SURE, that's why they did it...

[samhexum]

A Canadian woman was caught walking her partner on a leash as if he were a dog, a hilarious but illegal attempt to get around Quebec’s newly imposed curfew to slow the spread of coronavirus, local media reported Monday.

 

The woman was spotted walking alongside her fake-dog husband in the city of Sherbrook around 9 p.m. Saturday, an hour after the curfew went in effect, according to CTV News. They were each given a $1,500 fine for violating the rules.

 

The new measures prohibit Quebec residents from leaving their homes between 8 p.m. and 5 a.m., but they provide numerous exceptions, including one for dog owners. The order states that “a person who must go out so that his dog can do its business” is allowed to do so within 1 kilometer from their home.

 

Essential workers, students with in-person night classes and anyone heading to a pharmacy or hospital are also excluded.

 

Police said the Sherbrook couple did not cooperate with officers “at all” and insisted they were following the rules — despite not having a real dog with them. The woman vowed not to pay for the ticket and said she would accumulate them, the Sherbrook Police Department told local newspaper La Tribune.

 

The fines start at $1,000 and can get as high as $6,000 for repeat offenders.

 

Besides the couple, whose names have not been released, more than 700 other people were reportedly fined during the first weekend under curfew in Quebec.

 

The heavily criticized order, which remains in place until Feb. 8, is a response to a surge of COVID-19 infections in the province, which has seen more than 230,000 confirmed cases and nearly 8,800 deaths since the pandemic began.

 

Quebec Premier François Legault said the goal of the curfew is to prevent people from visiting elderly family members, according to CTV News.

 

“What we’re targeting with the curfew, and we saw it over the holiday period, is there are far too many people in homes who are going and visiting those who are 65 and over,” he said. “That’s why we put the curfew at 8 p.m. That allows us to reduce the number of private gatherings.”