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PANNIQTUUQ/PANGNIRTUNG
A case the federal government has brought against three men who base-jumped off Auyuittuq Park's Mount Asgard in August 2009 continues to be a headache for the Nunavut justice system.

Sean Leary climbs the north face of Mount Asgard in this scene from The Asgard Project, winner of the award for Best Film on Climbing, 2010 Banff Mountain Film Festival. He and two others were charged after base-jumping off the Auyuittuq National Park mountain. - photo courtesy of The Banff Centre

The three men charged for the base-jumping incident have paid their penance to charity, and made public apologies for the act, captured on film for The Asgard Project, which won international acclaim. Briton Leo Houlding, American Sean Leary, and Spaniard Carlos Suarez are now waiting for Parks Canada to tell the court the case is closed, Chief Justice Robert Kilpatrick heard on Sept. 10.

"Mr. Houlding has made appearances at the film festivals and apologized at them," defence lawyer Malcolm Kempt said on the men's behalf during a previous appearance in late August, and added that they "made the donation requested by Parks Canada, and has asked for magazines to run the apology."

However, Kempt told the court on Sept. 10 that although the men have done what was asked, Parks Canada wants to see specific proof from each publication and film festival that these requirements have been met.

Kilpatrick shook his head as he was told of the delay and expressed his frustration at the resources this case has eaten up.

"It's occupied vast amounts of court time over multiple years," Kilpatrick said.

The film, which earned international honours including Best Film on Climbing at the 2010 Banff Mountain Film Festival, follows the three men as they attempt the first free climb of the 2,000-metre monolith. The men were inspired by the 1977 James Bond film The Spy Who Loved Me, in which a stunt double for Roger Moore skis and parachutes off the mountain.

After the film went public, Parks Canada asked for an apology and a charitable donation of $1,000 from each of the charged men.

More mountain charges

Two men have also been charged under the Canadian National Parks Act with paragliding off Mount Thor, which is also in Auyuittuq Park, on July 20, 2012. Christopher Warner, of Australia, and Chis Fitzgerald are to make a first appearance in Pangnirtung on Nov. 13 at 9 a.m.

The park is unique in its ban on jumping off its mountains, particularly Mount Asgard and Mount Thor, because of the safety concerns related to getting emergency crews to the scene.

"Parks Canada has charged a number of people for similar offences, all of whom I will not be representing," Kempt told the court on Sept. 10, eliciting laughter from the gallery.

The Mount Asgard case will be back in court on Oct. 2.

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