The Sioui Brothers
Charged with cutting down trees
On May 9, 1982, brothers Régent, Konrad, Georges and Hugues Sioui of Wendake were accused of cutting down trees, camping and making fires in the Jacques-Cartier National Park located near Québec City. The Québec government charged them with violating a provincial regulation adopted pursuant to Québec’s Parks Act. The accused argued that the right to exercise their customs in the park was protected by a document signed in Longueuil by General James Murray at the time of the British Conquest of 1760. After being found guilty by two lower courts, the Sioui brothers were acquitted by the Court of Appeal of Québec and then by the Supreme Court of Canada in a unanimous ruling.
