Kingston News, May 2, 2016

RMC Cadet – Death  

The sudden death of a 22 yr old RMCC cadet has shaken the Military University.

On Thursday morning Harrison Kelertas, of Montreal was found dead on campus. He was reportedly found in his room after he wasn’t seen for roll call.

The honours politics student, and member of Frontenac (4) Squadron, was scheduled to graduate on May 19.

Meanwhile the Royal Military College of Canada cadets marched across the causeway bridge meeting with the mayor as part of Copper Sunday traditions yesterday.

The 400 plus cadets were welcomed by Mayor Bryan Paterson at city hall where he addressed the recent loss by saying: “When you celebrate, we celebrate with you, when you fell loss, we feel loss with you,”

The Canadian Forces National Investigation Service is still investigating the death but reports there were no signs of foul play.

Via Rail – Kingston

The head of Via Rail is hoping to improve rail service into Kingston.

Yves Desjardins-Siciliano says by 2019 trains will start out of Kingston first thing in the morning for the work day and the last train at the end of the evening will allow people to go into the larger cities to enjoy evening events, and get back into town at the end of those events.

Desjardins-Siciliano says with the current schedule, Kingston residents can’t go to a Raptors or Maple Leafs games for example.

Stunt Driving Charge

The Napanee OPP charged a 23 yr old with an international driver’s license with stunt driving on Thursday night.

The driver was reported in a Jeep Grand Cherokee and seen driving erratically on the 401 when police paced the car at 170 km / hr.

The driver was subsequently charged with stunt driving, his rental car from Huntsville car dealership was seized and his driver’s license suspended for a week alone with several other minor charges.

Fatal Fire

Belleville Police are investigating after a man’s body was found inside a house destroyed by fire in a rural part of the city.

The blaze began in a residence early Friday morning and another fire started in a garage across the street.

There were social media reports about a shooting at the beginning of the incident, but police say they weren’t involved in any exchange of gunfire and they haven’t confirmed that a shot or shots were fired.

The Fire Marshal’s Office has been called in to help the Belleville Fire Department investigate the cause of the blaze.  (Canadian Press)

ATV Collision

Two serious yet separate ATV collisions in North Frontenac resulted in three women in hospital over the weekend.

one ambulance from the Frontenac Paramedic Service and two from Lennox & Addington Ambulance Service responded to calls of separate collisions near Ompah on Saturday afternoon!

One female was taken from the scene in serious condition to Ompah where she was met by an Ornge air ambulance and transported to hospital while the other 2 victims were taken to hospital in moderate condition.

No further details have been released at this time.

Kingston Transit- Students

Free transportation for Local secondary school students could continue for three more years if the motion is passed at city council tomorrow night.

The Limestone District School Board (LDSB) and Algonquin & Lakeshore Catholic District School Board (ALCDSB) have agreed to contribute a combined total of $60,000 To help with the costs.

The program which started in June of 2012 allows any student receiving a secondary school education to receive a special student transit pass.

City Staff are projecting that in the next school year, there will be 500,000 trips by students in the Kingston area.

Jane’s Walks – Kingston

Have you ever wondered if your neighbourhood had a story to tell? Starting this weekend you will have the opportunity to learn more about Kingston and it’s neighbourhood’s with The Jane’s Walks.

Jane’s Walks are free walking tours of neighbourhood’s organized by area associations and historians and are an international phenomenon started by Jane Jacobs, a journalist, author and activist

Some neighbourhood’s with organized walks include; Barriefield, the Inner Harbour, Portsmouth, Sydenham and Williamsville, with organizers saying they are more than just historical walking tours with varied approaches, length and subjects!

A full list of the Kingston walks, which will be on Saturday and Sunday and their descriptions can be found at janeswalk.org/canada/kingston.

Break and Enter – Amherstview

Loyalist OPP are investigating a break and enter in Amherstview.

Early Sunday, April 24th surveillance footage showed 2 suspects entering a storage locker facility for several hours before they left  with a large amount of property including electronics and jewelry.

Both suspects are described as white males, between 25 and 30 years old, between five-foot-10 and six feet tall and wearing dark-coloured bandanas over their faces.

Anyone with information is asked to contact the Loyalist OPP or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 or report anonymously online at tipsubmit.com
PROVINCIAL

Hydro Rates

Hydro rates went up across the province yesterday — increasing for the peak period to 18 cents per kilowatt hour.

The Ontario Energy Board said the hike was necessary due to lower-than-expected electricity usage over the winter.

The Progressive Conservative Party says in a release that the hike will cost the average ratepayer an additional 37 dollars a year.

The release claims that Ontario’s energy rates are rising at a faster rate than any other jurisdiction in North America.

P-C Energy Critic John Yakabuski says in the release that only in Ontario could this happen — that if you use too much power, rates go up and if you conserve energy, rates still go up.  (The Canadian Press)

Ontario -Traffic Tickets

Ontario has scrapped a proposal to have people pay traffic tickets online or dispute them outside of court.

The Liberal government last year proposed dealing with Provincial Offences Act matters like traffic and minor bylaw tickets through a civil system rather than in the criminal courts.

Known as administrative monetary penalties, a driver caught speeding would be assessed a financial penalty without a court hearing and if they wanted to dispute it, the matter would go to a hearing officer.

The idea was lauded by supporters as a move that could save court time and costs, but was decried by opponents as taking away people’s right to their day in court. (The Canadian Press)

NATIONAL

Census Start

The mandatory, long-form census returns today, as Statistics Canada begins mailing out the surveys.

Over the next eight days, more than 15 million households will receive census letters that will need to be filled out by hand or online.

Every home will receive a short-form questionnaire, while one in every four will receive the long-form census.

Duffy Returns

After being cleared last month of the 31 charges he faced in the Senate expenses scandal, Senator Mike Duffy is expected to make his return to the upper chamber this week where he’ll sit as an independent.

The Senate, meantime, continues to grapple with the fallout from the Duffy affair.

Two senators still face trial and a third is waiting for possible charges.

Seven former senators could also be taken to court in an effort to force them to return 528-thousand dollars in expenses that the auditor general found were improperly claimed. (Canadian Press)

US Vote 2016 – Indiana Preview

The U-S presidential candidates are getting ready for tomorrow’s primary in Indiana.

Democrat Hillary Clinton and Republican Donald Trump have substantial leads over their rivals, but the underdogs are making it clear they have no plans to quit.

Democrat Bernie Sanders is holding on to the unlikely prospect that superdelegates now committed to Clinton will support him.

Republican contenders John Kasich and Ted Cruz both say they’re not giving up either — despite Donald Trump’s assertions that they don’t have any chance of winning the G-O-P nomination. (Canadian Press)