By Canadian Press

A high-profile diagnosis and Canadian leaders to meet; In The News for March 12

Mar 12, 2020 | 2:47 AM

In The News is a roundup of stories from The Canadian Press designed to kickstart your day. Here is what’s on the radar of our editors for the morning of March 12 …

What we are watching in Canada …

OTTAWA — Canada’s largest labour organization and the group that bills itself as the voice of business in this country have set aside their differences to jointly confront the economic fallout from the rampaging novel coronavirus.

And they say they’re hoping premiers can do the same when they meet with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

The heads of the Canadian Labour Congress and the Canadian Chamber of Commerce are trying to arrange a conference call with premiers ahead of Friday’s first ministers’ meeting to discuss the potentially devastating effect of the pandemic on workers and businesses.

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Both organizations have applauded Trudeau’s initial $1-billion response plan to the rapidly spreading virus, announced Wednesday.

Canadian Labour Congress president Hassan Yussuff says it may seem unusual for him to be collaborating with chamber president Perrin Beatty, but he adds they recognize it’s a moment for the country to come together.

The premiers will be arriving today in Ottawa for a two-hour meeting with Trudeau and Indigenous leaders before closeting themselves for a daylong first ministers’ meeting tomorrow.

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Also this …

TORONTO — Defence lawyers for a Toronto man accused of strangling a young woman are expected to call as a witness today a man they suggest could be an alternate suspect.

Lawyers representing Kalen Schlatter have raised questions during trial about another man seen in the area the night Tess Richey went missing.

Schlatter has pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder in the death of Richey, whose body was found in a stairwell in Toronto’s gay village days after she went missing in November 2017.

He testified earlier this week that he ran into Richey and her friend after they all left the same club, and that Richey made the first move on him after her friend left.

Schlatter, 23, told the court he and Richey made out in a stairwell, but she declined to have sex and they parted a bit later.

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What we are watching in the U.S. …

BURLINGTON, Va. — Bernie Sanders is acknowledging his deficit in the Democratic presidential race.

But he’s pressing ahead with his campaign at least long enough to debate Joe Biden this weekend and try to force him to answer questions about economic inequality and the country’s fraying social safety net.

The Vermont senator’s path to the presidential nomination considerably narrowed after decisive losses to Biden in Michigan, Missouri and Mississippi.

Pressure has been growing on Sanders to end his presidential bid and work to unify the party against U.S. President Donald Trump, but he’s not ready to quit yet.

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What we are watching in the rest of the world …

WASHINGTON — U.S. officials say three service members were killed, including two Americans, and a dozen were injured when a barrage of rockets were fired at a military base in Iraq.

The U.S. military says that about 18 rockets struck Camp Taji and that Iraqi Security Forces found a rocket-rigged truck a few miles from the base.

One British soldier was also killed in the attack on Camp Taji, located just north of Baghdad.

The camp, which has been used as a training base for a number of years, is also home to Canadian military personnel.

The Department of National Defence says all Canadian service members are safe.

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ICYMI …

ST. JOHN’S, N.L. — The remains of two Indigenous people have been returned to Newfoundland from Scotland after being stolen from a grave site on the island almost two centuries ago.

Representatives from five Indigenous groups in Newfoundland and Labrador as well as Premier Dwight Ball participated in a small ceremony at The Rooms provincial archive in St. John’s on Wednesday, where the remains of Beothuk people Nonosabasut and Demasduit had arrived hours earlier.

National Museums Scotland announced last year that the remains would be transferred to Canada following a federal government request.

The remains will stay at The Rooms so they can be preserved, but not displayed, until a final burial site is decided on by Indigenous leaders.

Chief Mi’sel Joe of the Miawpukek First Nation, who led efforts for the return starting in 2015, described it as a sacred moment for the island’s history.

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Weird and wild …

PEMBROKE PINES, Fla. — A cow is on the loose in South Florida.

It’s not considered dangerous, but police have been trying to corral it for weeks.

The Pembroke Pines Police Department says the animal has been spotted near Interstate 75 in southern Broward County. Somehow it has eluded capture since late January.

The police department put out a tweet: “Wanted: Unknown Cow.”

Followed by this: “Description: Female cow. Brown with a white head. Faster than it looks. Talented fence jumper. Enjoys pools.”

Police spokeswoman Amanda Conwell says officers and wranglers have been unable to catch the animal and have backed off when it gets too close to heavily travelled roads.

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Know your news …

Federal prosecutors say Vancouver businessman David Sidoo will plead guilty to paying US$200,000 to have someone take a college entrance exam in place of his two sons as part of a admissions cheating scheme. What sport did Sidoo play professionally? 

(Keep scrolling for the answer)

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On this day in 1964 …

Ontario Education Minister Bill Davis abolished the law segregating white and black schools.

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Entertainment news …

SYDNEY — American actors Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson are isolated in stable condition in an Australian hospital after contracting the new coronavirus.

Hanks, a double Oscar winner, is easily the most famous person yet to disclose they have COVID-19.

Hanks said he and Wilson, his wife, had felt tired, with colds, aches and slight fevers before testing positive.

He added they’ll be “isolated for as long as public health and safety requires.” Hanks was in Australia working on an untitled Elvis Presley biopic directed by Baz Luhrmann. It has suspended production.

Australian officials say people who’ve been in close contact with Hanks and Wilson will have to self-quarantine.

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Know your news answer …

Football. Sidoo, who is known for his philanthropic causes in British Columbia, played in the Canadian Football League for six years for the Saskatchewan Roughriders and B.C. Lions, his website says.

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This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 12, 2020.

The Canadian Press