Santa Claus Is Coming To Town!

Santa Claus is on his way to St. Stephen!

The Annual Santa Claus Parade will begin promptly tomorrow evening at 6:30 at Chocolate Drive, and ending at St. Stephen's University.

Heather Donahue with the BIA tells Tide News this year they have 64 entries, including 98.1 The TIde, as compared to only 42 entries last year.

She says there are so many entries, some will be directed to line up at the Charlotte County Mall.


Donahue says St. Stephen Town Council members will be gathering non-perishable food items along the parade route to donate to the Volunteer Centre of Charlotte County, and Canada Post officials will be gathering letters to Santa from kids as well.

Following the parade, Santa will head to the Town Square for the tree lighting and to visit with kids.

Claim Being Made That A City Police Officer Is Being Persecuted

A key witness at the trial in August of 2012 of Constable Chris Messer has admitted to not telling the truth, according to an arbitrator's report obtained by Tide News. 

Brett McAdam testified Messer accused him of breaking into his home on Westfield Road and threatened to blow his head off.
 
Arbitrator George Filliter dismissed that allegation, writing that he did not find McAdam's testimony to be convincing. Filliter goes on to say McAdam admitted to not telling the truth before the Court or at the arbitration hearing. 

Messer also comes in for criticism with Filliter saying he should not even have spoken to McAdam about a break-in that happened at his own home and was warned against doing that but it would be unfortunate if City Police were to lose his services. Messer has an honours degree in criminology and sociology from St. Thomas University.

Messer's lawyer Brian Munro questions why a perjury charge has not been laid if the testimony given at a criminal trial is false. 

The other witness against Messer was Randy King who has a criminal record including a stretch in prison. His credibility is being questioned by Messer's lawyer Brian Munro. Messer is scheduled to stand trial in late April for common assault against King.

The Police Association says it appears Messer is being persecuted and the wrong message is being sent to criminals in the city.......All you have to do to take the heat off is to file a criminal complaint against a cop.

Donnie Snook In Court Again For Forfeiture Hearing

Former Saint john Common Councillor and youth leader, Donnie Snook appearing in court today to sit in on a forfeiture hearing, which essentially decides what happens to his possessions. 

The possessions in question include electronics he used to record his crimes against children. 

 A few heated exchanges occurred between Judge Alfred Brien and the crown regarding missing paperwork and a lack of specificity about what exactly was seized.

Snook appeared gaunt and tired and expressed through his lawyer, Dennis Boyle, that he does not want to be present at the continuation of the forfeiture hearing on January 8th and Boyle can represent his interests.

The Newfoundland charges against Snook have been transferred to New Brunswick and will be dealt with here on November 28th.

Dennis Oland's Family Releases Statement

Dennis Oland's family releasing a statement to the media professing his innocence adding they are devastated this nightmare is going to continue for him and all of them.

It adds they know he will be found innocent in an objective and fair process in a court of law. 

They want the police to turn their attention to finding out who is really responsible for Richard Oland’s death.

The statement closes by thanking friends and family for their support.

It was released by the family's attorney Bill Teed. 

Clements Pleads Guilty To Arson

40 year old Timothy Edward Clements pleading guilty to two counts of arson on the Dever Road in Saint John.

Police getting calls to the west side on October 22 and November 7 with a transport truck and a garage being destroyed in separate fires.
There had been a number of calls to the site before about suspicious fires.

The court heard Clements emerged from the woods soaking wet and smelling of smoke and told officers on the scene he was walking to work.
He eventually admitted setting the fires by stuffing paper into the bunk of the truck and set it ablaze and lighting the garage on fire with a shredded tire.

The damage is estimated to be well into the tens of thousands of dollars....Clements said all of his problems are the result of alcohol and traumatic events in his childhood and he wants to get help so he can get married & take care of his loved ones.

He will reappear for sentencing on December 18th.

Businessman Fined For Failing To Pay The Tax Man

A businessman getting slammed with a $2000 fine for not complying with two court orders from a previous conviction.

John William Beairsto was convicted last year on six charges of failing to file his 2009 and 2010 corporate income tax returns for his three businesses in Fredericton: The Grille on York, Queen Street Restaurant and Hannah's Foods. He was also convicted for failing to file five HST returns for those businesses and fined a grand on each of the eleven charges for a total of $11,000 and given a year to pay up.

The judge ordering him to file his outstanding returns within six months or face jail time. When he didn't pay back the money, the CRA laid charges against him and he plead guilty.

Saint John Teacher On Jeopardy! Tonight

You might see a familiar face if you tune into Jeopardy! tonight.

Saint John High School teacher Mary Ann Lewell will appear on the iconic quiz show. She is the only Canadian teacher ever to be featured on the Teacher's Tournament. Lewell tells Tide News she's been asked to keep it a mystery whether she won or lost until the show airs--but she says she was certainly thrilled with the experience.

Lewell says the most difficult part was getting the hang of the infamously tricky buzzer and brushing up on her US history to compete alongside teachers from south of the border. 
She teaches history and social studies at the uptown high school.