A new organization in Yellowknife is aiming to help people who are experiencing homelessness with support like meals, clothing and other essentials.

Yellowknife Street Support Network held its public launch outside the post office on Friday, serving up soup and bannock.

Stacey Drygeese-Sundberg, one of three co-chairs of the board, was handing out pamphlets and inviting community members to learn about the organization’s vision, described as “a Yellowknife with no homelessness, where Indigenous people are respected, supported, and leading the change.”

Drygeese-Sundberg said the Indigenous-led organization will build partnerships across community organizations, businesses and industry to better support people who are unhoused. 

The network will offer language and land-based programming and public education.

The goal is to “help with the gaps in our community with the homeless and the vulnerable people,” said Drygeese-Sundberg.

Yellowknife Street Support Network is focused on people with disabilities, elders and those who are vulnerable living on the streets. The goal is to bring the community together to “get better at helping each other, to help the people who are less fortunate,” said Drygeese-Sundberg.

As soon as the tables were set up on Friday, people gathered to enjoy soup and hot drinks, all donated by individuals and businesses. The network is looking for funding to develop a meals on wheels program, and to secure a van to do this work.

Georgina Franki, also a board co-chair, says a group of Indigenous women came together, seeing a need.

Franki wants the community to get involved and work with their organization on larger goals, like building 50 tiny homes.

The network’s stated goal is to advocate for dignity, even in difficult spaces.

Franki said Friday’s launch felt like a success. She said hunger is a reality for people who are unhoused.

Franki referred to a recent break-in at a seniors’ centre where people stole food, and said that suggests the need for a meals on wheels program, so nobody in the city’s streets goes hungry.

“This is one of the things I’d like to see, like what we’re doing right now,” she said on Friday. “There’s a huge turnout, you can see, and people smiling. It’s a beginning.”

Halifax councillors have approved budgets for both the municipal police and RCMP, which include new positions for 911 call takers and intimate partner violence response.

On Friday, the city’s budget committee passed the 2026-27 budgets for both Halifax Regional Police (HRP) and Halifax RCMP.

The HRP’s $103 million budget is up about $2 million from last year, with most of the increase coming from collective agreement changes and wage increases.

It also included eight new positions for civilian 911 calltakers, who handle calls from the public and dispatch them to HRP, RCMP, and Halifax Fire.

HRP Chief Don MacLean said the emergency communication team is understaffed and burned out, and relies on mandatory overtime.

“The additions of these bodies will help alleviate that concern. Won’t eliminate it, but it will help alleviate it,” MacLean said.

Multiple councilors asked how HRP is tackling impaired and aggressive driving, as road safety is one of the issues they get the most calls and concerns about from residents.

“There just seems to be a bit of lawlessness occurring on our streets these days,” said Deputy Mayor Patty Cuttell.

There has been a drop in tickets issued for traffic violations over the past decade, but MacLean said he hopes to see that trend reversing as enforcement improves.

To carry that out, MacLean said the force is seeing progress in filling vacant positions, and the 38-person cadet class graduating this summer will make a real difference.

Supt. Greg Robertson of the Halifax Regional Police said during the meeting that the 10-person traffic unit is now fully staffed. He said officers focus on problem spots where there have been multiple public complaints or collisions, and he has seen the numbers of tickets trending upwards.

“They’re just not getting into police cars and driving around the city, it’s targeted enforcement,” Robertson said.

Robertson said they are also working to bring the force’s entire 15-person motorcycle unit back on the road to enforce traffic violations.

The Halifax RCMP’s $44.9 million budget is up about $4.8 million over last year.

The increase largely comes from wage increases, and the remaining $1.8 million costs from 14 Mounties approved last year for various positions, including new offices in the Beechville-Lakeside-Timberlea area and Fall River.

Two new investigators will also be added to the Mountie’s intimate partner violence (IPV) unit, bringing the team to four people.

Coun. Becky Kent said the roles are vital given the epidemic in Nova Scotia. The officers will offer specialized support to victims and will make more connections with non-profits and shelters in the field.

Kent said it is important to shine a light on these crimes which are significantly underreported, and often only grab public attention when they result in a death.

“I’m talking about it because it needs to be talked about. I wanted people to hear it, because they need to hear it,” Kent said.

Earlier this week, four people spoke passionately against any increases to the police budgets, an opposition also raised at the Halifax police board this fall.

They said they believe police continue to harm vulnerable residents who are 2SLGBTQ+ or dealing with mental health issues or homelessness, and do not actually improve community safety.

“Public members are complaining about frivolous spending — police budget is frivolous spending,” Öykü Su Gürler said during the committee’s public participation on Wednesday.

“It’s always rubber stamped … when we are just fighting to have better transit.”

Multiple business groups and store managers spoke in favour of the police budgets, to make sure both forces have enough resources to help tackle what they say is increasing retail crime and violence.

Kent has said she will bring a request from the Halifax RCMP for six new officers to set up an office in Eastern Passage later in the budget process.

That and other investments, or cuts, will be decided before the overall municipal budget is passed in late March.

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Warning: This story deals with serious mental health concerns and suicide. Resources and supports can be found at the bottom of this story.

It’s now a week into a public police conduct hearing into the death of 34-year-old Tyler Knockwood, and the lawyer representing his widow says responding officers did not do enough to help him.

The hearing is believed to be the first of its kind for Prince Edward Island. After it concludes, an adjudicator will determine whether six Charlottetown Police Services officers who interacted with Knockwood the day before he died by suicide were neglectful in their duties.

CBC News is not naming the police officers involved until adjudicators rule on their conduct.

Knockwood died in January 2023 at Province House, the historic seat of the P.E.I. Legislature in Charlottetown, where he had been among those working to restore the building.

City police were called to his house four times in the 24 hours before he took his own life.

During the hearing, police witnesses repeatedly said they didn’t think Knockwood was in a mental health crisis. Officers testified that Knockwood didn’t meet the criteria to be apprehended under P.E.I.’s Mental Health Act.

The last call to Knockwood’s home was to issue an emergency protection order and remove him from the residence. An officer testified he found Knockwood locked in his unfinished basement, but said he was “very composed, articulate and polite.”

Lawyers for the police officers established that the officers had training and experience in dealing with mental health calls.

But the lawyer for Laura MacArthur, Knockwood’s widow, said the officers’ investigations were not thorough enough.

Asha James noted Friday during the hearing that Knockwood had locked himself in his basement at home that day. She said he was experiencing a mental health episode that included him accusing MacArthur of poisoning the air and water. 

“There were some clear indications that Tyler wasn’t well and that he was someone in need of help,” James said in an interview with CBC News.

She said the responding officers knew other officers had been also been in contact with Knockwood throughout the day.

“When you’re now, you know, the second and third people dealing with the same individual on the same day in the span of … six hours, more questions should be asked,” James said.

“They didn’t do enough.… Tyler was somebody who was in need of assistance. His family was trying to get him assistance. The social worker thought that something wasn’t right with him, and [the officers] didn’t act on it.”

Officers tell public hearing about their actions prior to P.E.I. man’s death by suicide

A public hearing looking into police conduct continues in Charlottetown, and Wednesday it heard from some of the city officers about how they dealt with Tyler Knockwood and his family the day before he took his own life. CBC’s Laura Meader reports.

Police testified that Knockwood was removed from his home, but that he refused mental health resources and didn’t pack a bag.

Officers dropped him off at a hotel in downtown Charlottetown, then left. Staff from the hotel testified that Knockwood didn’t get a room because his credit card was declined.

Staff at the provincially run Community Outreach Centre said Knockwood spoke to them briefly there, but he didn’t say what help he needed.

The next morning police would get a call that Knockwood had died by suicide at Province House.

The first day of the police conduct hearing on Monday saw MacArthur describe her husband’s erratic behaviour in the days leading up to his death.

She said Knockwood had become increasingly agitated and paranoid, and that he had gone to the hospital a few days prior because he had harmed himself.

MacArthur told the hearing she called police and filed for an emergency protection order when Knockwood became aggressive, but she said police didn’t listen when she attempted to explain his mental health history to them.

Wednesday’s session went into depth on the police officers’ lack of note taking during their interactions with Knockwood. James stressed that the officers did not do a thorough investigation and failed to attain statements from MacArthur and other family members.

She questioned why the officers’ final reports about interactions with Knockwood were missing what she felt were details that should have been noted.

James said it was not a question of whether officers offered Knockwood the opportunity to go to hospital, but rather if they should have apprehended him for his safety or the safety of others.

The hearing has wrapped up for now. Lawyers will return next month to present their final arguments, though a decision from the adjudicator isn’t expected for a few months.

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A B.C. Supreme Court Justice handed Zain Xavier Wood, 25, a sentence of life in prison without parole for 25-years.

In November, Wood was convicted of first-degree murder in the stabbing of a Prince George, B.C., mother in front of her two children in 2023.

Wood killed 22-year-old Isabelle Thomas in her home at the Alpine Village townhouse complex in Prince George, in front of her six-year-old and six-month-old daughters. He was inside the townhouse for approximately 35 seconds and killed Thomas on the second floor, stabbing her 16 times.

During the sentencing hearing Justice Michael Tammen said Wood’s offence was extremely aggravated even within the confines of first-degree murder.

“Ms. Thomas was an Indigenous woman who was brutally murdered within the sanctity of her own home. Mr. Wood killed Ms. Thomas in the presence of her six-year-old daughter who witnessed the killing of her mother and saw her mother die from her injuries,” he said.

“The devastation wrought in respect to Ms. Thomas’ two daughters is unimaginable. Nothing within the confines of the Canadian legal system can ever undue the pain, salve the wounds, or indeed make any meaningful reparations for the surviving family members.”

Born and raised in Prince George and a member of the Nadleh Whut’en First Nation, Thomas worked as a dietary aide. She was described by friends and family as a kind and loving woman who had big plans for her life.

Wood was on house arrest for a previous offence at the time of the incident and was wearing an electronic monitoring device on his ankle. He testified he went to her home to steal a PS4 to pay for his lawyer and stabbed Thomas when she startled him.

Wood also testified that he and Thomas had briefly dated in 2019. 

Tammen rejected Wood’s defence calling his story “ludicrous” and he rejected Wood’s claim he had been using drugs and hearing voices at the time of the offence. 

Tammen highlighted the words used in his ruling, calling the murder “brutal, savage, callous, premeditated and planned over a period of time.”

The court heard victim impact statements from members of Thomas’ family including her mother, Leslie Thomas, who described her daughter as someone who was joyful, compassionate and deeply connected to her family, friends, and culture. 

WATCH | Young mother killed in Prince George home:

22-year-old mother of 2 killed in home invasion

Family has identified Isabelle Thomas as the victim of a homicide in Prince George, B.C. Her mother, Leslie Thomas, describes her as a kind and loving woman who had big plans for her life.

She said Thomas’ murder has also forever changed the lives of her granddaughters and shattered their family.

“These two children will now grow up in a world forever changed, carrying a loss no child should ever have to bear.” 

Leslie also described Thomas’ murder as a systemic failure, highlighting that Wood was wearing an ankle monitor when he killed her daughter. 

“An ankle monitor does not provide constant protection. Tracking is often not continuous and may require a police officer or bail supervisor to actively request location data,” she said. “If no one is watching, no alarm is raised.” 

She said her daughter’s life could have been spared if supervision had been proactive rather than assumed. 

In Canada, first-degree murder carries a mandatory minimum sentence of life in prison with no chance of parole for 25 years.

However, Tammen said Wood may apply for a reduction in the years of imprisonment without eligibility of parole after serving 15 years of his sentence.

Wood was also given a lifetime ban on firearms and given a no contact order for a list of Thomas’ family and friends, as well as witnesses to the crime.

Ticaria Lampert, 12, is being remembered by her mother as a “blazing light in the darkness,” who was full of laughter, fire and sunshine.

“We called her Tiki,” said Sarah Lampert.

“She grew loud and proud on her own time, not a person to ever be pushed or rushed, but when it was her time, she was a storm.”

Ticaria was one of the eight victims who died on Feb. 10, during a mass shooting in Tumbler Ridge B.C. Six of the victims were children.

A single-mother, Lampert said the loss of Ticaria has left an irreparable hole in their large family.

“We have learned to become a functioning cell together,” said Lampert.

“We now have to figure out how to live life without her, and there’s nothing and no one that can fill that gap. Our family is shattered.”

Lampert said her daughter was a bright and funny girl who had a strong spirit, loved her family fiercely, and was always there to protect others.

“She was feisty, she could turn up the heat to make a point,” said Lampert. “But always followed with her sunshine, her fundamental gift.”

‘She was a baby’

Ticaria was energetic, loved to talk, joke around and make others laugh, said Lampert. Her daughter felt a sense of accomplishment “when everybody’s tummy hurt.”

“She was a dork of all dorks. She had a Santa sack of every bad dad joke you could think of. Her large voice, telling the most off the wall jokes,” said Lampert.

A multi-faceted girl, Ticaria was “the glue” between her siblings, able to “roll with her older sisters,” or “be a Tarzan with her wild little siblings.”

“She was whoever and whatever someone needed. She was everything, especially to me,” said Lampert.

“It’s really hard to breathe right now.”

WATCH | Sarah Lampert describes her 12-year-old daughter as a ‘blazing light’:

Mom of B.C. shooting victim Ticaria Lampert gives emotional statement

The mother of Ticaria Lampert spoke with media for the first time since a mass shooting in Tumbler Ridge, B.C., claimed the lives of her daughter and seven other victims. Sarah Lampert said she called 12-year-old Ticaria her ‘tiki torch’ and she has ‘always been a blazing light in the darkness.’

Ticaria was two months away from her 13th birthday when she died.

Lampert said she was a good student, self-disciplined, and “was content living in the moment.”

“She was in no hurry to grow up. She is forever my baby because that’s what she was. She was a baby,” said Lampert.

“This has been the hardest pill to swallow. I still am in disbelief. To accept that my daughter is gone is impossible.”

Президент України Володимир Зеленський закликав адміністрацію американського лідера Дональда Трампа посилити тиск на Росію, щоб покласти край вторгненню в Україну.

Він припустив, що Конгресу, можливо, доведеться вжити заходів для зміцнення післявоєнних гарантій безпеки.

Зеленський в інтерв’ю POLITICO на Мюнхенській конференції з безпеки заявив, що тільки США мають політичну і фінансову потужність, щоб зупинити війну.

“Будьте чесними, сьогодні тільки Україна захищає Європу. Сьогодні тільки Європа дає Україні гроші і допомагає Україні. Сьогодні тільки Сполучені Штати можуть зупинити Путіна”, – сказав він.

Зеленський розкритикував США за спробу змусити українців поступитися територією в Донбасі, не вимагаючи від Кремля жодних жертв:

“Є деякі сигнали від американської сторони від президента Трампа. Вони кажуть: “Настав час компромісів. Ви можете зробити деякі кроки вперед”. Ми пішли на багато компромісів. Путін та його друзі не у в’язниці. Це найбільший компроміс, який світ вже пішов. Ми погодилися на припинення вогню, Путін відмовився”.

Гарантії безпеки від США

Президент натякнув, що Конгресу необхідно підкріпити гарантії безпеки або додатковими коштами для післявоєнної армії України, або укладенням договірної угоди.

“Гарантії безпеки будуть працювати тільки після голосування Конгресу”, – сказав він.

Український лідер відкинув вимогу Трампа про те, щоб Київ і Москва завершили мирне врегулювання до літа. Він заявив, що Кремль затягує переговори з США, прагнучи нормалізувати відносини і послабити санкції.

“Поки не буде достатнього тиску – вони грають”, – зазначив Зеленський.

За його словами, мета Путіна – окупувати східні райони України, включаючи частини Донецької та Луганської областей, де Кремль досяг найбільшого прогресу у військових діях.

Зеленський також привітав ініціативу НАТО щодо надання Україні більшої кількості американської зброї, але сказав, що це не змінило враження Путіна про слабкість Європи.

“Путін дійсно не поважає Європу”, – сказав Зеленський, додавши, що спроби російського лідера розділити континент не увінчалися успіхом.

Відзначається, що політик, як і раніше, схоже, був упевнений, що саме Україна переживе Путіна:

“Я молодший за Путіна – це важливо. У нього не так багато часу”.

Що думає Зеленський про зустріч з Путіним

Раніше Зеленський розповів, як він уявляє собі свою зустріч з Путіним і що саме він хоче йому сказати.

За його словами, розмова з ним може бути зосереджена тільки на припиненні війни. Він також заявив про готовність зустрітися в будь-якому форматі, крім Москви або Білорусі.

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A mental health company being sued by the Ontario government over alleged fraudulent misrepresentation has filed a statement of defence and a counterclaim against the province, alleging it has damaged the company’s reputation.

Get A-Head Inc. and its parent company, Keel Digital Solutions, deny the government’s allegations and are in turn seeking damages of $98 million, including for payments the government withheld and for what they call loss of corporate value.

Ontario’s lawsuit, filed earlier this year, alleges Get A-Head inflated the number of counselling sessions it reported delivering through a student mental health program, resulting in overpayments of millions of dollars, and provided false quarterly reports.

The Ontario Provincial Police are also investigating after the government referred the results of an audit on Keel’s funding from the Ministry of Colleges and Universities to police.

The company says in its defence filed in court this week that the audit process was secretive and “deeply flawed,” and when the government announced the police referral due to what it called “inconsistencies” found through the audit, the company says that was done with the intent to harm its reputation.

Keel Digital Solutions was closely scrutinized during the most recent sitting of the legislature as one of the recipients of the Ministry of Labour’s $2.5-billion Skills Development Fund, a program the auditor general has found was not fair or transparent and doled out money to applicants ranked low by bureaucrats. 

Labour Minister David Piccini came under sustained fire from opposition parties calling for his resignation, particularly since media reports said one of Keel’s lobbyists is a close friend of Piccini’s.

Critics have questioned why the Ministry of Labour gave Keel $7.5 million in skills development funding for a first responder mental health program, even after an audit of their student funding had raised concerns within a different ministry.

The company said in its statement of defence that it is not even able to artificially inflate the sessions it provides, and the government was well aware of how it would be reporting its metrics. 

None of the allegations from either side has been tested in court.

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Halton Regional Police is asking for the public’s help to identify a dark-coloured compact SUV seen near a fatal shooting in the Burlington Centre parking lot on Monday.

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According to police, the shooting happened around 10:10 p.m. and the victim was targeted.

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The victim was identified as Omer Niaz Muhammad, 24, of Burlington.

Cops say a white SUV observed in a video released by investigators is the suspect vehicle responsible for this incident. They confirm it was located a short time later, abandoned and set on fire in Hamilton.

Investigators are attempting to clarify the involvement of the dark-coloured SUV and are asking anyone who may be able to identify the vehicle or its occupants to contact the Major Crime Bureau at 905-825-4776.

Anyone who may have security or dash cam footage of the area around the time of the shooting are also asked to contact police.

SHOTS FIRED AT RESIDENCE

Police in York are appealing for the public’s help following a shooting at a residence in Whitchurch-Stouffville.

Cops say, shortly after 9 p.m. Thursday, officers responded to reports of gunshots on Harold Ave., near 9th Line and Main St.

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When officers arrived, a house was located with damage by gunfire. However, there were no injuries reported.

Although investigators believe the residence was the intended target of the shooting, the occupants residing there are not believed to be the intended target as they recently moved in.

At this time, investigators do not have suspect or suspect vehicle information available.

Cops are seeking any video surveillance or anyone who may have captured dashcam video on the roadways around the area at the time of the shooting to come forward.

Anyone with information is asked to contact the York Regional Police Firearms Investigations Team by calling 1-866-876-5423, ext. 7817. Anonymous tips can be sent to Crime Stoppers by calling 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).

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