In the news today, Jan. 16

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ALLEGED SERIAL KILLER McARTHUR TO APPEAR IN COURT

An alleged serial killer who faces murder charges in the deaths of eight men with ties to Toronto’s gay village is set to appear in court today. Bruce McArthur is slated to have a hearing after a scheduled judicial pre-trial meeting behind closed doors. The 67-year-old self-employed landscaper is to stand trial in January 2020 after waiving his right to a preliminary hearing late last year. The Crown says it expects the trial to last three to four months.

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ASSISTED DYING LAW TOO RESTRICTIVE: NEW JUSTICE MINISTER

The appointment of David Lametti as Canada’s new justice minister has given new hope to those who believe the Trudeau government’s law on medically assisted dying is too restrictive. Lametti was one of just four Liberal MPs who voted against the government’s 2016 legislation that made it legal for incurably ill Canadians to get medical help to end their suffering — provided they are already near death and meet other strict criteria. In a cabinet shuffle Monday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau plucked Lametti from the backbenches to take over from Jody Wilson-Raybould.

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B.C. FOSSILS HELP SOLVE EVOLUTIONARY RIDDLE

The tiny remains of an extinct bug-like creature discovered at B.C.’s 500-million-year-old Burgess Shale fossil deposit add a new branch to the evolutionary tree of life. The discovery of fossilized soft tissue help solve a long-standing evolutionary riddle about the agnostids’ family tree, says Joe Moysiuk, an ecology and evolutionary biology PhD student at the University of Toronto. The peer-reviewed study, published today in the Proceedings of the Royal Society B in the United Kingdom, links the agnostids to trilobites as distant cousins. Evolutionary researchers have pondered if trilobites were related to agnostids and the new research proves the connection, Moysiuk said.

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ALSO IN THE NEWS:

— Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is expected to make remarks at a Liberal party breakfast today in St. Catharines, Ont.

— U.S. Consul General Kevin Skillin will be speaking on American-Canadian relations today in Halifax.

— The Canadian Taxpayers Federation will deliver a petition to the federal government today opposing current expense policies for former governors general.

— Indigenous leaders and their supporters are expected meet today in Smithers, B.C., to discuss their opposition to the Coastal GasLink natural gas pipeline through Wet’suwet’en territory.

— The trial of Jason Meilleur and Christopher Brass — charged with manslaughter in the death of Jeanenne Fontaine, Tina Fontaine’s cousin — continues today in Winnipeg.

The Canadian Press

by Canadian Press

In the news today, Jan. 16

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