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Edmonton Journal
6 hours ago
- Politics
- Edmonton Journal
Braid: Separatism debate heats up as referendum question goes to court
Elections Alberta is taking the separatists to court. It could be some show. Article content The elections office asks Court of King's Bench to decide whether a referendum question proposed by separatists is unconstitutional. Article content Article content Article content Whatever happens in court, the separatist drive for a referendum question is stalled for some time. Article content Some separatists are claiming the system is rigged against them, because any King's Bench judge who hears the case will be a federal appointee. Article content Another problem awaits. A related question has already been approved by Elections Alberta, the independent body established by the legislature. Article content Under the law, there can't be two questions on the same general subject. Article content Article content The pro-Canada leader of this campaign is former PC Deputy Premier Thomas Lukaszuk. Article content He's now branded 'Tommy the Commie' by separatists who seem deeply annoyed that he got the jump on them. Article content He sure did. Lukaszuk's question was approved just before Canada Day. That kicked off a 30-day period for organizing that ends Wednesday. Article content After that, the group can start collecting official signatures to trigger a provincewide vote. Article content Lukaszuk's question was approved while a previous law was in effect. It requires him to gather 300,000 names, all fully checked and approved, in only 90 days. Article content Article content Bizarrely, after Lukaszuk's question was allowed, the UCP proclaimed legislation that lowers the bar to 177,000 signatures over 120 days. Article content That's a much more reasonable goal. But Lukaszuk may be stuck with the old one.
Winnipeg Free Press
6 days ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Judge sentences business owner to 13 years in prison for sex crimes involving vulnerable children
A small-business owner convicted of sexually exploiting two vulnerable 13-year-old girls — one of whom later died of a drug overdose — has been sentenced to 13 years in prison. Seated next to his lawyer, 44-year-old Michael Edward Bruce exhaled loudly and dropped his head into his hands as King's Bench Justice Sadie Bond sentenced him Wednesday morning. Bruce was found guilty after trial last year of 11 sex-related offences, including luring, involving the two girls as well as a then-19-year-old woman. Prosecutors had urged Bond to sentence Bruce to 20 years in prison, saying he exploited young girls he knew were vulnerable to satisfy his 'selfish desires.' 'A heavier sentence, such as proposed by the Crown, may at first blush appear to better reflect society's abhorrence of the abuse of children reflected in all but one of Mr. Bruce's offences,' Bond said. 'However, it must be remembered that the prison sentence to be imposed is to be served by a man who has no criminal record and some prospects of rehabilitation.' Court heard evidence at trial that Bruce, who owns and operates an HVAC business, had contacted a woman who lived in the Charles Walk area in the North End in April 2022 to arrange to have sex with her in exchange for work he had completed. The woman instead provided him with contact details for a 13-year-old girl. Bruce contacted the girl over Facebook and arranged to have sex with her in his pickup truck in exchange for $20 and a case of Twisted Tea alcoholic drinks. The girl's grandmother learned about the sexual assault and contacted police. The girl provided two video statements but later died as the result of a drug overdose. Court heard testimony Bruce had sex with the second 13-year-old girl, who was in foster care, as payment for giving her a ride home. The adult victim testified Bruce sexually assaulted her in his truck when she was intoxicated and slipping in and out of consciousness. Bruce admitted at trial that when one of the girls threatened to report him to police, he told her: 'Who are they going to believe — a gang member or a homeowner?' Bruce was arrested in June 2022, but not charged until the following September after Winnipeg police completed a lengthy analysis of his electronic devices. Defence lawyer Mike Cook urged the judge to sentence Bruce to just six years in prison, describing him as a loving father of two and community-oriented businessman who has bought and renovated several rental properties to open up housing for the needy. Cook said Bruce had an upbringing marked by poverty, housing instability and exposure to domestic violence. Bruce was raised by a single mother and had no male role model. Cook argued Bruce's sexual maturation was stunted by early and prolonged exposure to pornography and an uncle who glorified empty sexual conquests. 'Michael Bruce was not taught about love, caring, how to be a good spouse or boyfriend,' Cook said. 'He lacked some of the foundational blocks that would take him into adulthood.… It's no surprise that he found himself in trouble as years went by.' Bond dismissed a defence argument Bruce never set out to sexually exploit the child victims and was merely mistaken about their true ages. 'The argument amounted to a claim that Mr. Bruce's offences in relation to (the child victims) involved mere technical non-compliance with the law,' Bond said Wednesday. 'It was Mr. Bruce's responsibility to avoid having sex with children,' she said. 'He treated his victims as objects, dehumanizing them. He exploited their vulnerability.' Bond ordered that Bruce's name be placed on the national sex offender registry for life. She also ordered that Bruce have no contact with children other than his own and not seek employment or volunteer positions where children are present. At a sentencing hearing last month, Bruce claimed an interest in becoming an advocate for abused children upon his release from custody. 'My concern is that such engagement… could bring Mr. Bruce into contact with vulnerable children and put them at risk of manipulation and exploitation by him,' Bond said. Dean PritchardCourts reporter Dean Pritchard is courts reporter for the Free Press. He has covered the justice system since 1999, working for the Brandon Sun and Winnipeg Sun before joining the Free Press in 2019. Read more about Dean. Every piece of reporting Dean produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press's tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press's history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates. Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider becoming a subscriber. Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.
CTV News
11-06-2025
- Business
- CTV News
Saskatoon judge dismisses $25M lawsuit against Christian school, church
A Saskatoon Court of King's Bench judge has dismissed a $25-million class action lawsuit against Mile Two Church and its associated private Christian school. Justice Rochelle Wempe dismissed the civil suit in a written decision on June 3. When the lawsuit was launched in August 2022, it named 22 defendants and alleged systemic abuse of students at the church and school — formerly known as Legacy Christian Academy. Wempe ruled there was 'abuse of process.' In her decision, she said the plaintiffs failed to 'immediately' disclose settlement agreements with three defendants. According to Wempe, plaintiffs settled with Stephanie Case in November of 2023, and Fran Thevenot and Tracy Johnson in February of 2024. Claims against four other named defendants were also dropped. Wempe wrote defendants were informed about the settlement agreements five months after Case signed and two months after Thevenot and Johnson signed. She noted they were only made aware of the settlements because Mile Two's lawyers made 'repeated requests for information from plaintiffs.' She said the settlement agreements 'significantly' altered the litigation landscape. Wempe said the terms of agreement stated the settling defendants would provide testimony and affidavits and would not take any formal 'adversarial position against the plaintiffs.' 'The settlement agreements had the effect of them switching sides and cooperating with the plaintiffs,' Wempe wrote. The plaintiffs, represented by Scharfstein Law, argued Mile Two and the other defendants were not hurt by the failure to disclose the settlements. Wempe says no prejudice is required for the immediate disclosure rule to come into effect. The plaintiffs also argued that dismissing the lawsuit would be 'unfair and unjust' because there is no case law indicating that the immediate disclosure rule applies in Saskatchewan. 'While I have some sympathy for this argument, I note that there is significant case law from three provinces dating back to 2009 which has clearly set out the immediate disclosure rule in civil proceedings,' Wempe wrote. The plaintiffs filed a notice of appeal on Monday. The appeal argues Wempe erred in determining that the immediate disclosure rule for settlement agreements applies in Saskatchewan. The appeal also argues Wempe erred in determining that the legal test for abuse of process could be met without finding prejudice. 'Our clients were extremely disappointed in this decision, and we're going to push forward with the claim,' lawyer Grant Scharfstein told CTV News. Scharfstein said he's hoping the appeal will be heard by fall. CTV News reached out to the lawyers representing Mile Two Church Inc., but did not get a response by publishing time.
Winnipeg Free Press
06-06-2025
- Winnipeg Free Press
Drunk driver ‘detonated bomb inside family'
The daughter of a 28-year-old mother of four killed by a drunk driver cried as she told a Winnipeg court how her family was 'destroyed' by the July 2021 highway collision. 'There is a part of me that wants to scream at you, freak out, tell you how much I hate you, but even that doesn't feel strong enough,' the now 17-year-old told Chantelle Deprez. 'You didn't just steal a life — you detonated a bomb inside a family and walked away alive.' Deprez, 37, previously pleaded guilty to impaired driving causing death for the crash that claimed the life of Angelina Wiens. She was sentenced Monday to three years in prison. Since Wiens' death, her four children have been separated — her young son now lives with his father, while his three sisters live with an aunt and her family. 'I love my cousins and my auntie and uncle, but it is not the same without my mom,' Wiens' youngest, now 11-year-old daughter wrote in a victim impact statement provided to court. 'It's not fair, she was very young,' the girl said. 'She could have had a great future and a longer life if you weren't drinking.' Support letters from family friends and her employer described Deprez as a good person, great mother and valued employee. Five of seven support letters, as well as a psychiatrist report, described the crash as an 'accident.' King's Bench Justice Ken Champagne said there was nothing accidental about someone getting behind the wheel after drinking. 'It is not an accident — it is a serious crime… an all-too prevalent crime that causes more deaths in Canada than any other crime,' often committed by otherwise law-abiding people with no criminal records, Champagne said. Champagne rejected a recommendation from defence lawyer Jay Prober that Deprez be sentenced to two years house arrest, ruling a 'significant' sentence was necessary to satisfy the sentencing principles of deterrence and denunciation 'and more importantly send a message to the community at large that this kind of criminal conduct is unacceptable.' Court heard Deprez was behind the wheel of a 1998 Ford Explorer, heading north on Highway 6 in the RM of St Laurent at about 11:30 p.m., when she veered into the southbound lane and into the path of Wiens' 1994 Chevrolet pickup truck. Wiens 'was able to try an evasive manoeuvre; she braked, she tried to go on to the shoulder, but it just wasn't enough, the accused was too far over,' Crown attorney Thomas Boulton told court. Deprez did not try to apply the brakes or veer out of the way and collided with the front right side of Wiens' truck, sending both vehicles spinning. Emergency responders had to extract Wiens from her vehicle. She was pronounced dead at the scene. She wasn't wearing a seat belt. Deprez was taken by air ambulance to Health Sciences Centre with a broken leg and hip and collapsed lung. She spent 12 days in hospital and was in a wheelchair for four months. According to a pre-sentence report, Deprez told a probation officer that prior to the collision she had been watching movies at a friend's house and had one glass of wine before leaving to drive home to Winnipeg. But according to an agreed statement of facts provided to court, Deprez told an air ambulance paramedic she had four glasses of wine prior to the collision. Medical records later obtained by police showed Deprez would have had an estimated blood-alcohol level of .246 at the time of the collision, more than triple the legal limit for driving. Deprez told a probation officer she continued to drink following her arrest, which court heard was in violation of a bail condition set by Champagne prohibiting her from consuming alcohol. Prober argued Deprez did not remember the bail condition and was not consciously flouting Champagne's order, which he accepted. Following the collision, Deprez was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety and depression. A psychiatric report described her as an 'emotional invalid.' Deprez hasn't driven since the collision 'and may never drive again,' Prober said, adding she was 'genuinely remorseful' and that she pleaded guilty in the face of a problematic Crown case. None of the paramedics who treated Deprez said they saw any signs she was impaired, he said. A crash reconstruction report, meanwhile, made reference to police finding open containers of alcohol in Wiens' truck and detecting the smell of marijuana. Wiens was a suspended driver at the time. Deprez apologized to Wiens' family, saying she was 'extremely sorry' for her decision to drink and drive. 'I am a mother as well, so I sympathize with you 100 per cent,' she said. 'I'm not taking any of this lightly. I wish none of this ever happened.' Champagne prohibited Deprez from driving for five years following the completion of her prison sentence. Dean PritchardCourts reporter Dean Pritchard is courts reporter for the Free Press. He has covered the justice system since 1999, working for the Brandon Sun and Winnipeg Sun before joining the Free Press in 2019. Read more about Dean. Every piece of reporting Dean produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press's tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press's history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates. Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider becoming a subscriber. Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.
CBC
28-05-2025
- Politics
- CBC
Saskatoon trial of man who stabbed partner to death now up to the judge
The case against accused murderer Thomas Hamp is closed and it's now up to a Saskatoon Court of King's Bench judge to decide which interpretation of events to agree with.
