Blogger's libel proceedings delayed

Court proceedings against controversial Fredericton blogger Charles LeBlanc for criminal libel have been delayed, according to his lawyer.

LeBlanc was scheduled to appear in court Friday, on charges he damaged the reputation of a city police officer in blog posts last summer.

Steve Foulds says the libel case has stalled because the Crown is reviewing the charges.

The charge, under section 301 of the Criminal Code, has been challenged in the courts several times, Foulds said.

"There's been four jurisdictions in Canada that have found this section of the code to be unconstitutional, so I'm hoping that the attorney general and her staff will look closely at the section before making a decision to proceed," he said.

Those jurisdictions include Alberta, Ontario, Saskatchewan and Newfoundland and Labrador.

LeBlanc was arrested and released in January, while officers searched his apartment and seized his computer equipment.

Law professors from the University of New Brunswick have just released a letter they wrote to Attorney General Marie-Claude Blais about LeBlanc's case.

Six professors signed the letter, saying they are concerned about the potential prosecution because of previous court challenges.

They say it is unlikely to result in a conviction and is not in the public's interest.