The Wrap: Domestic violence trends, Red Dress Alerts, Skibicki ruling, Jets player review, pop-up gallery
Plus a behind-the-barn peek at becoming a racehorse groom

A special committee established by the province in 2010 to review fatal incidents of domestic violence was tasked to identify trends, risk factors and systemic concerns in certain domestic killings and to recommend changes.

But the Domestic Violence Death Review Committee has sat idle for five years; its last annual report was issued for the 2018-19 fiscal year.

That inaction doesn’t sit well with some observers, who worry domestic violence in Manitoba is not being taken seriously.

Canada and Manitoba are partnering to launch an alert system that would inform the public when an Indigenous woman or girl goes missing, they announced Friday in Winnipeg, ahead of a national day to mark the crisis.

The long-awaited Red Dress Alert system is a bid to prevent deaths and increase safe reunions with loved ones.

A judge has decided the upcoming trial of a man accused of killing four women in Winnipeg will still be heard by a jury, after the defence argued it should be heard instead by a judge alone.

Lawyers for Jeremy Skibicki told court this week that going ahead with the jury would infringe on his rights to a fair trial because of significant pretrial publicity.

Manitoba Court of King’s Bench Chief Justice Glenn Joyal ruled Friday that jurors, much like judges, are shaped by lived experiences but are able to remain partial when given sufficient direction.

The Winnipeg Jets’ season ended in swift, stunning fashion earlier this week, crushing speculation they might have a Stanley Cup run in them.

Now what?

A longer-than-expected off-season awaits, with plenty of questions about what the team could — and should — look like when they re-convene in September for training camp.

Hockey writers Mike McIntyre and Ken Wiebe break down what the future might hold for each Jets player.

It’s been five years since Ryan Pollard and his team restored the Fortune Block on Main Street to its former glory, and the building is almost all leased up — except for the airy, street-level space at 226 Main St.

Pollard could have left it sitting vacant until he found a permanent tenant; instead, he’s transformed it into a pop-up art gallery. And May is booked with exhibitions, revealing an appetite for professional spaces for artists to show their work.

Jen Zoratti takes a look.

Photographer Mike Deal takes a look at a four-week training program for people interested in becoming a racehorse groom.

The program is offered by the Manitoba Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association, and includes three weeks of training in the barns at the Assiniboia Downs.