Smokey Robinson sues former housekeepers for defamation over rape allegations
Smokey Robinson attends the screening for "The Apollo" during the 2019 Tribeca Film Festival on April 24, 2019, in New York. (Photo by Charles Sykes/Invision/AP, File)
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Globe and Mail
20 minutes ago
- Globe and Mail
The tightening of Canada's asylum laws was an inevitability
Michael Barutciski is a professor at York University's Glendon School of Public and International Affairs, as well as a senior fellow at the Macdonald-Laurier Institute. The first substantive legislative initiative from Mark Carney's government, Bill C-2, has passed through first reading in the House of Commons. Its short title, the Strong Borders Act, makes explicit the public messaging that underlies the sweeping and multifaceted legislative amendments being proposed. While the bill provides law enforcement with various powers regarding issues such as fentanyl and financial crime, it also addresses immigration-related irritants with the U.S. Concerns have been raised that it includes measures which would restrict asylum claims. But the lax practices of recent years may have left Canadians unaware of the fundamental dilemmas concerning the country's asylum situation, and of the reality that changes to the system were inevitable. The federal government is now proposing new measures that will ultimately make Canada less of an outlier compared to other Western democracies, and beyond the advocates defending the untenable status quo, it should be clear to most Canadians that the asylum system needs to be tightened. Bill C-2 signals that Ottawa is taking the issue seriously. Monthly asylum claims in Canada remain unsustainably high, with nearly 11,000 new claims in April, mostly in Quebec and Ontario; these numbers also come before the summer months, when claims tend to peak. These latest statistics reveal that many claimants are entering at official land border crossings under exceptions to the Safe Third Country Agreement (STCA), the responsibility-sharing treaty with the U.S. that is intended to prevent asylum shopping by obliging migrants to claim protection in the first country they enter. These exceptions will eventually need to be reconsidered. At the same time, there are many migrants unlawfully present in Canada; a CIBC report suggests the number might be around one million people. Many more visas granted to temporary residents are set to expire soon, and many, including foreign students, may seek asylum in a desperate bid to prolong their stay. The administrative tribunal that examines asylum claims, the Immigration and Refugee Board (IRB), is already overwhelmed by historic backlogs, and current trends suggest pressure will only increase. Part 9 of Bill C-2 addresses an exception in the STCA that allowed asylum seekers to avoid being returned to the U.S. if they enter between official land border crossings and are not detected by Canadian authorities for 14 days. It was an incoherent provision that contradicted the objectives of the STCA and mainly signalled that the authorities did not want to spend a prolonged period tracking down migrants. The bill will make asylum seekers who evade authorities for two weeks ineligible to make an asylum claim, and if it is safe to do so, they should generally be sent back to their home country. Part 9 also makes migrants ineligible for asylum if these claims are made 'more than one year after the day of their entry.' This is the Carney government's initial response to the potential crisis that could emerge if even more visa overstayers try to prolong their stay through asylum. Opinion: Canada has become an immigration irritant for the U.S. Opinion: Trump's policies will send asylum seekers to Canada's border. What's our plan? This is a reasonable response that partially harmonizes the Canadian system with the U.S. system. As controversial as this may seem to some, harmonization is the only way Western countries such as Canada will be able to bring migration under control. Democratic governments are continuing to bleed support because they are unable to assuage populations that are justifiably anxious about uncontrolled migration; the Netherlands is just the latest example. Whether the asylum-related provisions in Bill C-2 become the law of the land will ultimately show how serious the new Liberal government is in correcting immigration policy mistakes made by and acknowledged by the previous prime minister and then-immigration minister. Yet it is one thing to amend laws to restore Canada's seriousness on the immigration file; it is another to actually enforce them. If Ottawa cannot incentivize the large population of overstayers to leave by themselves, it will need to enforce its own laws, potentially with large-scale removals of foreigners who are unlawfully present in Canada. The government could propose a humane yet realistic carrot-and-stick approach involving financial aid to help migrants return home combined with future eligibility for legal residence if they do return. Even assuming the government can resolve this dilemma, it will then have to propose new amendments to address the unmanageable backlogs that remain for the country's largest administrative tribunal. Indeed, the gravity of the challenge is illustrated by the fact that the IRB had already seen both its operating budget and number of employees more than double between 2015 and 2023. Deep reform of Canada's asylum law will have to come sooner rather than later. Bill C-2 is a solid start.
CBC
21 minutes ago
- CBC
Sean (Diddy) Combs held Cassie's friend over 17th-floor balcony railing, trial hears
Social Sharing WARNING: This story contains allegations of assault and sexual violence and may affect those who have experienced it or know someone affected by it. A 33-year-old woman says hip-hop mogul Sean (Diddy) Combs held her over a 17th-floor apartment balcony and that she sometimes screamed in her sleep after the ordeal. Bryana Bongolan, a friend of Sean (Diddy) Combs's ex-girlfriend and accuser, R&B singer Cassie, said the 2016 assault at Cassie's Los Angeles apartment caused a bruise on the back of her leg, along with back and neck pain. It also left her emotionally scarred, she told the jury. "I have night terrors and paranoia, and I would scream in my sleep sometimes," said Bongolan, a creative and marketing director who runs her own art agency. Her testimony came in the fourth week of evidence presented by prosecutors as they seek to prove that Combs oversaw a racketeering organization composed of his employees and associates as he physically and sexually abused women for two decades. Combs, 55, has pleaded not guilty to racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking and other charges that, if convicted, could send him to prison for 15 years to life. Bongolan is the latest woman to testify that Combs acted violently toward her and Cassie, whose real name is Casandra Ventura. Rapper Kid Cudi testifies against Sean (Diddy) Combs 13 days ago Duration 1:54 'I was scared to fall' Bongolan, recalling the attack, said Combs barged into Cassie's apartment, lifted her up and put her on the railing. She said she feared that she would plummet to her death as she pushed back against Combs. "I was scared to fall," she said. Combs was yelling at her throughout the ordeal, Bongolan said, estimating he held her over the railing for 10 to 15 seconds. She testified that Combs then threw her onto balcony furniture. Adrenalin helped her power through the ordeal, Bongolan said, recalling getting up immediately after being thrown down. Bongolan said Cassie, who was sleeping in the bedroom, then came out and asked Combs: "Did you just hang her over the balcony?" Told that Bongolan's ex-girlfriend was also in the apartment, Combs swiftly left, Bongolan said. Cassie, who already testified for four days about the abuse she incurred, previously told the court that she saw Combs bring one of her friends back over the railing of a balcony at her apartment in the early morning. She said she was asleep in her room when she awoke to the episode. "I saw him bring her back over the railing of the balcony and then throw her onto the patio furniture," Cassie testified. Bongolan said she has lasting effects from Combs assaulting her. "I have nightmares and I have a lot of paranoia, and I used to scream a lot in my sleep, but it's dissipated a little bit," she testified. Part of her paranoia, she said, includes opening doors carefully and peeking into rooms before going inside, and she added that she had a nightmare as recently as a few days ago. Bongolan said Combs gave her drugs on three or four occasions, including ecstasy, cocaine, ketamine and G, a substance she understood was the depressant GHB. She said she also did drugs about once a week with Cassie when Combs wasn't around. Testifying in response to a subpoena from prosecutors, Bongolan was granted immunity after she initially said she would refuse to answer questions and invoke her Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination. She was at least the third witness given immunity to testify. WATCH | Renowned lawyer Gloria Allred breaks down what's happening in Diddy trial: CBC News Aarti Pole speaks with Gloria Allred about the Sean (Diddy) Combs trial 14 days ago Duration 7:43 Get the latest on the CBC News App, and CBC News Network for breaking news and analysis. Combs feared video of Cassie assault would 'ruin career' The court also heard this week that Combs paid a hotel security officer to hand over surveillance footage that showed him violently attacking Cassie in a hallway. Eddy Garcia, who had worked at an InterContinental hotel, testified on Tuesday that Combs contacted him shortly after the incident and asked for the footage. Combs said he would "take care" of Garcia if he gave him the video, Garcia said. Jurors had previously been shown a March 2016 surveillance video from the hallway of the InterContinental hotel in Los Angeles where Combs, wearing only a towel, threw Cassie to the ground, kicked her and dragged her away. Cassie said the incident occurred after Combs had given her a black eye during a "freak-off." Federal prosecutors in Manhattan say Combs, over two decades, coerced women, including Cassie, to take part in drug-fuelled sexual performances with male sex workers that he referred to as "freak-offs." "He was concerned that this video would get out and that it would ruin his career," said Garcia, who was granted immunity from prosecution to testify. Garcia said he relayed Combs's message about the video to his boss, who told him he would give Combs the video in exchange for $50,000. The next day, Garcia testified, he saw his boss enter the room that hosted servers for the surveillance cameras. He said his boss gave him a USB drive, which he gave to Combs, who later returned with a brown bag and a money counter. Garcia said Combs ran cash from the bag through the counter, which displayed $100,000, returned the money to the bag, and handed the bag to him. Combs's lawyers have acknowledged he was at times abusive in domestic relationships but argue that women who took part in "freak-offs" did so consensually. Prosecutors say bribery is among the racketeering acts that Combs or his employees undertook in order to facilitate "freak-offs" and prevent word of his abuse from getting out. WATCH | Cassie tells court Combs locked her into a life of physical abuse: R&B singer Cassie testifies Sean (Diddy) Combs threatened to release sex videos 21 days ago Duration 2:01 WARNING: This video may affect those who have experienced sexual violence or know someone affected by it. | Cassie, the R&B singer whose legal name is Casandra Ventura, testified for a second day at her ex-boyfriend Sean (Diddy) Combs's sex trafficking trial on Wednesday, saying the music mogul locked her into a life of physical abuse by threatening to release degrading sexual videos of her.
CTV News
34 minutes ago
- CTV News
U.S. judge issues order stopping the deportation of family of man charged in Boulder firebombing
Bouquets of flowers are placed in a makeshift memorial for victims of an attack outside a courthouse in Boulder, Colo., on June 3, 2025. (David Zalubowski / AP Photo) A federal judge issued an order Wednesday to prevent the deportation of the wife and five children of an Egyptian man charged in the firebombing attack in Boulder, Colo. U.S. District Judge Gordon P. Gallagher granted a request from the family of Mohamed Sabry Soliman to halt deportation proceedings of his wife and five children who were taken into federal custody Tuesday by U.S. immigration officials. The family members have not been charged in the attack on a group demonstrating for the release of Israeli hostages in Gaza. Soliman faces federal hate crime charges and state charges of attempted murder in the Sunday attack in downtown Boulder. U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem said Wednesday that they are being processed for removal proceedings. It's rare that family members of a person accused of a crime are detained and threatened with deportation. Soliman's wife, 18-year-old daughter, two minor sons and two minor daughters all are Egyptian citizens, the Department of Homeland Security said in a statement. 'We are investigating to what extent his family knew about this heinous attack, if they had knowledge of it, or if they provided support to it,' Noem said in a statement. Noem also said federal authorities will immediately crack down on people who overstay their visas in response to the Boulder attack. Soliman told authorities that no one, including his family, knew about his planned attack, according to court documents that, at times, spelled his name as 'Mohammed.' Earlier Wednesday, authorities raised the number of victims in the attack from 12 to 15, plus a dog. Boulder County officials who provided the update said in a news release that the victims include eight women and seven men ranging in age from 25 to 88. The Associated Press on Wednesday sent an email to prosecutors seeking more details on the newly identified victims and the dog. Mohamed Sabry Soliman, 45, had planned to kill all of the roughly 20 participants in Sunday's demonstration at the popular Pearl Street pedestrian mall, but he threw just two of his 18 Molotov cocktails while yelling 'Free Palestine,' police said. Soliman, an Egyptian man who federal authorities say has been living in the U.S. illegally, didn't carry out his full plan 'because he got scared and had never hurt anyone before,' police wrote in an affidavit. According to an FBI affidavit, Soliman told police he was driven by a desire 'to kill all Zionist people' — a reference to the movement to establish and protect a Jewish state in Israel. Authorities said he expressed no remorse about the attack. A vigil is scheduled for Wednesday evening at the local Jewish community center. Defendant's immigration status Soliman was born in el-Motamedia, an Egyptian farming village in the Nile Delta province of Gharbia, about 120 kilometers (75 miles) north of Cairo, according to an Egyptian security official who spoke on the condition of anonymity because he wasn't authorized to talk to the media. Before moving to Colorado Springs three years ago, Soliman spent 17 years in Kuwait, according to court documents. Soliman arrived in the U.S. in August 2022 on a tourist visa that expired in February 2023, Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a post on X. She said Soliman filed for asylum in September 2022 and was granted a work authorization in March 2023, but that has also expired. Hundreds of thousands of people overstay their visas each year in the United States, according to Department of Homeland Security reports. The case against Soliman Soliman told authorities that he had been planning the attack for a year and was waiting for his daughter to graduate before carrying it out, the affidavit said. A newspaper in Colorado Springs that profiled one of Soliman's children in April noted the family's journey from Egypt to Kuwait and then to the U.S. It said after initially struggling in school, his daughter landed academic honors and volunteered at a local hospital. Soliman has been charged with a federal hate crime as well as attempted murder counts at the state level, but authorities say additional charges could come. He's being held in a county jail on a US$10 million cash bond and is scheduled to make an appearance in state court on Thursday. His attorney, Kathryn Herold, declined to comment after a state court hearing Monday. Public defenders' policy prohibits speaking to the media. Witnesses and police have said Soliman set himself on fire as he hurled the second incendiary device. Authorities said they believe Soliman acted alone. Although they did not elaborate on the nature of his injuries, a booking photo showed him with a large bandage over one ear. The attack unfolded against the backdrop of the Israel-Hamas war, which has contributed to a spike in antisemitic violence in the United States. It happened at the beginning of the Jewish holiday of Shavuot and barely a week after a man who also yelled 'Free Palestine' was charged with fatally shooting two Israeli Embassy staffers outside a Jewish museum in Washington. Six victims hospitalized The victims ranged in age from 25 to 88, and were members of the volunteer group called Run For Their Lives who were holding their weekly demonstration. No new details were released Wednesday about three victims who were sent to the UCHealth University of Colorado Hospital on the CU Anschutz Medical Campus. 'They have requested privacy to heal,' spokesperson Kelli Christensen said in an email. One of the victims was a child when her family fled the Nazis during the Holocaust, said Ginger Delgado of the Arapahoe County Sheriff's Office. Delgado is acting as a spokesperson for the family of the woman, who doesn't want her name used. Associated Press reporters Eric Tucker in Washington, Heather Hollingsworth in Kansas City, Missouri, Samy Magdy in Cairo, Sean Murphy in Oklahoma City and Hallie Golden in Seattle contributed to this report
