In Brief, Winnipeg Free Press, September 29, 2011

In Brief

Winnipeg Free Press
September 29, 2011

http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/local/130549163.html

Seraphim Storheim

AN inmate at Brandon Correctional Institute faces charges after a female corrections officer was severely beaten last week.

On Wednesday, city police received a report from staff at the Brandon Correctional Institute that a corrections officer had been assaulted by an inmate.

An investigation revealed that after the inmate had been asked to return to her cell, she attacked the female correctional officer from behind and assaulted her by pushing her head into a window twice, police reported today.

The inmate then kicked and punched the guard while she was on the ground, police said.

The guard was treated at Brandon hospital and released.

A 30-year-old female inmate at the jail was charged on Friday with assault causing bodily harm and assaulting a peace officer.

Abuse case court date set

THE case of an Orthodox archbishop facing sex-crime charges in Manitoba is headed back to court for a preliminary inquiry later this fall.

Archbishop Seraphim Storheim was the highest-ranking Canadian cleric in the Orthodox Church of America until church officials suspended him in November 2010.

Winnipeg police laid charges following the church's suspension.

The preliminary inquiry is scheduled for two days in mid-November, Storheim's lawyer, Jeff Gindin, said Friday.

The charges against Storheim came after a lengthy police investigation into allegations the former Winnipeg cleric sexually abused two teenage boys 30 years ago.

A Chicago-based advocacy group for victims of sexual abuse that is monitoring the case said in an email Friday the archbishop may be violating his bail conditions -- to avoid contact with minors -- by visiting a church this weekend in Victoria, B.C.

Not likely, according to his lawyer.

Gindin said his client is restricted to two addresses, one in Edmonton and another in Ottawa. One is his home and the other is his sister's house.

Even to visit his sister, the cleric must submit dates of the trip through his lawyer before the court approves the travel.

"He's got certain bail conditions, and as far as I know, he's abiding by every one of them," Gindin said.

$40K damage in alley fire

ANOTHER garage fire, this one on Talbot Avenue, has caused $40,000 in damage.

Fire crews were called just after 4 a.m. Sunday morning to a garage fire in the back lane of the 100 block of Talbot in Elmwood.

Two vehicles were damaged in the fire, as well as the garage.

The arson strike force is investigating. A cause has yet to be determined.

Anyone with information about the fire should call investigators at 986-6813.

Mayor hopeful fined $500

FORMER mayoral candidate Rav Gill received a $500 fine after he was late filing his campaign expenses from last year's civic election.

Gill pleaded not guilty with explanation in court on Thursday and was fined $200 plus $300 in court costs. Gill ran for mayor in the 2010 election and finished fourth.

Deputy city clerk Marc Lemoine said in an email that Gill received a lesser fine than other candidates who pleaded guilty because he did file an audited financial statement, though it was received after the deadline.

"I was a little late in filing," Gill said Friday.

Gill is the third candidate fined for flouting Winnipeg's election laws, which require each candidate to disclose how they raised and spent money during the campaign.

Livio Ciaralli recently pleaded guilty and was fined $500 plus $300 in court costs. Ciaralli ran for council in Charleswood-Tuxedo during the 2010 election and finished fifth.

Nancy Thomas, who registered to run for mayor, was found guilty on Aug. 11 and fined $800. Thomas did not file nomination papers and did not appear on the ballot.

Ed Ackerman and Ron Dyck, who also registered to run for mayor but did not file nomination papers or appear on the ballot, also face charges for breaching the city's election laws. They have both pleaded not guilty and their trials will be held at a later date.

Ray Bach, who registered to run for council in Old Kildonan but withdrew before the deadline, is scheduled to appear in court Oct. 13. Avery Petrowski, who registered to run for mayor, has not been served.