Post-Tropical Storm Soaks Province

Roads were closed, bridges were shut down for certain vehicles and thousands of homes went without power as post-tropical storm Andrea swept through the region, soaking everything in her path.

She dumped 57mm of rain on Saint John, brought 75 to Point Lepreau, while Grand Manan was slammed with 95mm. The Confederation bridge, linking the province to Prince Edward Island, was restricted to high-sided vehicles including tractor trailers and buses for part of the day because of the gusty winds.

Port Days Focusing On Creating Stronger Ties With South America

Looks like it's networking season in Saint John....as all levels of government attempt to court Alberta crude oil, the Port is doing its bit to strengthen trade links with South America. 

Port CEO and President Jim Quinn tells CHSJ News Port Days is chance for stakeholders and port users to hobnob and discuss future business endeavours.
 
The theme for this year is "Strengthening North South Trade Links" and delegates from all over the world are attending.  Mayor Mel Norton and Premier David Alward will each be giving a keynote address on the future of the city's port. Port Days starts with Community Day today and runs until Tuesday.

Stewards of Children Offering Childhood Sexual Abuse Prevention Workshop

If we want children to have the courage speak up about sexual abuse, we have to do the same. 

That's from Elsie McGraw of the Saint John Support Group for Survivors of Childhood Sexual Abuse who tells CHSJ News it's an issue that's had an air of secrecy for far too long.

McGraw says we want our children to come to us or report sexual abuse or unwanted touching, but yet, we as adults don't talk about it so we can't expect our children to do something we can't. She says open dialogue on the issue is badly needed in Saint John, especially in light of the guilty plea by former common councillor Donnie Snook. Because, she says, not only will it happen again, it's happening right now.

Starting a dialogue is the idea behind the Stewards of Children childhood sexual abuse prevention workshops.

The workshops are on June 14th from 9:30 am to noon and 2:00 pm to 4:30 pm, and on June 15 from 9:30 am to 12 noon at Millidgeville North School, 490 Woodward Avenue in Saint John. It costs $30. For more information call McGraw at 674-1627 or mcgrame@nb.sympatico.ca.

Maple Syrup Sweet & Clear This Season

It's been an especially sweet year for the province's maple syrup producers for more than one reason.

Not only did this year yield a record-breaking five million pounds of syrup, Yvon Poitras, the General Manager of the NB Maple Sugar Association, tells CHSJ News this year's syrup itself tastes sweet and is clear. 

Poitras says with the many environmental factors at play, it's hard to say what combination creates such a product, and although this syrup season was good, it's impossible to predict what will happen next year.

Post-Tropical Storm Brings Rainy, Windy Weather

The buckets of rain and whipping winds could only mean one thing...Andrea's on her way to the region.

The post-tropical storm was located over southeastern Virginia on Friday night, and is migrating into the southern part of this province. Up to 50mm of rain and 70 kilometre an hour wind gusts are expected from the storm. 

The Canadian Hurricane Centre saying that the storm is tracking northeastward, and that the remnants of Andrea will bring heavy rain and moderate winds to Newfoundland and Labrador early on Sunday.

NDP Leader Calling For Review Of Education In NB

Provincial NDP leader Dominic Cardy is warning advanced math courses are under threat from cuts in teaching jobs.

He tells Tide News that's the wrong way to go if you want the province to economically compete on the world stage.

Cardy says right now you have employers in the province complaining they can't find workers who are skilled enough and that indicates a problem.

He says Provincial Education Minister Jody Carr should be looking at what principal Chris Treadwell is doing at Park Street School on the north side of Fredericton where students in grades 3 and 4 are reading at a high school level.

Alberta Premier Coming To NB Tomorrow

Alberta's Premier pays a visit to our province tomorrow.

Alison Redford will speak at a Saint John board of trade luncheon, tour the Refinery and Canaport LNG facility and address the Legislature in Fredericton.

Premier David Alward and Redford will talk about a west-east pipeline and the national energy strategy.

The Board of Trade event at the Trade & Convention begins at noon.

Two Men Knabbed For Fires At Port City House

Two men in their twenties will appear in court in connection with a number of fires at the same unoccupied home in Saint John earlier this year.

22 year old Jacob Jacquard was arrested in Yarmouth County in connection with the case.

 Another 29 year old man was arrested in Saint John in late April. 
Fire crews and police were called to a series of fires at 168 Main Street North this winter.

Some NB Roads Make The Worst List

If you're tired of bouncing over the potholes on Rothesay Avenue in Saint John and Hanwell Road in Fredericton, you're not alone.....CAA's Worst Roads poll has now closed with 4 New Brunswick roadways making the top 10 in the region. Gary Howard of CAA tells CHSJ News the poll aims to raise awareness of the problem spots.

He says its tough for government these days to have enough resources to allow to keep the roads in good shape adding their helps drivers be aware of the bad roads out there.

Fredericton's Hanwell Road is number 2 on the list.....New Brunswick 630 in Andersonville tied for third, and Rothesay Avenue ranked 7th.

Fredericton Road in Salisbury rounded off the list at number 10.

Over 4,000 votes were cast.

MacKenzie Trial In Saint John Goes To Jury

Jury deliberations are underway on the fate of 29 year old Crystal Dawn MacKenzie, who's being tried a second time for second degree murder in the death of her common law partner, 29 year old Patrick Thomas. 

He was stabbed to death outside their apartment building on Alma Street, off Waterloo in March of 2010.
 
Mr. Justice William Grant says the jury will have to decide if MacKenzie was acting in self defense or trying to settle a score out of anger. The jurors will have to determine her state of mind after a night of heavy drinking and history of violence in their relationship. 

The judge has told the jury there was evidence  Thomas assaulted her five different times on the night of the stabbing but did she have a safe means of escape which would include calling police.

The jury has also been told it can find her guilty of manslaughter if it believes she was provoked and lost control.

St. Stephen RCMP Warn Warmer Weather Brings Opportunity For Theft

A reminder from our local Police Sergeant.

By removing the opportunity, you are removing the temptation and reward.

Sgt. Bob MacKnight tells Tide News with the arrival of warmer weather and more people out and about late at night, comes an increase in crime.

He reminds residents to make sure all vehicles and properties are locked up, and that valuables are out of sight from potential thieves.

Accused At Murder Trial Seen Sobbing On Police Video

The jury saw the rest of a police video of 29 year old Crystal Dawn MacKenzie being questioned in the stabbing death of her common law partner, 29 year old Patrick Thomas in March of 2010. MacKenzie is being retried for 2nd degree murder.
 
The video shows MacKenzie doubled over, rocking back and forth while sobbing. MacKenzie tells lead investigator Sergeant Dan Oram she didn't mean to kill Thomas but didn't want him in the apartment on Alma Street that night because she didn't want her kids to see them fighting. 

She tells Oram of stabbing Thomas in the shoulder after thinking he was coming after her. Sergeant Oram told the court he took that to mean MacKenzie was the aggressor after becoming so enraged. 

Defense lawyer David Kelly suggested she wasn't giving an academy award performance during the interrogation but Oram told the court, in his view, she was more upset at her own predicament than what had happened to Thomas.  

Kelly got into evidence Thomas' past criminal record for assaults including an order, at one point, to not have contact with MacKenzie.

Despres Will Remain In Psychiatric Facility

A man known in Charlotte County for being able to successfully cross the U.S. border while carrying a multitude of weapons, including a bloody chainsaw, will remain locked up.

30 year old Gregory Despres, who brutally stabbed Fred Fulton and Verna Decarie to death in their Minto home back in 2005, will remain locked up in a secure psychiatric facility inside Dorchester Penitentiary.

A review board has determined Despres still is a threat after hearing from psychiatrist Louis Theriault who testified his treatment has stalled.   
    
Despres was found not criminally responsible for the horrific carnage because he could not understand the wrongfulness of his actions.
    
Both Fulton and Decarie were in their 70s.   
    
Theriault is recommending Despres be transferred to the Restigouche Mental Health Hospital in Campbellton to allow for visits from his family, which might help him understand his role in the murders but the board turned that down.

On April 25th, 2005, a day before the bodies were found, Despres (who is an american citizen) was allowed to cross the St. Stephen/Calais border while carrying a homemade sword, a knife, a hatchet, brass knuckles, and a chainsaw that were stained in blood. 

Police Chief Asks For Inquest After No Charges Laid

Saint John City police consulting with the Crown prosecutor's office deciding no criminal charges will be laid in the death of Serena Perry.

Perry died on February 14th, 2012 while she was a patient at the Regional Hospital.

The forensic pathology examination can't confirm a cause of death and as a result Police Chief Bill Reid has requested the Coroner's office hold a public inquest into Perry's death.

Snook Facing 4 More Sex Charges Against Boy Under 14

Former Common Councillor Donnie Snook is now facing four sex charges against a boy under 14 in Newfoundland.

These charges date back to December of 1995 and Snook is scheduled to appear in a Cornerbrook courtroom June 11th or at least have lawyer do so on his behalf.

Snook spent a year as an officer of the former Salvation Army Citadel in Mount Moriah back when he was in his early 20s and commissioned to be the church’s senior pastor.

Snook pleaded guilty to 46 charges of abusing children in Saint John earlier this week. He's back in court here on June 25th to have a date scheduled for sentencing.

Alberta Premier Coming To NB To Talk Oil

It's not hard to guess at what will be the main topic of conversation will be when Alberta Premier Alison Redford visits the the province next Friday and that's the proposed West to East oil pipeline.

Redford will be talking to the Saint John Board of Trade, touring the Irving Oil Refinery and addressing the Legislature.

The pipeline which was the brainchild of Charlotte County M-P John Williamson and promoted by former Premier Frank McKenna appears to be gaining momentum.

Premier David Alward, who's looking for some positive economic news, calls this project "historic" and compares it to the building of the national railway.

NB And PEI Toughest Provinces To Get An Abortion

The anti-abortion organization right to life Right to Life is claiming Henry Morgentaler's lawsuit to have abortions covered by Medicare

in New Brunswick ends with his death. In a statement, the organization's director Peter Ryan said, "His legacy is the death of hundreds of thousands of Canadian children, including over 9,000 in New Brunswick. He thought he was helping women but a dead child helps no mother. His opinion on the matter no longer counts. Only the truth matters now."

But Simone Leibovitch of Fredericton's Morgentaler clinic tells Tide News the clinics will continue to fight for what they call a human rights issue. She calls the situation in New Brunswick and PEI "unique," since they are the only provinces that don't cover the procedures. In New Brunswick women must seek permission from their family doctor to get an abortion---which can be difficult in a province where many people don't have family doctors. Besides, Leibovitch says she knows of some doctors who are pro-life and will not even prescribe birth control.

In PEI, women have to go off-island to get the procedure which Leibovitch says is impossible for women who are often already strapped for cash or unemployed.

Despite his controversial legacy, Morgentaler had been hailed as a champion of women's rights before his death this week at age 90.

Pitcher's Pres Says Championship Will Bring Economic Spin-Offs For St. Stephen

A bid to get the Canadian Horseshoe Pitching Championships to town in 2015 is looking promising.

St. Stephen Horseshoe Pitcher's Club President Jason Rideout tells Tide News getting the grant from Town Council to host the championship at the new Garcelon Civic Centre was a key part of the bid. "A large event like that, you can't depend on weather being nice as it is a four to five day event. And so, the Civic Centre was the spot we were looking for and that was the key to our bid process was having a building large enough to host the event."

Rideout estimates between 200-250 people will be pitching in the championship, plus friends and family, bringing many economic spin-offs for the community. He tells Tide News, "The pitchers only pitch about 3 hours of the day because there are so many different classes. So they've got the other 21 hours to do something else. So they are looking for different events and what not to do which will definately bring economic spin-offs to our community."



Rideout tells us the budget to host the Championship will range between 30-40 thousand dollars, but they have two years to prepare. "Through fundraising and trying to get some grants, some business sponsorships, bake sales, ticket drives as well as fundraising within the club using tournaments and such. It's nothing we can't handle, we are up to the challenge, but it was a big decision for the club to make."

Rideout says they currently have about 50 active members and are always looking for new ones. He says they meet every Tuesday evening at Frasier Farm, located at 8838 Route 3 in Old Ridge, where he says everyone is welcome to come and try it out. He says everyone pitches, no matter the skill set or age, and there is no membership fee until to try it out and decide to join the Club officially for $10.
You can check out the St. Stephen Horseshoe Pitchers Club on Facebook, or their new website at www.sshorseshoepitchers.com .

He says they will find out if they won the bid in by July 11th.

Couples Benefit From Travelling Together

38 per cent of people responding to a Travelocity.ca survey say by traveling together they learn they have more in common with their partner than they thought.
 
Couples Therapist Ashley Howe tells Tide News most Canadians want to travel with partners rather than alone.

She says people were noticing a trend of single vacations and people trekking through Europe alone so there was an impression that travel alone was becoming more popular.

The survey found 88 per cent of Canadians prefer to travel with their spouse.

Former Mayor Reacts To Snook Case

A sad situation but time heals all wounds and they city will move on .......That's the reaction of Councillor At Large Shirley McAlary to her former colleague on Saint John Common Council, Donnie Snook pleading guilty to so many charges of abusing children he was in the business of helping.

McAlary, who is out and about a lot, concedes she did not suspect Snook of being a pedophile.

Alot of people who had contact with Snook may be beating themselves over how they could have been fooled for so long. That's understandable according to Katina Feggos, Case Manager of Clinical Services at Family Plus/Life Solutions.

She says the real focus, though, should not be on what they should have known or done but on what the individual did to violate their trust.