- Brayden Bushby pleaded not guilty to second-degree murder in the 2017 death of Indigenous woman Barbara Kentner. Kentner died months after being struck by a trailer hitch thrown at her and her sister as they walked together in the Cameron Street area. Bushby also pleaded not guilty to a charge of aggravated assault.
- A second-degree murder charge was laid against 43-year-old Neil Howard Neshinapaise, a man with a long and violent criminal history, in the 2018 death of Amelia Corrie Sainnawap. Police did not say what led them to make the arrest more than a year after the murder took place.
- The officer at the centre of a viral video, seen allegedly slapping an Indigenous teen, was charged with two counts of unlawful or unnecessary exercise. The teen was on a gurney at the time and the officer can be heard saying, “that’s enough,” and “you do not spit on me.”
- The Wake the Giant Music Festival drew plenty of attention to the plight of Indigenous teens who come to Thunder Bay to complete high school studies, the culminating effort of a campaign designed to foster inclusiveness and harmony in the city. Coleman Hell, Wolf Saga, Metric and July Talk were among the acts on the bill, which drew 4,000 to Marina Park.
- Oliver Paipoonge’s Albert Kozlowski was found guilty of sexual assault and sexual interference for raping a girl on numerous occasions when she was between the age of seven and 13. The 67-year-old was first charged in 2017 and the offences took place between October 2008 and December 2014.
- The federal election campaign officially got under way on Sept. 11, with six candidates seeking the Thunder Bay-Superior North seat held by Liberal Patty Hajdu and five more looking to replace outgoing Liberal MP Don Rusnak in Thunder Bay-Rainy River. Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau and the NDP’s Jagmeet Singh were the only party heads to visit the city during the campaign.
- The city’s safe-injection site got funding certainty from the province, which had initially paused the program’s opening after being elected in June 2018. Once opened, the site received several short-term extensions, but the ongoing base funding model removes the uncertainty of the program. Later in the year NorWest Community Health Centre CEO Juanita Lawson announced a new name, Path525, and an extension of hours to include Saturday.
- An issue in the refurbishment work on the refrigeration system at the aging Fort William Gardens led to a one-week delay in the opening of the facility and the cancellation of the Lakehead Thunderwolves first two non-conference games.
- The Community Clothing Assistance announced it was in desperate need for a new roof and put out a fundraising call to collect the $138,000 needed to cover the cost of the repair.
- Hundreds attended a local climate-change strike, including students from schools across the city. Science, not silence, was one of their rallying cries, as they looked to convince politicians to listen to young people’s voices. The rallies were inspired by Swedish teen Greta Thunberg.
Between now and Jan. 1, tbnewswatch.com will be presenting our annual Year in Review feature, with a look back at the top news stories each month throughout 2019. We'll culminate with our top 10 news stories of the decade on New Year's Day.
