Latest news with #Laplante
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Conway won't appeal ruling in favor of Leavitt's Bakery mural
Conway officials will not appeal a federal judge's ruling to halt efforts to take down a bakery's colorful mural. For more than two years, the town argued the painting at Leavitt's Bakery violated the town's sign code. The mural painted by Kennett High School students depicts items sold within the bakery, such as muffins and doughnuts that were imagined as views of the White Mountains and the Mount Washington Valley. 'The town will enforce their sign ordinance going forward in compliance to the court's order,' the town said in a statement. Judge Joseph Laplante ruled that the town's effort to force the bakery's owner, Sean Young, to take down a mural of doughnut mountains painted by high school art students was 'unconstitutional.' The ruling came after a one-day bench trial on Feb. 14. Young, who filed a lawsuit to protect his First Amendment rights, has said he was glad the mural can stay. Young was represented by attorney Cooper Cargill. He also worked with attorneys with the Virginia-based Institute for Justice. The town had argued the mural was an illegal sign because it depicted something Leavitt's sells: baked goods. But if it had depicted real mountains instead, no violation would have occurred, officials said. In the ruling, Judge Laplante wrote that, though the town said it had to regulate the Leavitt's mural to maintain safety and protect the natural beauty of the town, the town allows other murals to stay up unregulated. As Laplante wrote, the town's enforcement has 'no rational connection to any of its stated interests' such as safety and beauty and is therefore unconstitutional. Town Planner Ryan O'Connor said the ordinance itself is legal, but the town needs to be careful in how it goes about its enforcement. 'We need to take caution going forward on how that happens and make sure that every decision is consistent; it is not based on content,' he said at the meeting. 'We are going to work with the lawyers to develop a check list and process going forward to make sure that it aligns with the order and ordinance as written.' The work is needed to avoid any future conflicts, O'Connor said. Town Manager John Eastman said he believes the town's sign ordinance is in 'pretty good shape.' The ruling came down to 'inconsistency with enforcement,' he said. 'It was a really narrow decision,' he said.
Global News
25-05-2025
- Health
- Global News
Stepping up for hope: Alberta man walks 10 km just 7 months after regaining ability to walk
As a young boy, Rylan Laplante was always active, playing baseball or going out to the mountains with his family to hit the slopes. But at 11 years old, tragedy struck. Due to a rare genetic condition, Laplante lost his mobility. 'Over the course of about six months, I lost the ability to walk, lost the ability to use my hands, and ultimately lost the ability to talk as well,' Laplante said. Laplante told Global News the circumstances took him to his lowest point, but thanks to what he calls 'delusional optimism,' he continued to fight to find a way to regain the ability to walk. Laplante spent more than 1,000 days at the Vi Riddel Children's Pain and Rehabilitation Clinic at the Alberta Children's Hospital in Calgary. He was told he'd never walk again 23 times by health-care experts. But after travelling to Houston for an experimental treatment, the road to recovery was paved before him. Story continues below advertisement 'What always impressed me, and still does to this day, is his determination,' said Dr. David Manning with the Group23 Sports Medicine Clinic. 'Being able to say, 'No, I know that my statistical chance is low, but I'm not willing to stop until I've tried every possible thing and be shown I can't do it!'' Manning became Laplante's doctor after he aged out of Children's Hospital. Get breaking National news For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen. Sign up for breaking National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy 'So many people said he would never walk again, it would never be possible,' said Al Laplante, Rylan's father. 'He's such a determined man, and to see him do this today is just unbelievable.' Laplante took his first step on Halloween of last year, and in the months since, he set his sights on the 10-kilometre event during the Calgary Marathon. 'I've put about six to seven months' worth of hard work,' Laplante said. 'A lot of people got me here.' Laplante wasn't breaking speed records, but he was raising funds. As of Saturday morning, he had raised more than four times his original goal. 'When I started this morning, we crossed $46,000,' Laplante said. 'The goal we set out initially was at $10,000. Ten kilometres for $10,000.' Walking with more than 20 friends and family, Laplante finished the race in under two-and-a-half hours, and as he crossed the finish line, he already had his mind fixed on his next goal. Story continues below advertisement 'The end of one finish line is the beginning of the next starting line,' Laplante chuckled. 'The Calgary Stampede is just around the corner … so I want to two-step.' Laplante said he'll be donating the funds to the Vi Riddell Pain and Rehabilitation Clinic in the coming weeks.
Indian Express
21-05-2025
- Business
- Indian Express
US town tried to take down bakery's painting of pastries, muffins. What happened next
A US court has ruled that a New Hampshire town violated the First Amendment rights of a local bakery owner by trying to force the removal of a mural depicting pastries basking in sunbeams. District Judge Joseph Laplante found that the town of Conway's enforcement of its sign ordinance against Leavitt's Country Bakery constituted an unconstitutional restriction on free speech. The mural, painted by local high school students, features a mountain range made of doughnuts, muffins, cinnamon rolls, and other baked goods. But town officials argued that because the artwork portrayed items sold inside the bakery, it functioned as advertising—and therefore violated Conway's signage restrictions. Judge Laplante disagreed. In a decision issued Monday, he noted a 'complete disconnect between what the ordinance purports to regulate and the town's enforcement, as well as the illogical way it applied and explained that enforcement' in the case of the mural. He permanently barred the town from trying to enforce the sign code against the painting. Bakery owner Sean Young, who filed the lawsuit in 2023 after being threatened with misdemeanour charges and fines, celebrated the ruling. The dispute centered on whether the mural was art or advertisement. The town's zoning board concluded that because it depicted products sold inside, the mural qualified as a sign. At 90 square feet, it exceeded the town's size limit for signage by four times. Board members said that if the painting had shown unrelated images, it would not have faced removal. Young sought only $1 in damages, underscoring what his attorney called 'a principled fight for artistic expression and community pride.' Residents of the area also weighed in. 'It's a horrible message to send to students who worked hard to do something so beautiful for the community,' said Gay Moceri, a retired English teacher from nearby Freedom, New Hampshire, as quoted by the Associated Press. The town's broad definition of a sign including 'any device, fixture, placard, structure or attachment thereto that uses colour, form, graphic, illumination, symbol, or writing to advertise, announce the purpose of, or identify the purpose of any person or entity, or to communicate information of any kind'—was criticised in court for seemingly encompassing nearly all visual expression. The case touches on deeper national debates around commercial speech, one of the most contested areas of First Amendment law. According to the Cato Institute, since the Supreme Court's 1980 ruling in Central Hudson Gas & Electric Corp. v. Public Service Commission, courts have allowed greater government control over commercial messages than political or artistic speech. This uneven protection has led to numerous legal challenges. When Chef Geoff Tracy, an award-winning restaurateur in Virginia, advertised happy hour specials using the phrase 'two-for-one,' state regulators shut it down, citing a law banning certain language despite allowing the deals themselves. Similarly, Native artist Peggy Fontenot was told by the State of Oklahoma that she couldn't market her work as 'American Indian-made' because her tribe wasn't state-recognised. As for Young, the ruling is a breath of fresh air. 'I'm thrilled that the students' artwork can remain up, I'm thrilled that my First Amendment rights have been vindicated, and I'm thrilled that the community can continue to enjoy the beautiful piece of art,' Young said in a statement. 'I think our mural is a wonderful depiction of everything that makes the Mount Washington Valley such a great place to live.'
Boston Globe
09-05-2025
- Politics
- Boston Globe
New Bedford man arrested by ICE remains detained after another judge rules against his release
Separately, Ryan Sullivan, another attorney representing Méndez, had filed a habeas petition in April arguing the legality of Méndez's detention at the Strafford County House of Corrections in Dover, N.H., where he is currently being held. In that civil case, Judge Joseph N. Laplante had previously Méndez, 29, originally from Guatemala, was violently detained in New Bedford last month by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials who broke his car window using an ax, and then pulled him and his wife, Marilu Domingo Ortiz, out of the vehicle. Advertisement Ortiz, who was granted asylum and was helping her husband adjust his immigration status, Méndez does not have a criminal record and provided his fingerprints to US Citizenship and Immigration Services in December, according to his attorneys. Still, Laplante denied the order for emergency release Friday afternoon. Sullivan said his client was heartbroken to learn he was not going home at last. Advertisement 'He's understandably upset,' Sullivan said. 'The government's playing games with his liberty, but [Méndez] is fortunate in that he's got fantastic family support.' Officials with the US Department of Homeland Security and ICE did not respond to a request for comment. Currently, Méndez has an immigration court hearing scheduled for May 15 that Judge Ostrom kept open exactly in the case of administrative hurdles like this. So far, President Trump's administration has targeted large swaths of New England's immigrant community. Over the last month, more than a hundred international students and scholars from over a dozen universities and colleges have been stripped of their visas. In New Bedford, local residents took to the streets on May 1, also known as International Workers' Day, protesting against immigration raids that have targeted and removed at least a dozen local workers, many of whom do not have criminal records. And across Massachusetts, federal immigration officials have arrested an estimated 370 people living in the US without proper documentation, with more raids expected Sullivan said the latest response from Judge Laplante is disappointing, but he will continue the fight. 'We're paving new ground here … we used to be able to rely on the government not violating the due process rights of the people within the borders of our country,' he said. 'That's just not the world that we live in anymore.' Esmy Jimenez can be reached at
CBC
30-04-2025
- Health
- CBC
Province increases funding for fertility treatments for NB families
New Brunswick families that struggle to have children will be reimbursed for some costly fertility treatments. The provincial government is investing $1.9 million to cover the cost of one round of in vitro fertilization and other forms of insemination for patients in need. Premier Susan Holt made the announcement Wednesday at the province's only fertility clinic in Moncton. She said the support is overdue. "There are barriers that exist to making these kinds of dreams come true," she said. "At the end of the day, it shouldn't matter how much money you have if you want to have a family." The funding is in addition to an existing provincial grant program which provides a maximum of $5,000 to patients for treatment. "In this day and age, $5,000 does not cover the cost of these treatments," Holt said, adding that fertility treatments in this province cost an average of $20,000 per round. The provincial funding also comes after Prime Minister Mark Carney made a campaign promise earlier this month that the Liberals would introduce a new IVF program that funds up to $20,000 per round of treatment. WATCH | 'There are barriers that exist to making these kinds of dreams come true' Province will fund one round of fertility treatment for N.B. families 3 hours ago Duration 1:42 Carney also said he would work with provinces and territories to ensure all Canadians can access the new program, which Holt said came as a pleasant surprise. "I think with those two commitments on the table, I think New Brunswickers' needs will be well served." When asked whether the program could expand if the promised funding runs out, Holt said her team estimates that the $1.9 million will be enough to cover all patients who currently need treatment in New Brunswick. She also said they would re-evaluate "to make sure no one is prevented from accessing fertility health care because of their financial situation." At the announcement, Holt held back tears as she shared her own struggle with fertility. She said she and her husband had to weigh the cost of treatment with their desire to start a family. "It was a really tough time for my husband and I," the mother of three said. "We had to look at whether we could afford it — whether we could afford to have a family." 1 in 6 Canadians experience infertility Brigitte Laplante of Dieppe and her husband Patrick have been trying to start a family for three years. Laplante was diagnosed with polycystic ovary syndrome, a common hormonal disorder which can cause fertility issues. The 27-year-old is in the early stages of fertility treatments and said not knowing whether their future will include having children weighs on them emotionally. "I would be lying if I said it was easy," Laplante said. She said people don't understand that the question "When are you having kids?" can be hurtful. "Deep down, it's breaking people." The Laplantes have discussed taking out loans or remortgaging their home to afford treatment. And she said seeing her friends and family get pregnant was difficult. "It's a constant thought behind everything going on of, 'Am I ever going to experience that?'" Carolynn Dubé, executive director of Fertility Matters Canada, said one in six Canadians experience infertility. She said historically, a patient's ability to have a baby depended on their income and where they live. "In a province like New Brunswick, where we've seen population challenges and a declining birth rate, this matters a lot," she said about the province's funding. Dubé said many people who want children but can't have them naturally are being "priced out" of parenthood due to a lack of resources. She said even if families can afford treatment on their own, a single round of treatment does not guarantee positive results. "In jurisdictions where public funding for fertility care exists, IVF babies comprise five to ten per cent of the total number of babies born. That number drops to two to three per cent in regions without funding."
