In Brief

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This article was published 27/11/2014 (4153 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

City CAO search continues

THE search for a new chief administrative officer for Winnipeg has resumed.

Mayor Brian Bowman announced Wednesday he’s restarted the search process that was suspended in May.

"The CAO search committee will resume the work started in the previous search and commit to further expanding that search and opening the door to new applicants until the new year," Bowman said in a statement released Wednesday.

The search committee includes Bowman and all members of his executive policy committee — Couns. Brian Mayes, Jeff Browaty, Janice Lukes, Marty Morantz, John Orlikow and Mike Pagtakhan — along with two other members of council, Jenny Gerbasi and Matt Allard.

Winnipeg has been without a permanent CAO since Phil Sheegl resigned Oct. 17, 2013 amid a flurry of controversies involving cost over-runs and questionable management decisions for the new police headquarters and the fire-hall replacement program.

Chief operating officer Deepak Joshi — whose level of responsibility for the fire-hall and police-headquarters projects was questioned by some members of council — was appointed acting CAO only after Katz told council Joshi would not apply for the permanent position.

Katz surprised most city hall observers in May when he announced the committee had suspended the search, on the grounds it couldn’t continue because of the civic election.

 

Fewer cop complaints

COMPLAINTS of police misconduct in Manitoba dropped by 20 per cent in 2013 from the year before, Manitoba’s Law Enforcement Review Agency says in its 2013 annual report.

The most common complaints involve unnecessary violence or excessive use of force and uncivil or discourteous behaviour.

LERA handled 117 formal complaints in 2013, down from 148 in 2012, according to the annual report.

Incidents alleging injuries from the use of force decreased to 44 from 77 in 2012. Allegations of injuries were made in 38 per cent of complaints investigated by the agency.

The full report is available on LERA’s website.

The average age of all complainants was 40. The oldest complainant was 74 and the youngest was 15. LERA does not investigate criminal complaints against police, but investigates allegations from the public of abuse of authority, including making an arrest without reasonable or probable grounds, using unnecessary violence or excessive force and using oppressive or abusive conduct or language. The average time it takes to investigate a complaint is eight months.

There were no complaints alleging the misuse of pepper spray in 2013 and there were three complaints of misuse of a Taser stun gun.

Of the 117 formal complaints, 80 per cent involved officers from the Winnipeg Police Service, the report says.

 

 

 

Times Change(d) reopening

THE blues are always welcome at Times Change(d), but patrons won’t be having the blues over the damage from a vehicle crashing into the popular Main Street night club on Monday morning.

Times Change(d) will reopen on schedule tonight at 8 p.m., owner John Scoles said Wednesday.

"We had really excellent assistance from Winnipeg builders" and the club’s insurers, Scoles said. "Everything will be in operation."

Fortunately, he said, the vehicle missed the supports holding everything up.

Asked if regulars will notice anything missing, Scoles laughed, and said, "Some walls…"

There will still be some secondary repairs to come, and he’s had to borrow some equipment, but, "Structurally, we are OK."

 

Musicians to the rescue

COUNTRY and music performers are helping the Bannock Lady in a big way.

There’s a fundraising concert Sunday, Dec. 14, at 2 p.m. at the West End Cultural Centre to support Althea Guiboche, who feeds the homeless from her ‘got bannock’ vehicle.

That’s the vehicle that racked up more than $3,000 in tickets when Guiboche says she wasn’t driving it.

"My vehicle is now paid in full; I borrowed some and the rest was an anonymous donation!" Guiboche said on Twitter.

Advance tickets for the event, which was planned before the ticket situation came to light, are available at the WECC, Winnipeg Folk Festival Music Store, and The Music Trader.

— staff