Unlawful assembly - should such a thing exist?

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They may, by your standard, have done nothing wrong. But your standard and the law's standard are two different things. And I, for one, won't presume to say what the law would hold until the courts have had their chance to rule on the issue.

If you have chosen to take part in a demonstration, then there is a risk that the demonstration will get out of hand, and that you will be caught up in it.

As we have seen, sometimes that risk comes from police misconduct. And when that happens, the law does not turn a blind eye to that. But there are other times where the risk comes from elements within the demonstration. And when that happens, we cannot expect the police to turn a blind eye to that.

The first object of the police--at least in this country--is to contain, and then dispel violence. The Stanley Cup riots serve as a recent reminder that a failure on the part of police agencies to act quickly and effectively can contribute to an escalation of violence, injury to bystanders and damage to property.

The second object of the police--and a clearly secondary priority--is to arrest and charge those responsible for a peaceful demonstration becoming unlawful. Give the nature of Canadian criminal law, the best approach from a police perspective is to charge broadly, and then let the Attorney General determine whether or not an evidentiary basis exists to proceed, whether conviction is likely, and whether prosecution is in the public interest.

It is not for the police to make those determinations--there is a reason that we separate policing, prosecution and adjudication into three different organs of government.

So people got arrested for wearing a scarf. I am not moved. Call me when they get prosecuted and convicted on that basis. Then--and only then--will your argument move me.