News briefs for March 31, 2021

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A collection of breaking news briefs filed on March 31, 2021

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Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 31/03/2021 (1662 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A collection of breaking news briefs filed on March 31, 2021

9:05 PM CDT Wednesday, Mar. 31, 2021

Jets fall 3-1 to Maple Leafs

The Winnipeg Jets dug an early hole and could never recover, falling 3-1 to the Toronto Maple Leafs on Wednesday night.

Auston Matthews and Zach Hyman scored in the opening period to put the visitors ahead for good. Alex Kerfoot made it 3-0 with a shorthanded goal in the second period. Josh Morrissey had the lone tally for Winnipeg. Shots ended up 27-26 for the Jets. 

The two teams meet again Friday night at Bell MTS Place.

8:17 PM CDT Wednesday, Mar. 31, 2021

Jets trail Maple Leafs 3-1 through two periods

The Winnipeg Jets still trail the Toronto Maple Leafs by a pair of goals through 40 minutes at Bell MTS Place.

After Auston Matthews and Zach Hyman scored in the first period, Alex Kerfoot made it 3-0 with a shorthanded breakaway goal in the middle frame. Josh Morrissey then quickly got it back as he scored on the power play.

Shots are 22-21 for the Jets after two periods.

Winnipeg is playing with just 11 forwards after captain Blake Wheeler suffered an injury late in the first period and didn’t return.

7:23 PM CDT Wednesday, Mar. 31, 2021

Jets trail Maple Leafs 2-0 through first period

The Winnipeg Jets are facing an early deficit against the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Auston Matthews and Zach Hyman scored in the first period Wednesday night to give the visitors a 2-0 lead at Bell MTS Place. Toronto outshot Winnipeg 14-6 through 20 minutes.

The lone bright spot for the Jets was killing three straight minor penalties. Winnipeg had one power play chance of their own but couldn’t convert.

3:39 PM CDT Wednesday, Mar. 31, 2021

Mom in Amber Alert charged with abduction

Winnipeg police say a 20-year-old mother, who was named in an Amber Alert Tuesday, has been charged with abduction.

The mother was accused of taking her two-year-old son after a pre-arranged supervised visit. Winnipeg police issued a provincewide Amber Alert Tuesday evening.

Police said the mother received the Amber Alert and turned herself in to RCMP in Amaranth around 9 p.m. Tuesday.

Harlee Precious Wilson-Parenteau faces a charge under the Criminal Code.

3:29 PM CDT Wednesday, Mar. 31, 2021

Liberals name judges to help craft wrongful-conviction body

OTTAWA — The Trudeau government has appointed two former judges to lead the creation of an independent panel to rectify wrongful convictions, after years of advocacy by David Milgaard.

While no timeline has been announced, the two judges will lead consultations and report to Justice Minister David Lametti, who has been ordered to create an independent panel similar to ones that exist in Britain and New Zealand.

Harry LaForme is an Anishinaabe judge who retired from Ontario’s appeal court in 2004. He will lead the consultations with help from Juanita Westmoreland-Traoré, the first Black person appointed to a Quebec court, who retired from the penal and youth divisions in 2017.

Shortly after the fall 2019 election, Trudeau instructed Lametti to create a commission "to make it easier and faster for potentially wrongfully convicted people to have their applications reviewed."

Milgaard, a former Winnipegger who who served 23 years in prison for a 1969 murder he didn’t commit, has pushed for such a body for years, and recently voiced frustration over the lack of progress. Lametti insists it’s among his top priorities.

2:02 PM CDT Wednesday, Mar. 31, 2021

Hundreds honk in protest of Bill 64 education reforms

Hundreds of people drove and hitched rides for a honk-a-thon in protest of sweeping education reforms to the K-12 public school system in downtown Winnipeg Wednesday.

The province’s controversial reform legislation, Bill 64 seeks to replace Manitoba’s 37 elected English school boards with a centralized authority board made up of government appointees who will oversee 15 regional entities. 

School trustees across the city organized the Wednesday event to take place mid-spring break so families and school staff could participate. Organizers estimate more than 1,200 people showed up to do loops of the Manitoba Legislature.

Among driver protest signs was a report card for Premier Brian Pallister, which gave his government’s Bill 64 an "F". 

A sign at the honk-a-thon protest. MAGGIE MACINTOSH/WINNIPEG FREE PRESS
A sign at the honk-a-thon protest. MAGGIE MACINTOSH/WINNIPEG FREE PRESS

1:35 PM CDT Wednesday, Mar. 31, 2021

Federal Tories push for Manitoba hockey town

OTTAWA — Conservative Senate Leader Don Plett is asking all of Manitoba’s MPs and senators to push for a Red River town to be Canada’s next hockey capital.

Saint Adolphe is among four finalists for the title of this year’s Kraft Hockeyville, which would give the town $250,000 to upgrade its hockey arena and the opportunity to host an NHL pre-season game.

Online voting will occur on April 9 and 10, with the winner announced that Saturday. The town wants to build a female changeroom and remove mold.

You can watch the town’s video entry here.

No Manitoba town has ever won the Hockeyville tournament since its 2006 inception.

12:39 PM CDT Wednesday, Mar. 31, 2021

Snowmobiler missing on Lake Winnipegosis

Searchers on the ground and air are looking for a snowmobiler missing on Lake Winnipegosis since sometime Monday night.

Winnipegosis RCMP said on Wednesday that 27-year-old Walter Thomas, of Easterville, left a cabin on Thompson Island on the lake sometime overnight on Monday.

RCMP said two other men were at the cabin but couldn’t leave because Thomas had the keys for the bombardier there with him. One of the men was able to get hold of a family member by radio on Tuesday.

RCMP launched a search for Thomas after finding out he hadn’t returned home. A Hercules plane from CFB Trenton searched the lake on Tuesday night while local residents from Easterville and the Sapotaweyak Cree Nation have been doing a ground search on Wednesday.

Police are concerned about Thomas because of the winter storm that hit the province on Monday night.

 

 

 

RCMP HANDOUT 

Walter Thomas, 27, is missing on Lake Winnipegosis.
RCMP HANDOUT Walter Thomas, 27, is missing on Lake Winnipegosis.

12:24 PM CDT Wednesday, Mar. 31, 2021

71 new COVID-19 cases, 17 variant of concern cases and one death in Manitoba Wednesday

Provincial health officials announced 71 new cases of COVID-19 and one more death in Manitoba Wednesday.

Laboratory testing of previously reported cases has identified 17 new variant of concern cases.

Public health officials have reported a total of 267 variant of concern cases in Manitoba including 232 cases of B.1.1.7, 20 cases of B.1.351, zero cases of P.1 and 15 uncategorized cases.

There are 1,181 active cases in Manitoba, with 146 people in hospital, 28 of them in intensive care.

The five-day test positivity rate is 3.8 in Manitoba, and 3.3 in Winnipeg.

Of the new cases announced Wednesday, 38 are in the Winnipeg health region, 5 in Southern Health; 2 in Interlake–Eastern; 2 in Prairie Mountain; and 24 in Northern Health.

11:46 AM CDT Wednesday, Mar. 31, 2021

Rural business owner charged with mask offence

Russell RCMP have arrested a man in Inglis after he became belligerent when asked to wear a mask in a local business. 

RCMP responded to the call of disturbance in a business on Main Street in Inglis around 2:30 pm. on March 24.

RCMP said a 51-year-old man had entered the business without wearing a mask. When he was reminded of the public health order, he became angry, banged his fists on the counter and plexiglass partition where the employee was standing. RCMP said he refused to wear a mask, left the store for a few minutes and then returned and continued to be belligerent. 

Officers found the suspect at his own place of work a short time later, and said the man continued to yell and swear at officers. He was arrested and faces charges of mischief and disturbance, as well as two failure to wear a mask fines ($298) and failing to wear a mask in his own business ($5,000).

The man was released and is expected to appear in court on June 23.

11:25 AM CDT Wednesday, Mar. 31, 2021

Folk Fest cancels 2021 event

There will be no Winnipeg Folk Festival this summer.

Festival organizers announced Wednesday morning that continued uncertainty about COVID-19 pandemic restrictions has made it impossible to host the July 8-11 event at Birds Hill Provincial Park.

It will be the second straight year the pandemic has forced organizers to cancel the folk fest.

The folk fest is planning a new, smaller show slated for Aug. 13-15 at its mainstage at Birds Hill park that will work within public health restrictions, a release says.

11:20 AM CDT Wednesday, Mar. 31, 2021

Premier set to address wait times

The premier is set to address wait times at a news conference Wednesday afternoon.

Brian Pallister is expected to speak about the province’s plans to reduce wait times as part of the pandemic response.

The news conference is set to begin at 2:30 p.m. today. 

11:05 AM CDT Wednesday, Mar. 31, 2021

Three boys charged with violent robberies near HSC

Two teenage males and a boy have been arrested for threatening to stab or shoot people as they tried to rob them near the Health Sciences Centre Sunday morning.

In three of the incidents, the males approached a man and demanded money. In two of those incidents, they attacked the victim. In the third case, the man ran into a nearby home to escape from the suspects, who threw an object through the window and caused $3,000 damage, police said.

In the fourth incident, the suspects — aged 12, 13 and 14 — confronted a woman who was walking to her car after leaving work. They threatened to shoot her for walking in the area, then made a sexually suggestive comment, police said.  A passerby intervened and drove the woman to her car, but not before the teens threw objects at the man’s truck.

The incidents took place between 7 a.m. and 8 a.m., and the victims included a man in his 40s, two men in their 30s and a woman in her 60s.

Officers arrested the three males three hours later at a parking lot in the 600 block of Notre Dame Avenue. They are charged with robbery, assault, break and enter and mischief. One accused faces a weapons charge.

10:50 AM CDT Wednesday, Mar. 31, 2021

Winnipeg police make drug arrests

Winnipeg police made two drug arrests after a traffic stop on March 26.

The vehicle was stopped in the 400 block of Cumberland Avenue and officers discovered the driver was wanted on two arrest warrants, police said in a release Wednesday. 

After searching the vehicle, police said officers found large quantities of methamphetamine and MDMA (valued at $10,000 and $32,000 respectively), and approximately $1,000 in cash. 

Christopher Bruce Stewart, 43, was arrested and faces several drug possession charges, as well as charges for driving without a licence, possessing proceeds of crime, and two arrest warrants. He remains in custody, police said.

The 29-year-old female passenger faces three drug possession charges and was released on an undertaking. 

8:41 AM CDT Wednesday, Mar. 31, 2021

Province maintains freeze on pharmacare deductibles through 2021

For a second consecutive year, the provincial government of Manitoba is delaying scheduled increases to pharmacare deductibles for the provincial drug benefit program.

Increases are scheduled to occur April 1 of each year. The second postponement of this increase means rates will remain frozen at the 2019-2020 rates. 

“Our government has implemented a number of measures to help Manitoba families while we deal with the pandemic as a province,” said Health and Seniors Care Minister Heather Stefanson.

The Manitoba Pharmacare Program is a drug benefit program for eligible Manitobans, available to anyone whose income is seriously affected by high prescription drug costs. Coverage is based on total family income and the amount paid for eligible prescription drugs.

8:35 AM CDT Wednesday, Mar. 31, 2021

Public updates on Manitoba vaccination efforts to be provided today

The Government of Manitoba will be providing a public update on the provincial effort to vaccinate the public against COVID-19. 

Dr. Joss Reimer, medical lead of the vaccine implementation task force, will provide a news briefing at 12:30 p.m.

Members of the media will have access to an advance briefing at 10:30 a.m. as well. 

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