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More questions for father of man killed with six others in Old Montreal fire

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:49:25 GMT

MONTREAL — A lawyer representing the father of a man killed in a fire in Old Montreal says the fact police are now investigating the fire as arson raises new questions.Melissa Lonn is representing Randy Sears, whose son, Nathan, was among seven people killed when a heritage building hosting illegal short-term rentals caught fire March 16.Lonn is suing the building’s owner, short-term rental platform Airbnb and a man who was operating rentals out of the building.On Monday, Montreal police Insp. David Shane said investigators found traces of accelerant at the building site and that their probe could lead to a wide range of charges, from arson to murder.Lonn says the news that police have ruled out accidental causes is shocking and difficult for her client to absorb.She says Sears and other family members of victims have been waiting months for answers about the cause of the fire and are now wondering about the motive and the suspect.This report by The Canadian Press was first pu...

Protester arrested after paint splashed on Tom Thomson piece in National Gallery

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:49:25 GMT

OTTAWA — An artwork by renowned Canadian artist Tom Thomson at the National Gallery in Ottawa was splattered with paint today as part of a protest against the federal government’s response to wildfires.Ottawa police say they arrested Kaleb Suedfeld and charged him with criminal mischief, adding they are still investigating.On2Ottawa, a Canadian climate change advocacy group, issued a news release shortly before the arrest to say that paint would be thrown at Thomson’s “Northern River,” created in 1914-15.An Instagram post by the group shows a man smearing the glass that protects the painting with pink paint.The group says it has organized several traffic disruption demonstrations this month to draw attention to wildfires issue and is promising further actions in Ottawa next month.The National Gallery of Canada did not immediately respond to a request for comment.This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 29, 2023. The Canadian Press

What does Florida’s red flag law say, and could it have thwarted the Jacksonville shooter?

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:49:25 GMT

CHICAGO (AP) — Police in Florida took a 15-year-old into custody six years ago for threatening to take his own life, though he was soon released following an involuntary mental health examination, according to official records. This past weekend, that same person entered a Jacksonville Dollar General as a 21-year-old, wielding a rifle emblazoned with a swastika, and fatally shot three Black people in a racist attack. The gunman, who was white, then killed himself. Saturday’s shooting raises questions about whether so-called red flag laws in Florida and other states are used effectively. They are designed to seize guns from those in mental health crises, or who threaten violence, before they harm someone.Red flag laws are relatively new. Connecticut became the first state to adopt one in 1999 after a mass shooting at a state lottery office. Now, over a third of U.S. states have them, including Florida, though their provisions vary.The proliferation of mass shootings nationwide ...

Former Republican congressman Mike Rogers expected to run for US Senate in Michigan, AP sources say

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:49:25 GMT

DETROIT (AP) — Former U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers, a Republican who served in the U.S. House for seven terms and chaired its intelligence committee, is expected to soon announce a bid for Michigan’s open U.S. Senate seat, according to three people familiar with the matter. Rogers would become the first prominent Republican in the state to announce a campaign more than eight months after longtime Democratic Sen. Debbie Stabenow announced that she would retire next year after her fourth term. The people familiar with the matter spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity ahead of an official announcement expected in the coming days. His announcement could immediately make the race one of the most competitive in the country in 2024, when Republicans are looking to take control of the chamber from Democrats, who hold a slim 51-49 majority. A bid also could be a boost for Michigan Republicans. The party has been in turmoil in recent years and has struggled to win statewide races. D...

Trans Mountain facing intense deadline pressure to finish pipeline on time: Documents

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:49:25 GMT

CALGARY — New documents suggest the Crown corporation behind the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion is worried it won’t complete the project on schedulein spite of internal and external pressure to do so.In a letter to the Canada Energy Regulator dated Aug. 28, a First Nation in B.C. details a meeting with Trans Mountain executives that reveals the extent of the deadline pressure facing the corporation.The Stk’emlupsemc te Secwepemc Nation opposes Trans Mountain’s recent request for approval to modify the pipeline route and construction method through its traditional territory.The First Nation says Trans Mountain CEO Dawn Farrell told its leadership in July that the corporation needs the pipeline to be in service by Jan. 1, 2024, and that the deadline is threatened if it uses the originally proposed route and construction method.The filing states Farrell acknowledged construction delays aren’t the concern of the First Nation, but that Trans Mountain is obligat...

Breaking impasse, Tennessee lawmakers adjourn tumultuous session spurred by school shooting

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:49:25 GMT

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Tennessee lawmakers Tuesday abruptly ended a special session initially touted to improve public safety in the wake of a deadly elementary school shooting, but quickly unraveled into chaos over the past week as the GOP-dominant Statehouse refused to take up gun control measures and instead spent most of their time involved in political infighting.In a particular heated moment, House Speaker Cameron Sexton and Democratic Rep. Justin Pearson appeared to have a brief physical interaction where both accused each other of shoving within moments of the House chamber adjourning the special session.Video captured by reporters on the House floor show Sexton, a Republican, making his way out of the House chamber as Pearson approached the speaker’s dais holding a sign calling for gun control. The two made contact as Sexton stepped to avoid a photographer, meanwhile other legislative members, staffers and security guards rushed to the front of the floor.Yelling erup...

Conservative groups draw up plan to dismantle the US government and replace it with Trump’s vision

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:49:25 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — With more than a year to go before the 2024 election, a constellation of conservative organizations is preparing for a possible second White House term for Donald Trump, recruiting thousands of Americans to come to Washington on a mission to dismantle the federal government and replace it with a vision closer to his own.Led by the long-established Heritage Foundation think tank and fueled by former Trump administration officials, the far-reaching effort is essentially a government-in-waiting for the former president’s second term — or any candidate who aligns with their ideals and can defeat President Joe Biden in 2024.With a nearly 1,000-page “Project 2025” handbook and an “army” of Americans, the idea is to have the civic infrastructure in place on Day One to commandeer, reshape and do away with what Republicans deride as the “deep state” bureaucracy, in part by firing as many as 50,000 federal workers.“We need to flood the zone with conservatives,” said Paul Dan...

Family of South Carolina teacher killed by falling utility pole seeks better rural infrastructure

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:49:25 GMT

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — The family of a 31-year-old teacher killed last week after a falling utility pole violently struck her in a small South Carolina town is taking aim at poor rural infrastructure, saying that contributed to an avoidable death.Jeunelle Robinson was walking on her lunch break Aug. 23 down a Main Street intersection in Wagener when, officials say, a tractor-trailer snagged overhead power lines. That brought multiple poles falling to the ground and one of them directly hit Robinson so forcefully she died later that day at a hospital.A lawyer for Robinson’s relatives said Tuesday the wooden post wouldn’t have collapsed so easily if utility companies had maintained equipment in the rural community as efficiently as they do in the city. Wagener is a town of roughly 600 people about 35 miles (55 kilometers) southwest of Columbia, the state capital. State Rep. Justin Bamberg, an attorney representing the family, said the leaning poles in Wagener had been rotti...

Unifor ‘appalled’ following Stephen Lecce’s comments on child pronouns

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:49:25 GMT

Unifor, Canada’s largest union in the private sector, says it’s appalled following Ontario Education Minister Stephen Lecce’s comments on a child’s desire to change their pronouns while at school.Discussion on the matter comes as several Canadian provinces, including Saskatchewan and New Brunswick, adopt a new gender and pronoun policy mandating parental consent for students 16 and under who want to change their given names and or pronouns at school.On Monday, Lecce said parents “must be fully involved” to understand what’s happening in their children’s lives, acknowledging that Ontario schools must be safe for children and that teachers are required to know “who to turn to if they believe that child may be harmed for whatever reason, or whatever circumstance.”One day later, Unifor issued a statement, saying back-to-school could mean dangerous outings for Ontario trans students in light of Lecce’s comments.“For ...

HeyJB LIVE: Hurricane Idalia nears Category 2 strength south of Tampa

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:49:25 GMT

TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — Idalia strengthened into a Category 1 hurricane early Tuesday and is expected to rapidly intensify in the Gulf of Mexico.As of a 2 p.m. update, the National Hurricane Center said Idalia is about 240 miles southwest of Tampa, moving north around 15 mph. The storm's wind speeds have increased to "near 90 mph." Category 2 hurricanes are storms with wind speeds between 96-110 mph. Real-time wobble tracker monitoring Hurricane Idalia’s shifts in Gulf of Mexico Idalia is forecast to track west of Tampa and make landfall along the northwest Gulf Coast of Florida sometime on Wednesday as an "extremely dangerous" Category 3 major hurricane, to the NHC said.Storm surge remains the biggest threat with Idalia, with some areas north of Tampa Bay expected to see 8 to 15 feet of storm surge, with 4 to 7 feet in the Tampa Bay area and 3 to 5 feet south of Tampa Bay.The storm surge threat is increased thanks to higher-than-normal high tides due to Wednesday's Super Moon. Do ...