Good morning, Greater Sudbury! Here are a few stories to start your day on this Friday morning.
'Project Maverick' nabs Sudburian for sex offence against child
A 28-year-old Sudbury man is among those charged as part of the OPP’s Project Maverick, the provincial strategy to protect children from sexual abuse and exploitation on the internet. On Nov. 30 a press conference was held to outline the strategy currently including assistance from the attorney general and the solicitor general as well as 27 police agencies, including the Greater Sudbury Police Service. In addition to announcing the names of ongoing investigations, including the adult male in Sudbury who is charged with two counts of “Agreement or arrangement – sexual offence against child,” the OPP offered a video release and the statistics for one month: October 2022. During the month, the 27 policing partners conducted 277 investigations, completed 168 search warrants and seized 1,032 devices. In total, 428 charges were laid against 107 people. During the investigations, 61 victims were identified and referred to appropriate community-based resources for assistance, while an additional 60 children were safeguarded. There are 175 ongoing investigations where additional charges may be laid. The 27 participating police agencies include: Barrie, Belleville, Brantford, Chatham-Kent, Cornwall, Durham, Greater Sudbury, Guelph, Halton, Hamilton, Kingston, London, Niagara, North Bay, Ontario Provincial Police (OPP), Ottawa, Peel, Peterborough, Sarnia, Sault Ste. Marie, Thunder Bay, Timmins, Toronto, Waterloo, Windsor, Woodstock and York.
One new COVID-19 death reported by Sudbury health unit
Public Health Sudbury and Districts (PHSD) marked the end of November by revealing one new COVID-related death had occurred in the region. The health unit said that COVID-19 was not the underlying cause of death, but "contributed to" the death of the individual. The death occurred in the Greater Sudbury district and marked the 11th death reported in the PHSD area in November. Between Oct. 1 and Oct.31, PHSD reported 10 COVID-related deaths. Since the pandemic was declared in March of 2020, PHSD has reported 196 local deaths. PHSD also reported 28 new COVID-19 cases have occurred in the local health jurisdiction since Monday's daily summary. The cumulative total of COVID cases in the past two years and eight months is 20,946. The health unit also reported that 20,803 of those cases have been resolved over that same period of time. The majority of local cases — 6,804 — have occurred in the 20 to 39 age group.
Wolves fall 7-4 to visiting North Bay Battalion
The Sudbury Wolves fell 7-4 to the visiting North Bay Battalion on Wednesday evening at Sudbury Arena. The loss drops Sudbury's record to 7-12-3-0, while North Bay improved theirs to 16-8-0-0. In the OHL standings, the Battalion sit second in the Eastern Conference and third overall, while the Pack is eighth in the Eastern Conference and 18th overall. Thursday's game saw Sudbury out-shoot their North Bay rivals 41-30. The Battalion went one-for-two on the power play, while Sudbury went zero-for-three. The Pack won the most faceoffs though, taking 32 to the Troops' 29. The Wolves are at home for two games this weekend, hosting the Owen Sound Attack on Friday, Dec. 2 for a 7:05 p.m. puck drop, and then welcoming the Niagara IceDogs on Sunday, Dec. 4 for a 2 p.m. tilt.
Ontario's apology to generations of miners a long time coming
With miners and family members looking on, the Province of Ontario officially apologized Wednesday for its role in exposing underground hard rock miners to aluminum dust during their work in Northern Ontario over a span of nearly four decades. The Nov. 30 address delivered on a promise House Leader Paul Calandra made last spring that the province would acknowledge its failure to protect miners who were forced to inhale McIntyre Powder as a condition of employment — a practice that was endorsed by the government of the day and later proven to be not only useless, but harmful. Labour Minister Monte McNaughton led the apology on behalf of the Legislature, calling it “long overdue.” “While we know that an apology will not bring your loved ones back, it will not ease the pain and sadness so many of you have faced, this tragedy should not have happened to you,” McNaughton said, directly facing the roughly 30 people gathered in the gallery who had travelled from Northern Ontario to be there.
Inspire: Morgan Sheppard just wants to make a difference
Morgan Shepphard has been involved with Ontario Students Against Impaired Driving (OSAID) both at the local and provincial level for two years, and is the only Sudbury member of OSAID who is part of the youth advisory team for Ontario. When asked about her involvement with the group, the Marymount Academy Grade 12 student is give quick to give credit to others. “I was introduced to the OSAID Youth Advisory Team during a meeting with the Sudbury Catholic District School Board’s Student Senate,” Sheppard said. “The opportunity to join the council was presented to me by the teacher representative, Tracey Adams, and I immediately took interest in it. “I thought that it would be a great leadership opportunity, which supported a very important cause. I have stayed on the council for two years because of all the amazing work we do. I am very proud to be a part of the team.” Shepphard is passionate about the cause, taking her cue, she said, from other activists. “I find a lot of inspiration in figures like Greta Thunberg and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, and one day I hope to make as much of an impact as them.”
Angus introduces bill to prevent CCAA use by public institutions
In the wake of Laurentian’s exit from court-protected insolvency restructuring this week, Timmins-James Bay NDP MP Charlie Angus has introduced a private member’s bill that, if adopted, would prevent another publicly funded institution using the same tactic when faced with financial challenges. His bill would prevent all public institutions from seeking creditor protection under the Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act (or CCAA), which is federal legislation. Laurentian finally exited the CCAA Nov. 28, 22 months after it declared insolvency. Angus held a press conference Dec. 1 ahead of introducing his private member’s bill in the House of Commons. “The decision to use the CCAA at Laurentian was without precedent, and it had disastrous consequences,” he said. “It is essential that we have legislation in place that ensures that no institution that receives federal or provincial funding can be subject to the Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act, or CCAA, if they find themselves in financial difficulty.”
Clouds and a high of 3 today
Expect increasing cloudiness early in the morning and wind out of the south at 30 km/h, gusting to 50. Today’s high is 3, with a -6 wind chill in the morning. The UV index today is 1, or low. Tonight, the skies will stay cloudy, bringing at 30-per-cent chance of showers. The overnight low is 2.a
