The death of Greg Hiles last week at the East Coast Forensic Hospital has led to calls for an inquiry and questions about the conditions at the facility. Serious problems have been consistently raised about the state of the province’s hospitals, nursing homes, and other treatment facilities. Disability rights advocates recently won a Nova Scotia Human […]
Man dies in custody at the East Coast Forensic Hospital
Two months ago Gregory Hiles challenged the East Coast Forensic Hospital in a habeas corpus application. He was found hanged in his cell last week. Now, the same people Greg challenged are responsible for explaining how he died.
On Tuesday, August 20th, Sheila Hiles spoke with her son Gregory for over an hour until around 10pm, when the East Coast Forensic Hospital locks up for the night. Nothing, she says, was out of the ordinary. Greg talked about plans he was making for the future, and discussed a recent meeting with his treatment […]
Medjuck v. Medjuck: Harold says his brother Ralph, one of Nova Scotia’s most powerful property developers, ripped him off for decades
Morning File, Friday, December 21, 2018
News 1. Bike projects Erica Butler has Part 2 of her update on bike projects. In Part 2, she discusses the Brunswick Street/Spring Garden Road, Forest Hills Parkway, Macdonald Bridge, Bedford Highway, Vernon Street, and Oak/Allen bike projects. Click here to read “Update on ongoing bike projects, Part 2.” This article is for subscribers. Click here […]
There are a lot of ugly buildings in Halifax
Morning File, Wednesday, December 12, 2018
News 1. Habeas Corpus Five prisoners at the Burnside jail filed more habeas corpus applications last week, claiming that they were inappropriately kept in lockdown for up to four days. As has become typical, by the time the habeas applications could make their way to a court hearing before a judge, four of the prisoners […]
El Jones gets at the human core of the issues and people she writes about
Morning File, Tuesday, November 6, 2018
News 1. El Jones I first met El Jones when I worked at The Coast. Our meeting was not in person, but virtually — I remember that I asked her to write a guest commentary, and a couple of days later she came back with a poem, which she sent me via a Facebook message. […]
There is nothing self-deprecating or ironic or even remotely funny about this boring headline
Morning File, Thursday, September 20, 2018
News 1. Maurice Pratt Yesterday, Justice James Chipman dismissed Maurice Pratt’s habeas corpus application. Pratt was the first of at least eight prisoners at the Burnside jail to have their habeas applications heard by Chipman. (The others are scheduled for Monday, but I’m hearing there may be a delay.) The prisoners filed their applications in […]
Habeas corpus hearing illuminates jail conditions
Highlights from this story: • a prison official agreed with the statement that “several” prisoners at the Burnside jail have died in the past week * (see note below) • the three-week lockdown at the jail started when an inmate allegedly said that “someone is going to die” after the peaceful protest was ended • […]
Welcome to the new Halifax Convention Centre! Here’s your $100 fine for smoking on the sidewalk
Morning File, Wednesday, September 12, 2018
News 1. Burnside jail update The prisoners at the Burnside jail have ended their 20-day strike and have issued a statement, which reads in part: Dear supporters, You are commended for your work on our behalf. None of us thought that we would gain so much support by sharing our conditions with the public. The […]
Five prisoners at the Burnside jail ask the court to order them released from solitary confinement
Five prisoners at the Burnside jail have filed habeas corpus applications with the Supreme Court. The applications arrived at the courthouse yesterday, September 5. Kaz Cox, Matthew Grimm, Maurice Pratt, Steven Skinner, and Leonard Greenough each say they are wrongfully being held in solitary confinement for 23 hours a day. It’s unclear if any of […]