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	Settlement for Alleged Sex Abuse in N. S. Diocese The Sudbury Star August 7, 2009 http://www.thesudburystar.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1691957 HALIFAX -- When Ron Martin read his younger brother's suicide note seven years ago, he was stunned to find out that his sibling claimed he had been sexually assaulted by the priest of their small Nova Scotia parish. Martin knew nothing of his brother's torment on the day in April 2002 when he identified his remains, but said he shared the same pain of prolonged sexual abuse by a priest who had been invited into the family home every week for Sunday dinner. He vowed to pursue charges against the priest and made a promise to his brother not to let his death go in vain. On Friday, Martin, his lawyer and the bishop of the Antigonish diocese named in a class-action lawsuit announced a historic settlement for people alleged and known to have been abused by priests in the rural community as far back as 1950. "I feel like I fulfilled that promise to him, so I feel like that part of my life is settled," Martin told reporters at a news conference in Halifax, moments after the diocese issued a formal apology to the victims. The proposed $13-million settlement would compensate anyone who was allegedly and known to have been sexually assaulted by a priest of the Catholic Episcopal Corp. of Antigonish since Jan. 1, 1950. BC FOREST FIRES, DRY TIMBER COMPLICATE LOGGING PLANS VANCOUVER -- British Columbia's fire season is complicating things for the province's ailing forest industry. Except for pockets in the northeast and southeast, most of British Columbia is rated at a high or extreme risk of fire. And while the economy has meant many operations are shut down, those that are operating are having to be careful their work doesn't spark another fire. Forest companies always factor the fire threat into their logging plans, harvesting in early spring or late fall in fire-prone regions or shifting to low-risk areas. But those areas are hard to find in a year when almost a thousand square kilometres have already been blackened and there's at least six weeks left in the fire season. "The situation on the coast is almost unprecedented by the lack of moisture and fire risk," said Archie MacDonald, general manager of forestry for the Council of Forest Industries, which represents coastal operators. "All the indicators are so high, I don't think anybody's ever seen them at these levels before." The B. C. Forest Service says there have been 413 fires caused by equipment use since 2006, though they can't all be attributed to forestry activity. Specific causes include hot exhaust, burning equipment, blasting, grinding, friction logging, welding and random sparks. CRIMINALS INCREASINGLY TURNING TO DEBIT CARD FRAUD CHARLOTTETOWN -- Criminals in Canada have become increasingly adept at using the power of plastic, particularly debit cards, to commit financial fraud, an annual report released Friday has found. The Criminal Intelligence Service of Canada, which represents nearly 380 law enforcement agencies across the country, concluded that organized crime groups have adapted to advances in technology aimed at preventing fraud. "More activities now are with respect to debit cards as opposed to credit cards," RCMP Commissioner William Elliott, chairman of the CISC, told a news conference. "We're seeing some positive developments within the marketplace with regard to chip and pin technology, but it is certainly a very serious problem." Statistics provided by the Canadian Bankers Association shows combined annual losses due to debit and credit card fraud in Canada exceeded $500 million in 2008. The bulk of credit card fraud losses are attributed to counterfeiting and fraudulent purchases, suggesting an increase in organized criminal operations, the report said. Hackers are targeting online sites and using malware and keystroke-logger programs to steal credit card data -- a trend likely to increase as online banking continues to grow in popularity, the report added. "The criminal element responds to market demands and the realities of the changing environment," Elliott said. Credit card fraud is especially prevalent in the urban areas of Quebec, Ontario and British Columbia, the report said. It also found that there are about 750 criminal groups operating in Canada -- a slight decline from last year. POLICE CHIEF DEFENDS ORDER TO BOOST TRAFFIC TICKETS WINNIPEG -- Winnipeg Police Chief Keith McCaskill is defending his decision to order officers to write more traffic tickets, saying the move is more about safety than bringing in bucks for the city's budget. Police officers in the city have been told to refocus their efforts to make sure motorists are being ticketed for offences such as speeding, running stop signs, and other common driving offences. McCaskill said Friday that the issuing of such revenue-generating tickets is down by about 70% so far this year compared with the same period in 2008. While the chief didn't venture an opinion on why that's happening, he suggested officers are focusing instead on criminal investigations. "Traffic enforcement is part of what we should be doing," McCaskill said. The tickets do generate revenues, but this order is more about public safety, McCaskill said. "Is this a budget issue? Of course it is," McCaskill said. "But in reality we try to meet the budget and if we don't, policing is not going to stop. The main reason for this is traffic safety." McCaskill said there is no "quota" stating how many tickets officers need to hand out.
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