Sask. man who withheld daughter to prevent COVID vaccination appeals conviction

A Saskatchewan father who was found guilty of withholding his daughter in contravention of a custody order is appealing his conviction.

Michael Gordon Jackson filed the notice of appeal with Saskatchewan’s highest court on Dec. 6, 2024.

Saskatchewan’s court of appeal allows for 30 days from the date of sentencing to file an appeal. Jackson chose to file the notice immediately, as Dec. 6 is when he was sentenced to 12 months in prison and 200 days probation.

Jackson was credited for the 541 days he spent on remand, meaning his sentence was already considered served.

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Jackson withheld his then seven-year-old daughter from her mother for nearly 100 days from December 2021 to February 2022 to prevent the girl from getting a COVID-19 vaccine.

Police found Jackson with his daughter in Vernon, B.C. in late February. A jury found the 55-year-old from Carievale, Sask. guilty on Apr. 19, 2024.

In his notice of appeal, Jackson argued that his conviction represents a "miscarriage of justice."

"The verdict was unreasonable and cannot be supported by the evidence; there was a miscarriage of justice," the appeal read. "The sentence imposed is demonstrably unfit in the circumstances."

As the notice of appeal is a preliminary document, it does not specify what Jackson’s arguments may be in support of his claims.

According to the appeal document, Jackson will arrange to have legal representation, after representing himself during his initial trial, where he opted to be tried by a judge and jury.

During sentencing submissions, Jackson claimed the time he spent away from his daughter and his time already served was punishment enough.

Justice MacMillan-Brown said she imposed a prison sentence because Jackson showed no remorse for his actions.

"It's clear Mr. Jackson sees himself as a martyr,” the judge said. "What he fails to see is the harm that he inflicted by tearing [his daughter] from her mother, and everything [she] knew in her day-to-day life."

-With files from Drew Postey and Donovan Maess