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Karen Read defense: Problematic investigation into John O’Keefe’s death grabs federal attention

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:34:09 GMT

Among the many fireworks at the most recent hearing in the case of Karen Read, charged with killing her boyfriend John O’Keefe last year, is the defense’s claim that the investigation is so troubled that the federal government has opened up a case to look into it.“It’s been reported that federal authorities have now gotten involved in the circumstances surrounding this case and have impaneled a grand jury, federal grand jury, to investigate some of these circumstances,” defense attorney Alan Jackson said in Norfolk Superior Court Wednesday afternoon.“But Karen Read should not have to wait for the feds to figure out which heads should roll.”A day later, the feds didn’t have much to say to clarify the matter. A spokeswoman for the U.S. Attorney’s office said: “We do not confirm or deny investigations.” The FBI had the same answer, “as a matter of longstanding policy.”The case has brought about significant public attention — from both sides — which filled the second-f...

Statistics Canada says economy added 41,000 jobs in April, unemployment rate 5.0%

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:34:09 GMT

Statistics Canada says the economy added 41,000 jobs last month, all in part-time work.According to its latest labour force survey, the unemployment rate held steady at 5.0 per cent for the fifth consecutive month.That’s just above the all-time low of 4.9 per cent reached last summer.The job gains in April were led by the wholesale and retail trade industry, while the largest losses occurred in business, building and other support services.With the labour market remaining relatively tight, average hourly wages were up 5.2 per cent compared with a year ago, growing faster than inflation.The Bank of Canada has been warning that a tight labour market will make it more difficult to get inflation back to two per cent, as higher wages could put upward pressure on prices.

US adds a strong 253,000 jobs despite Fed’s rate hikes

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:34:09 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — America’s employers added a robust 253,000 jobs in April, evidence of a labor market that still shows surprising strength despite rising interest rates, chronically high inflation and a banking crisis that could weaken the economy.The unemployment rate ticked down to 3.4%, matching a 54-year low. Last month’s hiring gain compared with 165,000 in March and 248,000 in February, and is at a level considered vigorous by historical standards.The job market has remained strong despite the Federal Reserve’s aggressive campaign of interest rate hikes over the past year to fight inflation. Layoffs are still relatively low, job openings comparatively high. Still, the ever-higher borrowing costs the Fed has engineered have weakened some key sectors of the economy, notably the housing market.Since hitting a four-decade high last year, inflation has steadily eased yet is still well above the Fed’s 2% target level. Fed Chair Jerome Powell himself sounded somewhat mystified this ...

Funeral held in Ukraine for American man killed in action

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:34:09 GMT

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Soldiers from the International Legion of Ukraine said farewell Friday to an American military veteran they served with, who was killed a month ago in the fierce struggle to prevent the eastern city of Bakhmut from falling into Russian hands. In a funeral service at Kyiv’s St. Michael’s Cathedral, Ukrainian regular army troops bore the Ukrainian-flag-draped coffin of Chris Campbell while about three dozen members of the International Legion looked on. After folding the flag, they presented it to Ivanna Sanina, Campbell’s Ukrainian wife. The Florida native is one of least nine Americans now known to have been killed in fighting in Ukraine, including another last month in Bakhmut. Two Canadian volunteers were also killed there April 26 after Russian artillery hit their position.The struggle for Bakhmut, located about 55 kilometers (34 miles) north of the Russian-held regional capital of Donetsk, has been one of the bloodiest of the war. It has no...

Hydro One reports Q1 profit down from year ago, revenue higher

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:34:09 GMT

TORONTO — Hydro One Ltd. reported its first-quarter profit fell compared with a year ago due higher operation, maintenance and administrative costs, offset in part by higher revenues.The power utility says it earned $282 million or 47 cents per diluted share for the quarter ended March 31.The result compared with a profit of $310 million or 52 cents per diluted share a year earlier.Revenue totalled $2.07 billion, up from nearly $2.05 billion in the first three months of 2022.Revenue less the cost of purchased power was $1.06 billion, up from $1.03 billion a year earlier.Hydro One is Ontario’s largest electricity transmission and distribution provider. This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 5, 2023.Companies in this story: (TSX:H)The Canadian Press

15 killed in Congo flooding, with toll expected to rise

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:34:09 GMT

KINSHASA, Congo (AP) — Rescue efforts were underway after flooding and landslides brought on by torrential overnight rains in eastern Congo’s South Kivu province killed more than a dozen people, a local official said Friday.Delphin Birimbi, a community leader in Kalehe in South Kivu, said that there were 15 dead in his village and that more than 30 people are missing in the nearby localities of Bushushu and Nyamukubi. He fears that the death toll will rise significantly as more bodies are recovered.Two rivers broke their banks after the heavy rains which began on Thursday evening and there have been multiple landslides with scores of homes destroyed, Birimbi said. Rescuers are working to find and save anyone who may be trapped under the rubble of their homes.In a statement published Friday, the provincial government of South Kivu offered its sympathies to the families affected and said it was sending a delegation to the scene.Heavy rains have brought misery to thousands in Eas...

Stock market today: Wall Street bounces ahead of jobs report

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:34:09 GMT

BEIJING — Wall Street climbed Friday ahead of new data on U.S. jobs after a rough week for banks that have been caught up in the Fed’s fight against inflation. Futures for the Dow Jones industrials rose 0.5% before the bell and the S&P 500 edged 0.7% higher.Regional banks that saw huge declines in their share price Thursday are rebounding in premarket trading. PacWest Bancorp, whose shares lost half their value on Thursday, rose close to 20% before the bell Friday. Western Alliance Bancorp rose 13% in premarket after a 38% plunge Thursday.The financial sector is the strongest component on the S&P 500 in early trading. Still, the S&P MidCap 400 Banks Index is down 14% for the week after the collapse of First Republic Bank on Monday. Los Angeles-based PacWest Bancorp said it’s selling assets and has been approached by potential partners and investors. Regulators seized First Republic and sold most of it to JPMorgan Chase and shares of financial institutions sli...

Kidnapped Nigerian girls freed, return to Chibok with babies

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:34:09 GMT

MAIDUGURI, Nigeria (AP) — Two Nigerian women abducted as schoolgirls by a jihadi militant group nine years ago have been rescued, the West African nation’s military has said. One had a year-old baby while the second gave birth to her second child days after her freedom. Hauwa Maltha and Esther Marcus were among 276 schoolgirls abducted in April 2014 from the Government Girls Secondary School in the village of Chibok by Boko Haram militants.They were rescued in April by Nigerian soldiers and reunited with their families in the northeastern Borno state, according to Maj. Gen. Ibrahim Ali, who leads the Nigerian military operation against the extremist violence experienced in the northeast region for more than a decade.Boko Haram fighters stormed the school in Borno nine years ago as the girls were preparing for exams. The mass kidnap sparked global outrage and led to the #BringBackOurGirls social media campaign. More than 20 of the girls have regained their freedom in the past year, b...

Rebels kill 5 Indian soldiers in Indian-controlled Kashmir

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:34:09 GMT

SRINAGAR, India (AP) — Rebels fighting against Indian rule in disputed Kashmir triggered an explosive device during an encounter with the Indian army on Friday, killing five soldiers who were trying to flush them out of a forested area, the army said.The rebels were hiding in a cave in an area with steep cliffs in Tota Gali in the Jammu region, the army said in a statement. Two Indian soldiers died immediately after being hit by the explosion and three succumbed later in a hospital, it said. The rebel losses in the clash were not immediately known.It was the second major attack by rebels in the past two weeks at a time when Indian authorities are increasing security as they prepare to host a meeting of officials from the Group of 20 leading industrialized and developing nations on promoting tourism in the region later this month.India accuses Pakistan of arming and training insurgents to fight its forces for control of Kashmir, a charge Islamabad denies.Pakistan Foreign Minister Bil...

How we can still save Canada’s last spotted owls

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:34:09 GMT

There are only three spotted owls outside of captivity left in Canada, only one of which was born in the wild. And as their habitat continues to shrink, restoring the population will only become more difficult.Sarah Cox, a BC-based Investigative Reporter at The Narwhal, says the history of the spotted owl reflects the ongoing dilemma of governments attempting to balance industrial logging interests with environmental goals.“The spotted owl has very much become synonymous with the destruction of old-growth forests in British Columbia. They also are what’s known as an umbrella species … if their populations are secure, then many other species in that forest will also be secure,” says Cox.There is still hope to protect the spotted owls, if federal and provincial governments can work together. So will they?You can subscribe to The Big Story podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google and Spotify.You can also find it at thebigstorypodcast.ca.