The B.C. government is taking aim at organized crime through its members unexplained wealth, such as luxury homes or vehicles.Public Safety Minister Mike Farnworth announced the government is changing the Civil Forfeiture Act to include unexplained wealth orders, requiring people to tell a court how they got the assets if there is suspicion of crime.It means the Civil Forfeiture Office would be able to ask a B.C. Supreme Court for an order against people or companies to explain where they got their wealth and if a three-part test is satisfied, that property can be seized.The changes are based

The inquiry into a mass shooting that left 22 people dead in Nova Scotia in 2020 is calling on the federal government to ban all semi-automatic handguns and many types of semi-automatic rifles and shotguns.The Mass Casualty Commission released its final report today, making a series of recommendations aimed at tightening gun laws.That includes developing a "standardized schedule and definitions" of 206 prohibited firearms in the Criminal Code.Parliament is still debating gun-control legislation introduced last May by the Liberals, which included a proposed amendment to enshrine a definition of

The Quebec government has tabled a bill that would prevent children under the age of 14 from working most jobs.Labour Minister Jean Boulet says Bill 19 is the result of a recommendation from a legislature committee and on recent reports noting a rise in workplace injuries involving children.Bill 19 would ban people under the age of 14 from the workforce except for certain jobs, including newspaper delivery, babysitting, day camp monitoring or tutoring.The legislation would also prohibit youth between the ages of 14 and 16 from working more than 17 hours a week during the school year, including

A Quebec man accused of killing a provincial police officer had a history of mental health issues and had been found not criminally responsible at least five times for past offences.Isaac Brouillard Lessard, 35, was shot dead by police after he allegedly fatally attacked Sgt. Maureen Breau on Monday evening and left her partner injured in Louiseville, Que., about 100 kilometres northeast of Montreal.Brouillard Lessard's lawyer, Yanick Péloquin, says his client was due to appear in May before Quebec's mental health review board Commission d'examen des troubles mentaux du Québec.The review boa

The Archdiocese of Vancouver and a private Catholic school have denied wrongdoing over claims of sexual abuse from former students and have filed their own lawsuits against the alleged abusers.The archdiocese and St. Thomas More Collegiate in Burnaby filed separate lawsuits last week against the men who belonged to a Catholic order and transferred to B.C. from Mount Cashel, the Newfoundland orphanage notorious for the sexual abuse that took place there.The claims come soon after a court certified a class-action lawsuit by students, naming the archdiocese, St. Thomas More Collegiate and others

Several police forces across Quebec are participating in joint anti-drug trafficking raids across the province targeting members of the Hells Angels and the Mafia.Police say they are conducting eight operations, including in Montreal, Laval and Estérel, in Quebec's Laurentians region.Provincial police Sgt. Audrey-Anne Bilodeau wouldn't say whose residences are being searched but said they involved important figures in the province's organized crime world.The raids are being conducted by a mixed police force that focuses on organized crime.Bilodeau says police are targeting a cocaine trafficki

The important role pets play in families who are separating is being addressed in proposed amendments to British Columbia's Family Law Act.Attorney General Niki Sharma says amendments she introduced in B.C.'s legislature will clarify the law around pets, property and pensions for couples and families going through a separation or divorce.She says the amendments, if passed, will provide more guidance for people and judges involved in a legal dispute.The changes would require the consideration of factors that include each person's ability and willingness to care for a pet, the relationship a chi

The president and CEO of Walmart Canada says the retail giant is not attempting to profit from soaring food inflation.Gonzalo Gebara spoke before a parliamentary committee studying food inflation Monday evening, saying Walmart Canada's gross profit rate for its food business declined last year, as did the company's total operating profit in dollars.His comments before the committee followed a highly anticipated appearance by the leaders of Canada’s three biggest grocery chains on March 8.The CEOs and presidents of Loblaw Cos. Ltd., Metro Inc. and Empire Co. Ltd. told the committee that food

British Columbia's health minister plans to announce how the government will ensure patients in the province will have secure access to the diabetes and weight loss drug Ozempic.Adrian Dix said in January that the government would be investigating why almost 10 per cent of prescriptions for the drug in B.C. were filled for American citizens.Dix said at the time that the dramatic increase in demand for the diabetes drug was partly because of social media "influencers" who spoke about its weight loss benefits.Dix announced in January that PharmaCare coverage of Ozempic would be widened to more p