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Judge reserves decision on fate of Saskatchewan Mountie killer's truck
Judge reserves decision on Mountie killer's truck
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Geoff Howe
A Saskatoon judge has reserved his decision on what to do with a convicted Mountie killer's blue pickup truck that was involved in a police chase 20 years ago.
Justice Daryl Labach told court he plans to make his decision in December on whether to forfeit Curtis Dagenais' 1986 GMC 1500 to the Crown.
The 61-year-old was in the truck when he shot two Mounties to death on a country road near Mildred, Sask., in July 2006.
In 2009, a jury convicted Dagenais of first-degree murder for shooting constables Robin Cameron and Marc Bourdages.
He was also convicted of attempted murder for wounding a third Mountie.
The truck is smashed, dented and pockmarked with bullet holes, and has been kept in storage at RCMP headquarters in Regina since the killings.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 19, 2026.
Copyright 2026, The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
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Union calls out Carney government over cuts to translation bureau
Union condemns cuts to federal translation bureau
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Justin Tang
A federal union is speaking out against cuts to the federal translation bureau and is accusing the Carney government of hypocrisy as Ottawa defends French language standards in trade talks with the U.S.
The translation bureau is a federal government service under Public Services and Procurement Canada that provides translation and interpretation services to departments and private clients.
A government document containing highlights of the translation bureau’s business plan for 2025 to 2030 says the bureau plans to drop 339 employees through natural attrition over five years to ensure its financial viability.
Attrition is the gradual reduction of positions through retirements and resignations.
The document says the plan reflects "an overall drop" in demand for traditional translation services.
It also says departments are turning to online translation services "via free internet tools" or are "investing on their own to deploy translation tools powered by artificial intelligence."
Mario Morneau, spokesperson for Public Services and Procurement Canada, said in an email the plan is to accomplish the reduction through attrition and because it's based on client demand, the final number could vary.
"This attrition is expected to occur across a range of occupational groups, including translation, administrative and management positions," he said.
The Canadian Association of Professional Employees is condemning the plan and says the decision puts Canada’s official languages at risk.
The union said more than 90 per cent of translations in the federal government are from English to French and that when the quality of translation declines, it is francophones who feel the impact.
"The result is a two-tier system by degrading the language services francophones depend on to access public services and Canada’s democratic institutions in their own language," said the union.
After several weeks of intense negotiations, Prime Minister Mark Carney suspended trade talks with the U.S. on Aug. 21 and summoned Canada-U.S. Trade Minister Dominic LeBlanc and the rest of the negotiating team back to Canada.
In a media conference, Carney accused U.S. negotiators of trying to limit Canada's ability to negotiate other trade deals, restrict its protections for language and culture and reduce tariffs for cars but not trucks.
Carney cited both the visibility of Canadian content on streaming services and French-language product labelling when he described the collapse of the trade talks. Four days later, a government official, who refused to be quoted on the record, told The Canadian Press that French labels were never part of the conversation.
LeBlanc then told Radio-Canada that while the U.S. had identified French-language labels as a trade irritant in the past, the issue on the table just before the trade talks ended was online discoverability.
Those rules, which are currently under development at the CRTC, would ensure Canadian and French-language content is available and visible on online streaming platforms.
U.S. representatives have maintained they don't have an issue with French language protections.
Bloc Québécois MP Yves Perron said in the House of Commons last month that "we cannot use French as a shield against Donald Trump and then turn around and regard it as an unnecessary expense that needs to be cut."
"While being a useful tool, artificial intelligence can never replace human judgment and a nuanced understanding of human language," he said. "We will not attract the next generation of talent by allowing people's working conditions to deteriorate. A strong internal capacity within the public service is essential to preserving French."
Kelly Burke, Canada's official languages commissioner, said in a statement that the government must ensure the substantive equality of Canada's two official languages in federal services and communications.
"This means, among other things, that translation and interpretation services must meet the highest standards of quality in order to respect the language rights of all Canadians," said Burke.
The Office of the Commissioner of Official Languages’ 2025-2026 annual report said federal institutions must ensure that their language obligations and their employees’ language rights are respected and taken into account during any budget reduction exercises.
"I will continue to monitor this situation closely," said Burke.
Burke added that while artificial intelligence can be useful for translation and interpretation when deployed properly, a qualified professional needs to be involved to avoid errors.
Morneau said the translation bureau will adjust its plans if demand for translation services increases.
"The Bureau remains fully committed to providing quality linguistic services in both official languages, tailored to the needs of our clients, budgetary realities and the expectations of Canadians," he said. "It will maintain the in-house capacity required to fulfil the demand for high-quality translations while continuing to draw on the expertise of Canada's language industry when needed."
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 19, 2026.
-With files from Anja Karadeglija
By Catherine Morrison | Copyright 2026, The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
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B.C. man arrested after allegedly driving wrong way in deadly Coquihalla crash
B.C. man arrested in deadly crash on Coquihalla
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Handout — BC Highway Patrol (Mandatory Credit)
Police have arrested a driver involved in a fatal crash on the Coquihalla Highway on allegations he was going in the wrong direction and was impaired.
The BC Highway Patrol says in a statement that the crash happened Saturday at around 8:30 in the morning as multiple witnesses reported a vehicle travelling southbound in the northbound lanes near Merritt, B.C.
While officers were on their way, a head-on crash occurred and police arrived to find a pickup truck and an SUV both heavily damaged in the crash site.
A 24-year-old passenger in the SUV, a man from Surrey, B.C., died at the scene.
Three other men in the SUV, all from Surrey, have been hospitalized with serious injuries, while the 22-year-old driver of the pickup suffered minor injuries.
Police say the pickup truck's driver, a man from Coldwater, B.C., has been arrested on suspected impaired driving.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 19, 2026.
Copyright 2026, The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
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