Marineland seeks to have charges over bears stayed, pleads not guilty
CBC
Marineland has pleaded not guilty to alleged offences regarding its care of three young black bears and has asked to have the charges stayed.
The Niagara Falls, Ont., tourist attraction filed a motion on Friday to have the case stayed over what it alleges is an abuse of process.
Ontario's Animal Welfare Services, part of the Ministry of the Solicitor General, laid three charges against Marineland last May for failing to comply with an order.
The province had previously ordered Marineland to build an enclosure for the bears — named Slash, Lizzie and Toad — with climbing structures and permanent access to water.
Marineland argued it had complied with the order because it forfeited the bears to the Crown — they were relocated to sanctuaries — rather than building an enclosure.
Animal Welfare Services had revoked the order in December 2022, after the bears had left the park.
"Removal of the bears was a form of compliance," said lawyer Scott Fenton, representing Marineland. Fenton argued that charging Marineland for non-compliance with the original order, when that order had been later revoked, was wrong.
"Allowing this prosecution to proceed would constitute an abuse of process," he argued.
The Crown opposed Marineland's motion. Prosecutor Jason Kirsh said Animal Welfare Services issued the order regarding the bears in June 2021, but gave Marineland until Sept. 11, 2021 to comply.
The Crown argued Marineland was not in compliance between Sept. 11, 2022 and Feb. 18, 2022.
On Feb. 18, 2022, Animal Welfare Service inspectors determined Marineland had not complied with the order to build the bears' structure and ordered the removal of two of them, Kirsh said.
Marineland also remained non-compliant on the last bear, and on Nov. 16, 2022, inspectors ordered that bear's removal, court heard.
On Dec. 12, 2022, with all three bears forfeited to the Crown, the province revoked the initial order for the structure, court heard. The province laid three counts of failing to comply with orders in May 2023.
The Crown said Marineland has misinterpreted the law.
Run 3 Space | Play Space Running Game
Traffic Jam 3D | Online Racing Game
Duck Hunt | Play Old Classic Game
Northumberland Ferries has cancelled almost all crossings for Tuesday, Oct. 27 between Caribou Nova Scotia and Wood Islands, P.E.I. due to high winds.
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith’s government introduced a bill on Monday to force striking teachers back to work as early as Wednesday.
Ontario's attorney general is proposing to get rid of fixed election dates in the province, in a set of reforms that would also see the limit for political donations raised to $5,000 and make public funding for political parties permanent.
A run at a World Series championship is bringing memories flooding back in Medicine Hat: the former home of the Blue Jays’ farm team, and the site of visits by the world championship teams in the early 1990s.
Standing on the side of a road in Cambridge Bay, Nunavut, former MLA Jeannie Ehaloak looks around and sees several issues in her community she wants addressed.
Territorial election day is Monday, Oct. 27.
Prime Minister Mark Carney says he’s hoping to reset expectations in Canada's relationship with China when he meets President Xi Jinping this week at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in South Korea.
Premier Doug Ford says he achieved his goal with an advertisement by the Ontario government that uses former U.S. president Ronald Reagan's own words to send an anti-tariff message to American audiences.
A developer that had been facing the potential of more than $30 million in fines from Ontario’s Home Construction Regulatory Authority (HCRA) has had all counts against it dropped.
As far as baseball goes, an unassuming southern Ontario town can readily say it's home to some serious gems.
Canadian officials may have said they were caught off guard last week when U.S. President Donald Trump announced he was cutting off trade negotiations with Canada over Ontario's anti-tariff advertisement, but sources say Premier Doug Ford’s bad cop act— and tough words for Trump — has been an irritant.
After finding toxic chemicals in his home’s well water, a Torbay resident is slamming Transport Canada for being too slow to act — even as the agency expands the area it is testing in.
Residents in Waverley, N.S., were briefly urged to shelter in place Monday morning due to what police said was a dangerous man with a firearm in a home.