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Pottie to face first degree murder charge alone

The trial of Henry Joseph Pottie began Monday in a Moncton courtroom. Pottie is accused of the first degree murder of Jamie Leard, a resident of Upper Cape, in May 2021.

A photo of Jamie Leard circulated on social media after his disappearance in May 2021.

Pottie’s co-accused, Sean Patterson, was also facing a first degree murder charge, but last Thursday entered a guilty plea to second degree murder. Patterson will be sentenced this summer on July 25.

On Monday, 39-year-old Pottie heard the charges against him and then pled not guilty. Pottie is represented by Saint John-Toronto lawyer Nathan Gorham and colleagues. The case is being prosecuted by New Brunswick crown attorney Maurice Blanchard.

Two courtrooms were filled with prospective jurors on Monday. Judge Robert Dysart said he would select 14 jurors and two alternates. Only 12 jurors will be able to deliberate and determine a verdict, but Dysart said he would appoint more due to the proposed length of the trial, which lawyers predict could last eight weeks.

First witnesses are expected to be called on Tuesday.

A publication ban is in effect for any evidence and information presented in court while the jury is or was not present. The ban will be lifted once the jury is sequestered for deliberations.

Several weeks of voir-dire hearings preceded the trial, in which the judge determined admissibility of evidence and witness testimony.

Correction: A previous version of this story incorrectly said Pottie pled guilty.… Continue

Sight of smoke led Nokar Hussein to discover Good Friday fire

Nokar Hussein noticed smoke on his way to work at Fener’s Place on Good Friday. Photo: Erica Butler

When Nokar Hussein headed to work on Friday April 7th, he expected a slow, uneventful day. But as most Sackvillians are painfully aware, it wouldn’t turn out that way. April 7th was Good Friday, the day that a fire consumed the building that was home to Joey’s Pizza and Pasta on York Street.

Nokar and his brother’s family run Fener’s Place on Bridge Street. As he was on his way to work, he smelled something strange as he passed the Independent grocery story on Main, but attributed it to a possible power issue, because he noticed an NB Power truck nearby.

When he went to get a coffee, Nokar noticed smoke on Bridge Street, and went to investigate. His search took him around the back of the Joey’s building, where he saw smoke billowing from the restaurant’s ventilation chimney, and flames appearing near the base of the kitchen exhaust.

Rear of Joey’s building around 9:30am, April 7, 2023. Photo: Nokar Hussein

At the same time, a young man came out of the building, and Nokar asked if he knew anyone in the building. He immediately went back inside to alert his friends, while Nokar called 911. Within minutes the Sackville Fire Department arrived to try to control the fire. That was around 9:30, when Nokar says the fire he observed was well underway.… Continue

Upgrade dikes ‘as quickly as feasible’ before major flood hits Chignecto Isthmus, Amherst mayor tells provincial governments

*Train crossing the Chignecto Isthmus at high tide near Aulac in November 2015. Photo taken by Mike Johnson, EMO for Cumberland County.*

This article was updated at approximately 9 p.m. on April 14, 2023, to include a comment from the Government of Nova Scotia.

New Brunswick and Nova Scotia say they’re negotiating with Ottawa over the financing of a multi-million dollar infrastructure project that would protect the Chignecto Isthmus from flooding.

The Chignecto Isthmus is the narrow strip of land that connects the two provinces.

Upgrades could cost up to $300 million, according to a study published last year. The feds have offered to pay half that amount, but both provinces say talks are still ongoing about how the project should be financed.

And New Brunswick’s Minister of Infrastructure Jeff Carr reportedly stated last week the $150 million offer isn’t enough.

Mayor David Kogon of Amherst, N.S., says the provinces should quit haggling and speed up the process before it’s too late. Tantramar Mayor Andrew Black has also called for the provincial government to take swifter action.

Listen to the report from CHMA:

The dikes were built in the 1600s by Acadian settlers to hold back floodwater from the Bay of Fundy. Officials from both provinces say the current height of the dikes is no longer sufficient because of the effects of climate change.

CHMA spoke to the Mayor of Amherst this week after he met with the Daniel Allain, New Brunswick’s Minister of Local Government. … Continue

’48 years later, we’re still waiting’: residents say they’ve been overtaxed and underserviced

The crowd in Tantramar’s council chambers on Tuesday April 11, 2023. Photo: Erica Butler

About 50 people gathered in the gallery of Tantramar council chambers on Tuesday night, the majority there to hear a presentation by former councillor Ken Hicks, asking council to consider changes to the town’s taxation system.

Hicks lives in Frosty Hollow, within the former town of Sackville boundaries, but in a decidedly rural setting, with no access to water and sewer, and other amenities like street lights and sidewalks. But his tax rate is the same as the one charged on properties in other parts of the former town, where services like water and sewer and sidewalks are de rigeur. His predicament is similar to that of the Greene family, his in-laws, which CHMA reported on in March.

A Frosty Hollow family calls for Tantramar council to tackle fairness in taxation

While the current amalgamation kicked off the recent protest from Hicks and the Greenes, their issue is a longstanding one. In his presentation Hicks harkened back to the source of his concern: a 1975 annexation of parts of Frosty Hollow, as well as Middle and Upper Sackville, into the then town of Sackville.

“At that time a commitment was made to provide services to these areas,” Hicks told councillors, “and 48 years later, we’re still waiting.”

Hicks told council that when Tantramar amalgamated, he and some of his neighbours expected that their tax rates would be changed, based on comments by local government minister Daniel Allain, who repeatedly stated that residents would only be taxed on the services they receive.… Continue

Tantramar council passes first reading of ‘take-it-or-leave-it’ dangerous and unsightly premises by-law

Tantramar council meets for its first time ever on January 10, 2023 at Sackville town hall. Photo: Erica Butler

Tantramar council has passed first reading of a new bylaw respecting dangerous and unsightly premises in the new municipality. Both Sackville and Dorchester had similar bylaws before they were dissolved, which established mostly complaint-driven processes that could be used to eventually require property owners to make repairs or clean up their properties.

While the new Tantramar bylaw is a carbon copy of those previous by-laws, it would extend to cover the full Tantramar municipality, which includes many rural areas.

Councillors Mike Tower and Barry Hicks both chimed in with concerns about how applying town and village standards across the municipality might backfire, especially when it came to items like wood shavings and sawdust. But it turns out changes to the bylaw aren’t possible, because the provincial act that allows municipalities to create dangerous and unsightly bylaws also dictates the bylaw itself, and it’s one-size-fits-all.

“What you’re saying is the way that it is set out by the Municipalities Act is we have the choice to have a dangerous and unsightly premises by-law or not, and if we choose to have it, this is the one we get,” said Councillor Allison Butcher on Tuesday.

Though the text of the by-law comes ‘as is’, Mayor Andrew Black said the municipality would have discretion over how the bylaw was enforced. “We can’t make adjustments to it, which is unfortunate,” said Black, “but in the enforcement of the bylaw, we can have some leniency as to what constitutes a violation or not.”… Continue

UPDATE: Shep is back, and Tantramar council votes to keep it

Note: this story was updated at 10:30pm on April 11, 2023.

Shep the Sandpiper is back in Dorchester and will stay there for the time being, despite controversy about how it got there.

At their council meeting Tuesday night, council voted unanimously to keep the statue where it is, even though the town does not yet own the statue, and the process to acquire it was not quite by the book. The unanimous motion also included a request for town engineer Jon Eppell to examine the installation and ensure it is safe.

Mayor Andrew Black voted in favour of the motion along with the rest of council, but had some stern words before the vote, regarding the renegade manner that Shep was replaced. Black said the statue, “puts the town of Tantramar at an insurance and liability risk,” and also, “throws our RFP [request for proposals] and RFQ [request for quotations] processes out the window, leaving the town open to the potential of risk going forward.”

No other councillors commented on the motion during last night’s meeting, and Dorchester councillor Debbie Wiggins-Colwell also refused to comment afterwards. CAO Jennifer Borne was similarly quiet on the issue, referring only to the motion passed by council.

The long road to replace Shep

Former village councillor Kara Becker, who appeared before Tantramar council in March to request support for the return of the sculpture, says the new bird was installed on Saturday by a team of volunteers.… Continue

Rough Waters provides space to discuss the past and future impact of the Marshall decisions

Mount Allison politics professor Dr. Mario Levesque and his co-editors with the Journal of New Brunswick Studies knew they wanted to mark the upcoming 25th anniversary of the Marshall decisions — the landmark Supreme Court rulings in 1999 which affirmed the rights of First Nations to hunt, fish, and gather food on their unceded and traditional territories.

So the editors put out a call for papers for a special edition of the journal to come out in 2024, exploring the impact of the decisions. Then they decided to take things one step further. “Along the way, we said it would be a great idea to bring our contributors together in a workshop to explore their contributions and to debate the issues,” says Levesque. And so Rough Waters: The Legacy of the Marshall Decisions, a two-day workshop happening at Mount Allison starting this Friday, was born.

CHMA spoke with Dr. Mario Levesque to find out more about the upcoming workshop:

The conference is open to all, says Levesque, from scholars to students to the general public. And with three First Nation title claims asserted in New Brunswick right now, the discussions are of particular significance. “These land claims are going to define how our resources, our timber resources, crown lands and minerals and are shared between Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples,” says Levesque. “So basically, we’re moving to a new treaty agreement in the Maritimes.”… Continue

Fundraising continues for people affected by devastating fire in downtown Sackville

Fundraising is ongoing to support people affected by a devastating fire in downtown Sackville.

The blaze destroyed Joey’s Restaurant and the apartments of four students and a university staff member that were located upstairs. No injuries were reported.

The fire began on Friday morning. Local roads were closed as firefighters fought the blaze, using water brought in water from Silver Lake in addition to municipal fire hydrants.

A newly-purchased excavator from local contractor Beal & Inch Construction was brought in to tear down the building to keep the fire from spreading.

Mount Allison said in a Facebook post that university officials were in contact with the people whose apartments were destroyed and would provide them with short-term accommodations and other necessities. The university also offered counselling on Saturday.

*Firefighters battle a blaze that destroyed the Joey’s Restaurant building in downtown Sackville on Friday, April 7, 2023. Photo: JJ Stiles*

The university also said that about 20 students living in the area were affected.

They left their homes due to the smoke and it was unclear when they would be able to return home. The university said it was in contact with many of those students and would stay in touch to determine how it could support them.

The university set up an intake centre in the basement of the university chapel to accept donations from the community such as clothing, personal hygiene items and gift cards. … Continue

Acadians of Cumberland unite! New society hopes to deepen awareness of region’s heritage and culture

An information panel on the site of the former village at Beaubassin. Photo: Erica Butler

It’s hard to believe, when you are standing at one of the Parks Canada plaques marking the site of the former Beaubassin Village, that it was once home to a thriving Acadian village of about 2800 people. But in 1748, just before the territorial disputes of the French and the British doomed it to oblivion, Beaubassin Village was a going concern.

The site of the former village lies just across the provincial border, behind the Nova Scotia Visitor Information Centre, where Parks Canada has set up a small picnic area and informational signage describing the history of the area.

Giving the site its historical due, along with bringing more of the region’s Acadian history and culture to the fore, is the mission of the newly formed Cumberland Acadian Society.

Amherst town councillor Leon Landry is serving as president of the new group, and CHMA called him up to find out more:

Landry is quick to point out that he’s not a historian, but he is Acadian, and has always had an interest in learning more about his Acadian roots. Landry, former MP Bill Casey, and area residents Morris Haugg and Michele Maltby-LeBlanc, “got together and sat down and started to try to develop a society of Acadian folks, but also of community-minded folks that have interest in the truth of history,” says Landry. Casey had worked previously to get some recognition for the Beaubassin site, hence the panels and picnic site that exist there today.… Continue

Environmental group maps herbicide use in N.B. forests, tells province to stop spraying protected watersheds

*Herbicide spraying licenses were issued last year for numerous blocks of privately-held land north of the Trans-Canada Highway*, *according to maps based on government data, produced by Stop Spraying NB.* *Sackville’s water supply comes from wells near the protected Ogden Mill Brook watershed.* *Screenshot: Stop Spraying NB.*

An environmental group has launched two online maps showing areas of forest that have been sprayed with herbicide or approved for herbicide treatment, including some sections of protected watersheds.

Sackville’s drinking water supply wasn’t directly targeted for herbicide spraying, at least last year, but the provincial government approved herbicide spraying by forestry giant J.D. Irving Limited on land a few kilometres north of that area, according to one map.

A volunteer from Stop Spraying New Brunswick pieced together the maps using publicly-available data from the provincial government. The group says the government should do a better job of making the information available, and the responsibility shouldn’t fall on the shoulders of a volunteer-run organization.

“If protected areas are being sprayed, I think the public has a right to know,” said Caroline Lubbe-D’Arcy, the group’s chair. CHMA has reached out to the Department of Environment and Climate Change for comment.

Listen to the interview with Caroline Lubbe-D’Arcy:

One of the maps shows areas of Crown land that have been treated with herbicide from 1969 up to the present date. Private land isn’t included because that data simply isn’t available, according to Lubbe-D’Arcy.

A second map shows areas of land where the government approved spray licenses during the 2022 spray season for both public and private forests. … Continue

Category: Community News

The long road to replace Shep