Vaughn in Victoria: May 2
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Vancouver Sun editor-in-chief Harold Munro speaks to Vancouver Sun political columnist Vaughn Palmer about the aftermath of the Lapu Lapu Day tragedy and where B.C. goes from here in dealing with the province's mental health crisis.
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Vancouver Sun
06-06-2025
- Vancouver Sun
Vancouver Sun honoured with Michener citation of merit
The Vancouver Sun received a Michener citation of merit for the work of longtime Postmedia journalist Lori Culbert on the circumstances around the overdose death of a University of Victoria student. The Sun was nominated for Culbert's relentless reporting on Sidney McIntyre-Starko, who collapsed in a UVic dorm in January 2024 and did not receive life-saving medical care after he overdose was mistaken for a seizure by the 911 call-taker and first aid attendants at the scene. It was one of six nominations honoured at a ceremony hosted by Governor General Mary Simon at Rideau Hall in Ottawa on Thursday. Start your day with a roundup of B.C.-focused news and opinion. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder. The next issue of Sunrise will soon be in your inbox. Please try again Interested in more newsletters? Browse here. La Presse was named the winner of this year's Michener Award for its stories exposing abuse, dysfunction and systemic failures in Quebec's youth protection system. Other finalists included Global News, The Toronto Star and The Globe and Mail, which had two entries. Established in 1970 by then Governor General Roland Michener, the Michener Award recognizes excellence in public service journalism. At Rideau Hall, Culbert thanked McIntyre-Starko's family including her mother Caroline McIntyre, an emergency room physician, for 'their incredible courage' in fighting for change. Just hours after Culbert's story was published in May 2024, the province called for an inquest into the student's death. Since then, a number of changes have been introduced, such as providing provide 1,600 new nasal naloxone kits in dorms , bars and other high-traffic buildings around the province. Campus first responders and 911 responders received updated training on handling overdoses. High school students across the province now also receive CPR training. An inquest also unfolded over 12 days in April and May this year, with a number of recommendations made to prevent similar deaths. This was Culbert's fourth time being named a Michener finalist. She was a co-author on three previous Vancouver Sun projects that were nominated for a Michener Award. A series of stories about the disappearance of women from the Downtown Eastside received an honourable mention in 2002. A series about B.C.'s child-protection system received a citation of merit in 2006, as did a series about children who age out of the foster care system in 2015. • Day 1: UVic student's mother takes stand on Day 1 of her coroner's inquest • Day 2: UVic student contradicts campus security evidence at coroner's inquest • Day 3: UVic security officer defends actions on day of student overdose death • Day 4: We 'did the best we could': Second UVic security guard testifies about evening student died • Day 5: 911 operator relied on what witness described as seizures of UVic students, coroner's inquest hears • Day 6: Paramedic suspected fatal UVic call was more serious than 911 report • Day 7: Drugs found by UVic students like something out of 'a Scarface movie,' police tell coroner's inquest • Day 8: U.S. doctor tells inquest B.C. 911 operators don't use best approach to cardiac-arrest calls • Day 9: After death of UVic student, changes aim to trim delays in getting paramedics to patients • Day 10: B.C.'s 911 system needs major changes, emergency care expert says • Day 11: U.S. firm that made B.C. Ambulance's 911 dispatch system told how to fix it • Day 12: B.C. coroner's jury deliberating changes to ambulance, education systems
CBC
04-06-2025
- CBC
Victims' families weren't consulted before city vote on Lapu-Lapu Day memorial event, group says
Vancouver city council has voted unanimously in favour of a motion to hold a memorial event this month for victims of the Lapu-Lapu Day festival tragedy that left 11 people dead and many others injured. And while the group that organized the festival, Filipino B.C., say they understand the city's intentions, they're concerned the families of victims were not consulted on the event prior to the decision. The motion, which was not originally part of council's agenda for Tuesday afternoon, was put forward by Coun. Sarah Kirby-Yung, who cited Filipino Heritage Month for the urgency. "It is fitting to host this event in the month of June, which is the intention, hence the time sensitivity around the request to council today," she said during the meeting. She also cited the need to finalize costs, including setting aside $50,000 for potential overruns and charging a "nominal ticket fee," with remaining funds to be donated to the Filipino community. Contracts, she said, would be with Canucks Sports & Entertainment, which she said "generously offered" Rogers Arena and staff for free, and TicketMaster, which she said would be waiving fees. Several councillors initially expressed reluctance, saying while they were not opposed to holding a memorial, they wanted to first consult with members of the communities who were impacted by the tragedy. They suggested deferring the decision to the following day. Kirby-Yung concluded by saying the city had engaged with community organizations about a memorial event, including with MLA Mable Elmore, who became B.C's first MLA of Filipino heritage in 2009 and has been an outspoken advocate for the community. "I have every confidence, as was referenced in the different community groups that were involved in the conversations, that this [event] is with the community, for the community and by the community, and the city is simply trying to support that," Kirby-Yung said. Later that evening, after the motion passed, Filipino B.C. said in a statement that they were "not notified about the urgent motion that Vancouver City Hall voted on." They said the city had recently informed them it would be hosting "a large scale event in June," and that while Filipino B.C. has been supporting families of victims with financial aid and other services, they have not consulted them about a memorial event specifically. "We are in regular contact with the City of Vancouver, but Filipino B.C. does not sit on the community steering for the memorial event," the statement reads. The organization is urging the city to centre the families of victims in its planning of the memorial. "There is space and need for both intimate, community-led events and a broader large-scale tribute to encourage wider collective healing. However, the timing, tone and format of such an event should be aligned with victims and the communities impacted," the statement reads.
CBC
30-05-2025
- CBC
Lapu-Lapu murder suspect to face trial on mental fitness
Social Sharing Kai-Ji Adam Lo, the suspect in the Vancouver street festival tragedy that left 11 people dead and dozens injured, will face a two-day trial later this summer to determine if he is mentally fit to stand trial for murder. Mark Swartz, Lo's lawyer, requested the trial at a hearing Friday in Vancouver Provincial Court to confirm an in-custody mental health assessment has been completed. The mental fitness trial will be scheduled to run for two days, likely in July, under presiding Judge Reginald Harris. Lo will be required to attend in person. Lo is accused of driving his SUV through a crowd of people at the Filipino community's Lapu-Lapu Day street festival on April 26. He is charged with eight counts of second-degree murder. A five-year-old girl, eight women and two men were killed in the car-ramming. Lo appeared in court Friday via video from where he is being held. He had unruly hair, a thin mustache and was wearing a black sweatshirt. Crown prosecutor Michaela Donnelly requested an updated psychological report be done in the weeks before the mental fitness trial. Harris agreed, stating that in his experience in similar type cases that mental health can change and evolve "dramatically." Some details revealed in Lo's court proceedings so far are under a publication ban and Swartz indicated he will be asking for a similar ban on evidence brought at the trial. Harris said he is required to balance the open court system and the right of media to inform the public versus the possibility of tainting a future jury in a murder trial — if the case comes to that — and preserving Lo's charter right to a fair trial.
