The Wednesday news briefing: An at-a-glance survey of some top stories

ALL P.E.I. SCHOOLS EVACUTED OVER THREAT: Officials on Prince Edward Island scrambled to evacuate more than 19,000 students from every school in the province Wednesday after police received a fax from someone threatening to detonate bombs at several schools. RCMP spokesman Sgt. Kevin Baillie said the fax was sent to Ottawa RCMP Wednesday morning, and that schools were notified within 10 minutes. “There’s been no threat found. Everybody is safe,” Baillie told reporters at a noon news conference, adding that the threat suggested bombs had been planted at several schools and would be set off Wednesday.

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TRUDEAU DEFENDING POSSIBLE EXTRADITION TREATY WITH CHINA: Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is defending a possible extradition treaty with China, saying it gives Canada a venue to raise serious issues. Trudeau is under fire from opposition parties for pursuing the treaty, which is a feature of a new high-level security dialogue he established with Beijing on his recent visit. The Conservatives and NDP say China’s frequent use of the death penalty, among other things, makes it a bad candidate for an extradition treaty with Canada.

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U.S. POLICE CHIEF SAYS OFFICERS WARNED BLACK MAN TO DROP GUN: A woman who claimed to be the daughter of a black man shot and killed by police in Charlotte, N.C., says her father was holding a book, not a gun. But police are disputing the claims made in the Facebook video posted shortly after the fatal shooting of Keith Scott, saying they have recovered a gun, but no book. Protesters and police clashed in unrest that saw tractor-trailers looted and set on fire. More than a dozen officers were injured, including one who was hit in the face with a rock. Authorities had to use tear gas to disperse the protests in North Carolina’s largest city.

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U.S. FEDS SAY BOMB SUSPECT VOWED ‘DEATH TO YOUR OPPRESSION’: He bought bomb ingredients on eBay and recorded a mirthful video of himself igniting a blast in a backyard. In a handwritten journal, he warned that bombs would resound in the streets and prayed he’d be martyred rather than caught, authorities say. Ahmad Khan Rahami’s jihad journal ended with a stark message, according to court papers: “Death to your oppression.” Federal court complaints filed Tuesday gave a chilling glimpse into what authorities say motivated the Afghan-born U.S. citizen to set off explosives last weekend in New York City and New Jersey, including a bomb that injured 31 people in Manhattan. The blasts came two years after the FBI looked into him but came up with nothing tying him to terrorism.

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MCKENNA SAYS PROVINCES MUST CHOOSE CAP AND TRADE OR CARBON TAX: Every Canadian province could soon have either a carbon tax or a cap-and-trade system. Environment Minister Catherine McKenna says those are the only two ways to price carbon, making them the only options available to the provinces. McKenna is currently working on establishing a national carbon price, which the government will introduce this fall. She says 80 per cent of Canadians already live in provinces where there’s a carbon price or where one’s on the way, but one of the holdouts, Saskatchewan, is deeply opposed to either approach.

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LABOUR MINISTER EXPECTS ‘CHANGES’ TO DEAL WITH RCMP HARASSMENT: Labour Minister MaryAnn Mihychuk says she expects to see changes following a legislative review into harassment issues in the RCMP. A government memo reveals Mihychuk asked for a briefing from Public Safety officials after receiving a message from an RCMP member who alleged the Mounties had failed to adequately address her complaints of sexual harassment. Mihychuk says she knows it can be rough for women because she worked as a geologist in the male-dominated career of mining and she wants to be sure the government is looking into this issue.

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REFUGEE FAMILY PROUD OF MENTION AT THE UN: A year ago, members of the Hadhad family were living as refugees after fleeing the war in Syria – but now they’re running a booming chocolate business in Nova Scotia with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau telling their story at the United Nations. Trudeau opened his speech to the Leaders Summit on Refugees at the UN in New York Tuesday by talking about Peace by Chocolate, which opened last month in Antigonish and has begun hiring local employees.

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CRIMINAL LAWYER WOUNDED IN TORONTO SHOOTING: A large blood stain remained in front of a Toronto law office Wedesday, a day after a prominent criminal defence lawyer was shot by a gunman, who was then shot by police. Witness Peter Schilling says he was looking out of his Yorkville office window Tuesday when he saw a man drive up and fire several shots at J. Randall Barrs. Schilling says a man he believed to be an undercover officer then sprinted to the scene, drew his weapon and begin firing at the gunman, adding it was like watching a TV show. The 66-year-old lawyer remains in hospital recovering from gunshot wounds to his legs while the 51-year-old suspect is listed in serious condition in hospital.

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HALIFAX OFFICER TELLS REVIEW BOARD HE HEARED FOR SAFETY: A Halifax police officer fighting his demotion after a routine traffic stop that turned ugly said he feared for his safety. Const. Matthew MacGillivray told the Nova Scotia Police Review Board Wednesday he was going to warn the P.E.I. couple, who were on their way to a medical appointment last September, that they were travelling over the speed limit. He said Angela Acorn and Graham Labonte got out of their car and came towards him. MacGillivray said he believed he was in danger of physical harm from the much larger Labonte so he unbuttoned a retention flap on the top of his handgun holster.

The Canadian Press

by Canadian Press

The Wednesday news briefing: An at-a-glance survey of some top stories

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