Albert Schultz, shown in 2013.DELLA ROLLINS/The Globe and Mail
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WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
Soulpepper Theatre's Albert Schultz instructed to step aside amid allegations of sexual harassment and assault
Toronto's largest not-for-profit theatre company has instructed artistic director Albert Schultz to step down as it investigates allegations of sexual harassment and assault against him. Four actresses have launched civil suits against Soulpepper and Mr. Schultz, alleging he sexually harassed and assaulted them, on stage and off, in incidents that span two decades. Patricia Fagan, Kristin Booth, Diana Bentley and Hannah Miller are plaintiffs in separate suits that seek damages totalling $4.25-million from the theatre company and $3.6-million from Mr. Schultz – who is described as a "serial sexual predator" in their statements of claim.
Harvey Weinstein's ouster has brought forward more stories of misogyny and abuse in cinema and other industries, and renewed focus on old accusations against alleged predators. Here is a list of other notable people who have been accused of sexual misconduct so far.
Two correctional officers charged in death of inmate at N.B. prison in 2015
New Brunswick RCMP announced Wednesday charges of manslaughter and criminal negligence causing death against two correctional officers after a lengthy investigation into the death of Matthew Hines. The 33-year-old federal inmate asphyxiated at a New Brunswick correctional facility in May, 2015, after enduring repeated blasts of pepper spray from staff. Officials initially ruled it a natural death. But after 2 1/2 years, at least four investigations and a determined effort by Mr. Hines's family, outside investigators reviewing the case have ruled the death a criminal act.
Former hostage Joshua Boyle to remain in custody on 15 charges
Dressed in an orange jumpsuit while being held in an Ottawa detention centre, Joshua Boyle made a brief video appearance in court Wednesday. The former hostage, who was released from captivity in Pakistan with his family in October, is facing 15 charges including assault, sexual assault, unlawful confinement and misleading police, according to court documents. Mr. Boyle has retained high-profile defence lawyer Lawrence Greenspon, as well as Eric Granger.
Andrew Ellis wrote an opinion piece about the rescue in October arguing that the Boyles are safe, but Canada didn't take a risk to help them. "The government needs to take responsibility to protect Canadians and stop counting on others to do it for us."
Bank of Canada estimates 60,000 fewer jobs due to minimum wage increases
A Bank of Canada report says that despite the cut to jobs, labour income will be higher due to the wage increases. The paper noted that if the average working hours declined following the increases in minimum wage, the number of jobs lost would also be lower.
We talked to small business owners as they braced for the impact of a 20.7 per cent increase to minimum wage. "I am very scared," said one Toronto restaurant owner. "I believe it will impact sales – they will drop – and I think it will impact the way customers tip."
Outages at TD, RBC online trading platforms frustrate clients
TD WebBroker experienced intermittent delays on Dec. 29, Jan. 2 and again today, according to complaints from multiple users on social media. The outages at RBC Direct Investing only surfaced today, with some of its users complaining of occasional problems logging into the bank's main online banking website. TD said the issue was capacity, while RBC said it was due to heavy trading volumes. Both said they are taking steps to address the issue. Stock trading over the holidays is usually down, but there have been wild swings in Canadian cannabis companies this week and traders locked out of their accounts could have been stuck in a sell-off or have missed out on a rally. (for subscribers)
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MARKET WATCH
Canada's main stock market ended the day at 16,371.55, up 0.38 per cent. The Toronto Stock Exchange's S&P/TSX composite index gained 61.56 points, the second straight day of record highs. The index was boosted by strong cannabis stocks and the announcement of Blackberry Ltd. striking a self-driving auto deal with Baidu. South of the border, all three major indexes had strong days. The S&P 500 index passed 2,700 for the first time, gaining 0.64 per cent to finish the day at 2,713.06. The Nasdaq Composite was up 0.84 per cent and ended trading at 7,065.53. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.4 per cent to 24,922.68.
WHAT'S TRENDING
Lululemon founder Chip Wilson's waterfront property in Vancouver's Kitsilano neighbourhood has topped the list of most expensive residential properties in British Columbia for the fifth consecutive time. It has an assessed value of $78.8-million. The 15,694-square-foot mansion now has an assessed value of $26.1-million, while the land is valued at $52.7-million. The price of detached houses sold in Greater Vancouver in November averaged more than $1.7-million.
As a group of snowmobilers veered off a road near Deer Lake, N.L., Saturday, they spotted a moose neck-deep in what they said was almost two metres of snow. So they pulled out their shovels and freed the moose. After the moose pulled itself out of the hole, it hung around for a few minutes as if to say "a little thank you" before trotting away. One of the snowmobilers said he wouldn't advise others to do the same if they came across a moose in a similar situation.
TALKING POINTS
Why Twitter should ban President Trump
"Among those who will have plenty to answer for are the powers that be at Twitter, which has allowed Mr. Trump to use the social media platform as his own bully pulpit from which he has harassed, threatened and used fear to silence voices of opposition in violation of the company's own code of conduct rules. And on this front, Mr. Trump has been a multiple offender." – Gary Mason
What did Milo Yiannopoulos's book editor expect?
"To see this strident Donald Trump supporter get a tongue-lashing from a fact-conscious editor was satisfying to people who thought they were witnessing justice being done. I did not see that. I saw a publishing process that was badly flawed and an edit that made no sense." – Russell Smith
A diet high in fat is best – with the right kind of fat
"There has been a lot of confusion in recent years about what constitutes a healthy diet, with many people advocating and espousing a ketogenic diet, similar to the Atkins diet: a low-carbohydrate, high-fat/high-cholesterol diet (HF/HC). Since most North Americans will die of a heart attack or stroke if they don't die young from another cause, this is a big mistake." – David Spence and David Jenkins
LIVING BETTER
The hottest themes in fitness research for 2018
The American College of Sports Medicine forecasts high-intensity interval training will be the top fitness trend of 2018. It is the same trend that has been near the top of the list since 2014. Meaningful trends take time to catch on so, as Alex Hutchinson writes, the hot topics in the science of fitness in 2018 will be about ideas that have been percolating for years. This year, he believes more emphasis will be put on resistance training, in order to prolong healthspan, play-based fitness and more studies will make use of big data and wearable "smart" technology.
LONG READS FOR A LONG COMMUTE
Canada's cannabis players brace for dose of reality
Licensed marijuana producers hope to see their efforts pay off this summer when the federal government legalizes recreational cannabis use nearly 100 years after the substance was first banned. But not all companies are expected to flourish. The Globe's Christina Pellegrini reports on what awaits for cannabis producers in 2018. (for subscribers)
What happened when Ian Brown took on chef Yotam Ottolenghi's dessert cookbook
Yotam Ottolenghi is an Israeli chef, restaurant magnate and cookbook author, who The Globe and Mail's Ian Brown describes as a god. Mr. Brown has spent hours plucking and chopping his way through Mr. Ottolenghi's other books – Plenty, Jerusalem and Plenty More – but dessert-making is famously tricky, the culinary preference of the anally retentive. "I am an eager if amateur cook, but I'm especially drawn to making dessert," writes Mr. Brown, who says he may now abandon dessert forever.
Evening Update is written by Jordan Chittley and Mayaz Alam. If you'd like to receive this newsletter by e-mail every weekday evening, go here to sign up. If you have any feedback, send us a note.