared with RCMP & FBI. #huawei
Basically #huawei Meng Wanzhou's lawyers say there was a "covert criminal investigation" under way while border officials pretended to be investigating her over immigration purposes.
#huawei lawyers say this is misconduct by Canadian officials: delaying arrest, in breach of clear language of order of court. Deceiving Meng Wanzhou against charter rights. Abusing search powers to collect evidence for criminal case in the US and then trying to cover actions.
#huawei Meng Wanzhou lawyer says US authorities asked Canadian officials to "seize electronic devices, preserve the evidence, there will be a request from the FBI" and put them in a special signal blocking container to "prevent remote wiping." REMOTE WIPING? Technology is wild!
Side note: I have live tweeted lots of important events, but nothing has ever made my shoulders and neck this cramped so quickly. Not enough elbow room in the packed courthouse IMO.
I forgot to mention earlier -- Meng Wanzhou left the glass court box and is sitting at desk near her lawyers, and beside her translator. Judge granted permission for this. She is looking through the huge binders, following along with documents as lawyers make arguments. #Huawei
CFO Meng Wanzhou lawyers are now going through and telling judge about emails that were sent among US and Canadian officials ahead of her arrest in October. Lots of names redacted, but a Canadian "Sgt. Lundi" (sp?) and a "Ben Ross" from RCMP keep coming up. #Huawei
Ok back from recess now. #Huawei CFO Meng Wanzhou's lawyers continue to present evidence. So many emails. I can only imagine how many lawyers must be working on this case behind the scenes.
It's a little chilly in this court room, and #Huawei CFO Meng Wanzhou -- who is still following along with documents, sitting beside her translator -- has put her rusty brown coat back on.
#huawei lawyer says the arrest warrant gives clear instructions on how to arrest Meng Wanzhou. But "the following morning, something goes awry," he tells the judge.
Lawyers continue - by delaying the actual arrest once they took #huawei Meng into custody, they trampled her charter rights. Say a "special meeting" on the morning of Dec. 1 btwn officials lead to last minute change of plans in how it all went down.
At YVR Dec. 1, 2018, 9:30am there was a mtg between RCMP officers & CBSA officials to discuss arrest process for #Huawei Meng Wanzhou. This is where plan changes, says defence. Officials decided they wouldn’t board the plane and do immediate arrest, as had been earlier instructed
Instead she is one of the first people off the plane (I'm guessing she was flying business class!) says lawyer, and then gets whisked up by CBSA. #Huawei #MengWanzhou
Looks like we are lunch breaking until 2 pm!
Looks like we are going to be seeing some video this afternoon. How do I know? There's a large TV screen facing the audience and the cursor is hovering over an icon that says "Videos." (Back in courtroom hearing for disclosure of docs related to arrest of #Huawei #MengWanzhou!)
By the way, here's my and @mdgmedia's story so far for @starvancouver @TorontoStar. See pic for Meng's glittery pumps ad the tracking device on her ankle. #huawei #MengWanzhou thestar.com/news/canada/20…
@mdgmedia @starvancouver @TorontoStar Today #Huawei team is basically saying something fishy happened, that there must be upper level directives that RCMP & CBSA officials received & they want to see those docs (e.g. emails etc.). Lawyer asks "Why this plan (of how and when to arrest her) changed? We don't know"
@mdgmedia @starvancouver @TorontoStar One of the RCMP officials who was on this case is a VERY detailed note taker explans #Huawei lawyer. On Dec. 1, 2018 he made notes at 6am, and then at 11am when he got to the #YVR gate. BUT he didn't didn't make ANY notes about the 9am meetings with CBSA at YVR. WHY?
@mdgmedia @starvancouver @TorontoStar Another RCMP officer writes in his notebook "spoke to Meng Wanzhou" but doesn't detail what he spoke about, says #huawei lawyer. He also didn't record anything in his notebook about the 9:30am meeting at #YVR with CBSA. Lawyer says this is evidence he's hiding something.
@mdgmedia @starvancouver @TorontoStar I got a seat up closer to #MengWanzhou for today's final session in the courtroom, and I can hear her translator speaking quietly to her (in mandarin assumably) and I can see her taking notes with a fancy-looking pen. #huawei
@mdgmedia @starvancouver @TorontoStar We're apparently going to see some video of when #MengWanzhou was taken into a secondary screening room by CBSA officials. Not sure WHEN we will see it though -- and court ends in 25 minutes. Boy, legal proceedings sure are S...L...O...W. #huawei
@mdgmedia @starvancouver @TorontoStar For background on why #MengWanzhou is such a big deal, see my colleague's work which explains what it means to be a "princeling" #huawei thestar.com/vancouver/2019…
@mdgmedia @starvancouver @TorontoStar VIDEO TIME! #Huawei lawyer says this vid shows that CBSA was keeping RCMP appraised of their questioning of #MengWanzhou Video shows Meng at "Counter 21" in YVR along with three officials.
@mdgmedia @starvancouver @TorontoStar In Video Dec 1 at YVR: Meng is wearing sweat pants and an unzipped hoodie with relaxed-looking shirt underneath -- travel attire. She sways back and forth a bit, as she looks on at officials looking inside her bag. #huawei #mengwanzhou
@mdgmedia @starvancouver @TorontoStar #Huawei lawyer continues going over correspondences and notes, concluding that in tandem with video "Here we are seeing a communication from a member of the rcmp who is on site at the airport, technically advising...that this provisional arrest warrant is not being executed."
@mdgmedia @starvancouver @TorontoStar But it's 4pm "so that completes that." Court is adjourned until tomorrow morning! #Huawei #mengwanzhou
