Kent Driscoll
Northern News Services

Fredericton, NB (Sep 05/05) - Returning to her New Brunswick home has proven to be quite an adventure for Allison Brewer.

She spent four years in Iqaluit working for health and social services and received a Governor General's Award for her work promoting equal rights for gay and lesbian people.

She recently moved back to Fredericton where she owns rental properties. Brewer is also running for the leadership of the provincial NDP and found herself on the wrong side of the law.

Brewer called the police to investigate theft of a refrigerator from her apartment. The officer decided to check her car licence number.

He found two unpaid parking tickets and Brewer found herself under arrest.

She had let a friend use her car while she was in Nunavut and it had been ticketed when Brewer was living in Iqaluit.

"The constable managed not to notice the bags of homegrown dope in the apartment, but he sure noticed my parking ticket. He called back-up, there's no word on my fridge, and he didn't even question the other tenants."

Her leadership opponents have teased Brewer about her brush with the law, but she's taking in in stride.

"Any publicity (for the campaign) is good publicity. My kids don't mind, as long as they don't have to use their allowance to bail me out," said Brewer.