Latest news with #Joyal
Calgary Herald
28-05-2025
- Politics
- Calgary Herald
Calgary lawyer John Carpay tells disciplinary hearing his decision to spy on Manitoba judge was 'grave error'
Spying on a Manitoba judge who was presiding over a COVID-related case was 'foolhardy, misguided, inappropriate and stupid,' a Calgary lawyer told a disciplinary hearing Wednesday, calling his behaviour a 'grave error in judgment.' Article content Article content But John Carpay, the founder and president of the Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms, testified he still believes his criminal prosecution in the case was wrong and 'politically motivated.' Article content Article content Carpay told his lawyer, Alain Hepner, he was exonerated when the prosecution dropped criminal allegations when he agreed to a three-year peace bond prohibiting him from practicing law. Article content Article content The lawyer is facing sanctions by the Law Society of Alberta over his conduct in hiring a private investigator in a bid to catch Manitoba Court of King's Bench Chief Justice Glenn Joyal breaking COVID rules during pandemic lockdowns. Article content Carpay also had his investigator follow then-Manitoba premier Brian Pallister and the province's chief medical officer of health. At the time Joyal was presiding over a challenge by the Gateway Bible Baptist Church and other Manitoba churches to the constitutionality of the COVID-19 rules imposed by that province's government. Article content Carpay denied a suggestion by Law Society of Alberta prosecutor Karl Seidenz that had his private investigator been able to obtain photographs or videos of Joyal breaking the rules, he would have released them to expose the judge as a hypocrite, as he would with the premier or chief health officer. Article content Article content 'In the case of the chief judge I would have released photos only after the final conclusion of all litigation proceedings, there's no way I would have released that prior to the release of the judgment,' Carpay said. Article content 'It's about accountability for government officials, It's not about embarrassment or hypocrisy per se, although those could be constituent elements that play into the bigger issue, which is accountability.' Article content Carpay, and lawyer Jay Cameron, are before a three-member Law Society of Alberta panel after having been found to have breached their professional code of conduct by spying on Joyal. Article content Carpay told Hepner his organization, which assists groups making constitutional challenges, had taken on the Gateway case to fight the pandemic-related lockdowns.
Yahoo
07-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Pinellas County 911 center adds live stream video technology for emergency calls
The Brief The Pinellas County Regional 911 Communications Center has added live-stream video technology for emergency calls. It allows callers to live stream video to 911 operators, and Pinellas County is one of the first in the Tampa Bay Area to use it. The caller or 911 operator can also hide the video from the 911 app so it will still record, but won't show up on the phone's screen. ST. PETERSBURG, Fla - The Pinellas County Regional 911 Communications Center recently introduced a video to 911 technology that they say transforms how they respond to emergencies. It allows callers to live stream video to 911 operators, and Pinellas County is one of the first in the Tampa Bay Area to use it. What they're saying "If we find it useful or we need some video, we can send you a link," Ted Joyal, a 911 Operations Supervisor, said. "Once you click on that link, it'll ask you to agree to share your location, which is a huge piece of information that we need from everybody, as well as to start streaming the video." The Pinellas County Regional 911 Communications Center has added live-stream video technology for emergency calls. They've used it for calls that involve CPR to help coach the caller through the life-saving technique, and calls that involve estimating the severity of a situation, like fires. The technology can also be used to help law enforcement on the evidence side of things too. When the video ends, they also retain the records in case they're needed for review, quality assurance, evidence or other reasons. "Often, you can fully appreciate what's occurring when you have a visual aspect of it as opposed to just the audio," James Fogarty, Bureau Director at Pinellas County Safety and Emergency Services, said. Big picture view The Pinellas County Regional 911 Communications Center launched the technology in September, and Joyal said it was vital during last year's hurricanes. "We were able to get eyes on somebody who was stuck in their house as it caught fire while there was a flood outside, and we were able to kind of triage and give them instructions on how to make themselves safe," Joyal said. When the conditions made it hard or prevented first responders from getting to emergencies, 911 operators used the video to 911 tool to talk callers through situations. They also used it to help first responders prioritize rescues with more than 600 calls coming in per hour for both storms. "I want to emphasize not so much the technology, because the technology is impressive, but the skills of the call takers," Fogarty said. "There's a situation during the storm (Hurricane Helene) there was a caller that was trapped out on Howard Franklin Bridge, and with all of that technology, it really took the call-takers' talent to talk that person through at least six life-threatening situations that occurred from the initial car crash, to the car being pinned up against the jersey barrier on the bridge, to the water washing the person out," Fogarty said. Joyal said they've also used it several times to help find missing people by sending the link to the person's phone. The Pinellas County Regional 911 Communications Center has added live-stream video technology for emergency calls. "When you call 911, we get your location right away," he said. "Because you dial 911, it activates those features on your phone. But if you don't call 911, or you never called at all, we can't find you. We're able to push this link out to your phone number, and you can click share my location, and we can find you, so we were able to find an autistic child that was in crisis and their parents couldn't find them. We were able push the link out, and we were able to locate them. They agreed to share their location, and we found them using this technology," he said. Joyal said the new app, combined with the texting 911 feature that has existed for a few years, allows callers to get help without a suspect finding out. Along with the video platform, the text 911 feature now lets the 911 operator communicate with the caller in more ways. "Let's say you call 911 and hang up. I wouldn't be able to send you a text initially because you didn't text 911. Now, I can send you text and still continue that conversation even after you've hung up. If you feel like you're not safe by staying on the phone, we can still communicate via text," Joyal said. The caller or 911 operator can also hide the video from the 911 app so it will still record, but won't show up on the phone's screen. READ: Pinellas leaders to weigh plan for $813M in hurricane relief funds "It has been a very beneficial tool. Even if it's just one life that we save using it, it's going to make a huge difference in that person's family, in that person's life. So, we've already seen a big return on investment on this product," Joyal said. The caller can also request that the 911 operator sends them the link if they believe they have valuable images or videos to share. Joyal also stressed the importance of having your location services turned on overall. "Even if you call 911, we're not able to find you unless you have your location services turned on. So, that's a big piece of information people need to know is to have their location services turned on so we can find them instantly. If that's turned on, I can see where you are within a couple feet and get people to you very quickly," Joyal said. What's next Joyal said they're evaluating and watching the technology's other applications develop, like the ability to send live video to first responders on the road. CLICK HERE:>>>Follow FOX 13 on YouTube The Source Information for this story was gathered by FOX 13's Kailey Tracy. STAY CONNECTED WITH FOX 13 TAMPA:
Yahoo
10-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Dover leader: Police social worker program at risk if federal funds are cut
DOVER — The city Police Department's social worker program could be in jeopardy if federal funding cuts by the Trump administration are enacted, according to City Manager Michael Joyal. Joyal and Police Chief William Breault have said the program has been successful in aiding service-related calls for mental health or substance abuse. The program is federally funded by a $331,699 Partnership for Success grant. It is expected to be reimbursed, said Joyal, but he said there is now uncertainty about which grants will be received. Previous story: How Dover police social workers put helping people in need first The Trump administration has established the Department of Government Efficiency, led by billionaire Elon Musk, to make large cuts to government spending. Dover is expecting to receive more than $14.6 million in federal funding for various projects and expenses, according to Joyal. Approximately $4.6 million has been received so far. "(The police social work) program has made a significant difference in the ability of our police department to appropriately respond to the many calls for service they receive that require follow-up and referrals to various social services, which in turn has reduced the number of unnecessary calls for service by having trained and dedicated social workers follow-up on and address underlying service needs," Joyal said. More: Dover teen suicide prevention program faces federal funding freeze threat If the city were to lose federal funding, it would affect the city's hiring ability, said Joyal. He's also concerned how the loss of federal funds would impact Dover taxpayers. "I am concerned about the potential impact it could have on Dover residents and taxpayers, especially if they are related to program that will ultimately fall back on local communities to provide absent federal funding," said Joyal in an email. "Departments have been instructed and have been attempting to maintain close contacts with their federal counterparts to ensure we have the latest information. However, we have found that the federal officials themselves are often just as uncertain and are also receiving conflicting information from various sources and changes in directives almost daily." Community Development Block Grants support numerous social services in the city, from Meals on Wheels to Cornerstone VNA, to the My Friends Place shelter for unhoused people. The community grant is intended to support community development initiatives, specifically as they relate to economic development, revitalizing neighborhoods and supplying community services for lower-income residents. The city has been awarded $328,230 for this year. Betsey Andrews Parker, chief executive officer of Community Action Partnership of Strafford County, wrote a warning letter to Dover leaders. She is concerned about a potential federal government shutdown if U.S. Congress doesn't pass legislation to avoid it by March 14. "The Continuing Resolution (CR), federal budget discussion and threat of a shutdown may result in a temporary and/or permanent reduction in funding impacting program delivery," Andrews Parker wrote. "We will know more as the situation unfolds in Washington. We are reaching out to municipal partners to let them know that a disruption in services may occur." The continuing resolution would keep 2024's level of funding throughout the rest of fiscal year 2025, in an effort to prevent a government shutdown. Parker's agency serves the county. In her letter to Dover, she broke down the more than $500,000 in support services provided to the city: $355,959 in fuel assistance to 759 households. $128,387 in housing, homeless prevention and rental support to 128 households. $83,100 in food pantry programs to 669 households. This article originally appeared on Fosters Daily Democrat: Dover leader: Police social workers at risk if federal funds are cut
CBC
25-02-2025
- Business
- CBC
Manitoba's craft brewers hazy and a little bitter over U.S. tariff threats and potential impacts
Social Sharing The U.S. tariff threat on aluminum is brewing up concerns for some Manitoba craft beer makers, who say a small increase in prices could make a big impact on already-slim profit margins. "In manufacturing, it's all about the cents. It's all about the efficiencies — margins are really, really tight," said Kevin Selch, founder of Winnipeg-based Little Brown Jug Brewing Co. If the prices increase for the supply of their aluminum cans, most brewers say they will try to absorb it for a while to avoid passing it on to customers in the price of their beers. "Everybody's dealt with inflation, I don't think there's a lot of appetite from consumers or from anybody to see more of it," Selch said. Tyler Birch, founder of Winnipeg's Barn Hammer Brewing Co., echoed those remarks. "We'll probably eat that cost for as long as we possibly can," he said. The foaming question is, how long? "For some small breweries, that could be devastating," said Perry Joyal, head brewer and operations manager at Winnipeg's Torque Brewing. If tariff-boosted input costs last too long, a business might have to finally raise prices and risk a drop in sales that could also thump profits. "It would be a shame to see anybody go out of business because of this," Joyal said. At the moment, U.S. President Donald Trump is threatening two actions: a worldwide tariff of 25 per cent on steel and aluminum starting March 12, and it has also paused, until March 4, the threat of an economy-wide 25 per cent tariff on Canada and Mexico while it works on border-security deals with both countries. Canada makes a lot of aluminum but the supply chain sends it to the U.S. where it is rolled and then shipped back to Canada as cans. There are no domestic can producers, according to the Manitoba Brewers Association, so there's few options when facing a twist in the supply chain. There are 26 physical breweries in Manitoba and another 12 contract breweries that share equipment with one of the 26. Large brewing companies will also be impacted in some way, but to a lesser degree because they have the market share to force suppliers to keep prices a little lower, said Selch. Smaller brewers don't have that luxury. "We're price takers," said Selch, who estimates he orders about 1.3 million cans annually. The last time there was an aluminum tariff, in 2018, it was 10 per cent and the price of cans went from about 10 cents to 40 cents, according to Joyal. Cans now are about 20 cents each, and he worries they could jump to 50 cents. At present, it costs Torque $30,000 to $35,000 per shipment of 155,000 cans, which can last a few months, or less in summer when demand is higher. Torque is in a "wait-and-see" situation but will have to make a decision soon on whether to order more cans before they even need them, Joyal said. "It's a large investment, on the scale that we're dealing with, to bring a lot of cans in all at once. So we have to make sure that's a smart move financially," he said. "Do we want to jump the gun?" The brewers association met last week to consider the options, such as pooling costs and bringing in as many cans as possible now and then figure out later how to distribute them, Joyal said. "Everybody's in the same boat, so everyone's thinking, 'hey, what can we do to help our industry?' It's not everybody out for themselves." Some moves, though, can result in different expenses, Selch said. For instance, if you stock up on cans but don't have space to store them, you'll end up paying for space at a warehouse. "It creates uncertainty for the business … in terms of where you're going to invest in," he said about the threats. Selch was looking at possibly expanding his business by tapping into the Minnesota and Wisconsin markets this year "but that's definitely on hold for now." Instead, he's going to look for opportunities to grow his business across Canada. But for that to happen, something has to be done interprovincial trade barriers to open up domestic trade, said Selch, who is chair of the board for the Winnipeg Chamber of Commerce. Many Manitobans have cottages in Kenora, just over the border in Ontario, but they have to buy their Manitoba craft beers before they head to the lake. They're not readily available across the border. Although Manitoba is open to other Canadian brewers selling their products in the province, Ontario is less welcoming, Selch said. It's possible, but the barriers make it difficult and costly, he said. Manitoba, however, has work to do as well, Selch said. The markups — taxes applied before locally-brewed beer even gets into stores — are twice those in Ontario and B.C., and eight times higher than Alberta. Reducing those would lower costs and allow local brewers to more easily invest in equipment and grow their business, Selch said. For his part, Birch — who also owns Mammoth Canning, a mobile canning company contracted by several other local breweries — is calling Trump's bluff and not getting overly worried. "I just don't think it's going to happen, to be honest. I think it's just bluster and trying to scare everyone," he said. The Trump administration was elected on a promise to reduce costs "and the first things they're going to do is increase the costs of everything by 25 per cent?" Birch said. "I think there's going to be a big problem if that happens."
