In the news today, Aug. 17

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NO LET-UP IN B.C. WILDFIRES.

An evacuation alert was issued for the entire city of Kimberley, B.C. and other properties south and southwest of the city on Thursday night as the provinces continues to deal more than 560 wildfires. The alert followed a pair of new evacuation orders issued earlier in the evening. One posted by the Cariboo Regional District covering 62 properties in the Dean River North area and the other covers 65 addresses east of Kootenay in the St. Mary’s Lake area.

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VISITATION HELD FOR SLAIN FREDERICTON OFFICERS

Mourners lined up in Fredericton for an emotional public visitation for two city police constables killed in the line of duty a week ago today. Constables Robb Costello and Sara Burns were killed at an apartment complex in a shooting that also claimed the lives of civilians Bobbie Lee Wright and Donnie Robichaud. On Saturday, thousands of police officers and first responders from across the country are expected to attend a regimental funeral for the two officers.

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KHALID APOLOGIZES FOR AWARD TO EL-MAOUED

A Liberal MP has apologized and rescinded a certificate of appreciation she presented last week to a man a Jewish advocacy group calls a purveyor of anti-Semitism. Mississauga-Erin Mills MP Iqra Khalid says she was unaware of some of the views held in the past by Amin El-Maoued, the public relations chief of Palestine House, when she gave him a certificate of appreciation for his volunteer work during a barbecue in her riding.

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JUDGE WHO CRIED TO RULE ON RECUSAL

A judge who cried during a victim impact statement is expected to release a decision today on whether she’ll disqualify herself from sentencing a man for sexual assault. The man’s lawyer told Kelowna, B.C. provincial court Judge Monica McParland in July that she is incapable of delivering a fair sentence because she became emotional during the victim’s statement. Jeremy Carlson pleaded guilty to sexual interference of a minor.

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DELAYS FEARED AS U.S. JUDGE ORDERS MORE KXL REVIEW

Potential delays in the completion of the Keystone XL pipeline following a U.S. judge’s order means Western Canadian oil producers could suffer current price discounts for a longer period of time, industry spokesmen say. On Wednesday, U.S. District Court Judge Brian Morris ordered additional environmental study of the altered route through Nebraska for TransCanada Corp.’s proposed pipeline.

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ARETHA FRANKLIN: CANADIAN REACTION

Hearing the powerful voice of Aretha Franklin on 1980s pop radio left a permanent impression on Canadian singer Jully Black. Hardly eight years old at the time, Black remembers recognizing the rarity of a black woman being played on a Top 40 radio station in Toronto. “To hear a soulful voice come through gave me hope,” she says. “I knew wasn’t from here — but I knew I could do that too. As young as I was, that was the beginning.” Franklin died Thursday in Detroit from pancreatic cancer. She was 76.

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ALSO IN THE NEWS TODAY:

— A judge in Fredericton is expected to rule on a publication ban in the Matthew Raymond murder case.

— Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan will announce investments in equipment for the Royal Canadian Navy.

— In Halifax, federal officials will announce a plan to improve small craft harbours in Nova Scotia.

— Statistics Canada will release the consumer price index for July and international transactions in securities for June.

— Canada’s Invictus Games flag will be raised during the Changing of the Guard ceremony on Parliament Hill.

— Ontario Premier Doug Ford and Toronto Mayor John Tory attend the official opening of Canadian National Exhibition.

The Canadian Press

by Canadian Press

In the news today, Aug. 17

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