Bill to mark transgender and two-spirit day passed by Manitoba legislature

WINNIPEG - There was acrimony in the Manitoba legislature Thursday as politicians passed a bill to designate March 31 an annual day to recognize two-spirit and transgender persons.

The bill to establish Two-Spirit and Transgender Day of Visibility passed a final vote with unanimous support of the governing New Democrats and most of the Opposition Progressive Conservatives in the chamber.

But four Progressive Conservatives voted against the bill, prompting Premier Wab Kinew to accuse them of engaging in "an act of hate."

"No one is asking for you to be gay," Kinew said to Tories across the chamber.

Task force lambasted for holding firm on breast cancer screening advice

Several cancer experts, surgeons and radiologists swiftly condemned a national task force's draft decision not to lower the recommended routine breast cancer screening age to 40 on Thursday.

The criticisms were echoed by federal Health Minister Mark Holland, who said he was "concerned" and "disappointed" in the task force's findings and wanted leading experts to review the guidelines. He also called for the public consultation period to be extended.

The Canadian Task Force on Preventive Health Care, which provides guidance for primary health-care providers, said it is maintaining current advice that routine breast cancer screening start at age 50 and end after age 74.

Although they refrained from lowering the age for routine screening, the task force did suggest women age 40 to 49 be eligible for mammograms every two to three years if they want one after learning the harms and benefits of early screening, ideally from a conversation with their health-care provider.

Associated Auto Auction collector car sale puts ‘amazing stories’ on block

Associated Auto Auction’s own version of Ford v Ferrari will be part of its latest collector car sale Friday and Saturday.

Among the 220 items that will be on the block at the Winnipeg company’s 7130 Roblin Blvd. site are a 2000 Ferrari 360 Modena and a 1965 Shelby Cobra Factory 5 Five — from the manufacturers at the centre of the 2019 Matt Damon-Christian Bale movie.

“There’s a lot of people who’ll be thinking they’re going home in this one,” said Brooke Collingridge of Associated Auto Auction, pointing to the newly rebuilt Shelby that includes a brand-new engine.

Craig Collingridge (Brooke’s father) and his family bought the business that’s been around for more than 50 years, six years ago. They now run collector car auctions several times per year in Winnipeg, Barrie, Ont., and Regina, with plans to expand to Vancouver.

Visits were close together, but these two weren’t bad news bears

They didn’t come into the city looking for trouble and were escorted out without incident, so Winnipeggers ought to just grin and bear it.

The two medium-sized ursine visitors in nine days — separately finding temporary lodging in a Wildwood tree nine days ago, and in one along the Seine River in Royalwood Wednesday — are likely not related, and somehow lost their way, a Manitoba Conservation officer said Thursday.

“I just see it as a chance event that we had two (sightings) so close to each other,” Sgt. Graeme Smith said, adding bears come and go at night by way of the riverbanks, often without anyone noticing. Once the sun comes up, it’s a different story.

The black bears most likely were spooked off their intended course by someone or something, Smith said.

Two years for torching Rennie hotel

The Rennie Hotel on Highway 44 had been a hub for generations, where news about wedding plans, new jobs and expectant moms kept community members up to date.

But Pelle Lambiase, intoxicated and fuelled by revenge, destroyed the hotel in the hamlet that bears the same name, as well as the adjoining post office, with a splash of lighter fluid and the flick of a lighter early on Dec. 8, 2022.

Provincial court Judge Cynthia Devine sentenced the 65-year-old to two years in federal prison for the arson this week, which robbed the community of 120 people, about 100 kilometres east of Winnipeg near Whiteshell Provincial Park, of their meeting place.

“The Rennie Hotel was a home, business and social hub for the community for approximately 80 years. The crime was shocking and has resulted in a huge social and community loss for the small hamlet,” said Devine.

Former coach, Hockey Manitoba drop gloves in courtroom

A verbal dispute between a minor hockey coach and a referee began on the ice, spilled into the parking lot and is now playing out in a Manitoba courtroom, with the coach claiming he was unjustly handed a lifetime ban.

Former assistant coach David Brown is seeking a judicial review against Hockey Manitoba, requesting a provincial judge examine the administrative body to ensure its appeal processes are fair, reasonable and lawful.

Brown claims the organization unfairly upheld a St. Vital Minor Hockey Association decision to permanently ban him from coaching after a post-game dispute with a referee last year.

Brown attempted to appeal the decision with the association and Hockey Winnipeg before bringing it to Hockey Manitoba, which acts as the provincial governing body for amateur hockey.

Police ‘set the record straight’ about response to robbery at bakery

Winnipeg police defended their handling of a robbery at a Garden City bakery and tried to “set the record straight” Thursday, after the shop’s co-owner raised concerns about response times.

Police held a news conference to explain how reports of crime are prioritized, and read from a 911 call transcript in response to media coverage of what was said during the exchange.

“We understand that these types of events — not only for the employees, but for the owner of the business — are traumatic events,” said Insp. Gord Spado, who oversees the Winnipeg Police Service’s communications centre. “They’re very stressful times in people’s lives.

“Accurate articulation of what happens after that is difficult, because you’re basing your comments on emotions and how that event made you feel.”

Judge sued after witness’s name briefly posted online in error

A criminal trial witness is suing a Winnipeg judge, alleging she has been harassed and abused after her name was included in a court decision posted online, despite a publication ban. The privacy breach has forced the witness to leave the province “due to multiple threats, and multiple violent physical and verbal attacks,” alleges a statement of claim filed in Manitoba Court of King’s Bench this week. Justice Ken Champagne — whose 2023 written ruling included the witness’s name and the names of other witnesses and was briefly posted online, and the provincial government are named defendants in the lawsuit. […]