I was 18 years old the first time I drank—three years older than Tina Fontaine was when she was killed. It was at a party in university held in my residence dorm. It was one of those parties where the house leaders mix together a big vat of mystery booze in a plastic garbage can […]
Crime
Posted inNews + Opinion
Guilty verdict for Jimmy Melvin Jr.
Jimmy Melvin got a not-guilty verdict at a murder trial earlier this year, but today he was convicted of trying and plotting to kill. A Nova Scotia Supreme Court jury in Halifax on Thursday declared James Melvin Jr. guilty of attempted murder and conspiracy to commit the murder of Terry Marriott Jr. The charges stem […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Someone stole Lindell Smith’s bike
He might be getting interviewed by Peter Mansbridge on a national stage these days, but city councillor Lindell Smith is still a man of the people. Case in point: he just had his bike stolen. “Yeah, no one’s immune,” says Smith about the Halifax rite-of-passage. The councillor’s grey Halfway folding bike was stolen from his garage […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Hells Angels resurgence in Halifax not something to celebrate
After a raid on their Fairview clubhouse in 2003 effectively folded the Nova Scotia chapter of the Hells Angels, the organized crime syndicate went dark here for more than a decade. Their return has been heralded by some members of the public on social media as a positive for the community. On every news story […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
The long road to forgiveness
Driving along the winding, dirt road into British Columbia’s mountains, the heavily wooded area made Fern McCuish feel like she should be on a relaxing visit to a lumber camp, but instead she was full of anxiety. This was no camp, but a prison. She was about to come face-to-face with her father’s killer, 17 […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Not guilty—what the jury heard in Jimmy Melvin Jr.’s murder trial
“Who’ve you got to testify against me—that’s reliable?” Jimmy Melvin Jr. asked, according to police. “You don’t got no weapon. I know that.” It was 2015 and Melvin was in police booking, again. The infamous Spryfield gangster and convicted felon had been picked up as he pulled into a convenience store on the Bedford Highway, […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Desmond family deaths draw attention to PTSD and domestic violence
[Image-1] Four family members were laid to rest this week. Brenda Desmond: a woman who was “known for her smile, laughter, humour, and strong love.” Shanna Desmond: a registered nurse at St. Martha’s Regional Hospital, remembered by her sister as “the rock of the family.” Aaliyah Desmond: a 10-year-old animal-lover with dreams of becoming a […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Some asshole keeps making bomb threats
[Image-1] Someone with nothing better to do keeps phoning in fake bomb threats to Halifax police, inciting more weary annoyance from the population than panicked terror. Around 1:30am Sunday morning, Halifax RCMP were called by someone saying he was in the parking lot of Cole Harbour Place with bombs and a hunting rifle. Police surrounded […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Halifax taxi drivers keep sexually assaulting their passengers
[Image-1] For the third fourth time in as many three months, a taxi driver in Halifax has been accused of sexually assaulting their passenger. The latest incident happened July 17. It follows an incident the previous weekend when Halifax Regional Police responded to a call from a 20-year-old woman who’d allegedly been “touched in a […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Police rule out gun buy-back program to curb recent violence
[Image-1] Halifax police say they aren’t looking to bring back a 2009 program that took thousands of guns off the streets, even after the city’s recent string of shooting deaths. At last month’s Stop the Violence rally, The Coast asked Halifax Regional Police chief Jean-Michel Blais if a buy-back program was being considered in the […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Where are all the guns in Halifax coming from?
[Image-1] According to first quarter statistics released yesterday by Halifax police, violent crime is down in 2016, compared to the same period last year. Doesn’t feel like a very peaceful year, though, does it? Despite a recent string of gun-related homicides that shook the city, violent crime has generally been on a downward trend for […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Border Services agent charged with sexual assault, extortion
[Image-1] Halifax Regional Police have charged a Canada Border Services Agency employee with sexual assault, breach of trust and extortion. Carrie Dexter Willis, 55, of Pierrefonds, Quebec was arrested “without incident” on April 1 in Montreal and brought back to Halifax to await trial. The charges stem from 2003 when Willis was an immigration officer. […]