Yes, compelled government control makes complete sense especially considering what we've gone thru recently with Covid!!
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50% of U.S. murders now going unsolved
Author of the article:Brad Hunter
Published Jul 07, 2025 • Last updated 16 hours ago • 3 minute read
If you are murdered in the United States, there’s a 50% chance your killing is going to go cold.
According to The New York Times, in cities like Louisville, Kentucky, police don’t even make an arrest in half of their homicide investigations.
The problem is nationwide, the Times reported. While the clearance rate was 58% in 2023, that number is inflated because it includes homicides from previous years that the police solved in 2023.
For comparison, the homicide clearance rate in Canada is around 70% The Toronto Police Service’s clearance rate is one of the highest in North America, with an 80% solve rate over the past five years.
Experts in the U.S. claim the volume of investigations and distrust of the police have stymied countless murder probes. And the fact that solving a case has come down to a flip of the coin, criminals have become emboldened.
“It’s a vicious cycle,” Brian Forst, a criminologist at American University, told the Times. “When the bad guys see that the police are not there to deter crime and catch criminals, they remain on the streets to do more bad stuff. And the rest of the community is less deterred from crime. They think, ‘Why not? I’m not going to get caught.’”
Experts say the most powerful deterrent to violent crime is the would-be killer knowing cops will catch them quickly. The idea that they will be captured and punished somewhere down the road doesn’t work.
“The certainty of being caught is a vastly more powerful deterrent than the punishment,” concluded the National Institute of Justice in its review of the evidence.
Most of the victims in the mounting tally of unsolved murders are poor and Black.
“Take a bunch of teenage boys from the whitest, safest suburb in America and plunk them down in a place where their friends are murdered and they are constantly attacked and threatened,” author Jill Leovy wrote in Ghettoside: A True Story of Murder in America.
“Signal that no one cares, and fail to solve murders. Limit their options for escape. Then see what happens.”
Experts told the Times there are five key reasons why murder investigations go cold.
– Lack of attention and police resources. Cops in New York and Boston boast the country’s highest clearance rate because they are well-funded.
– America has more guns than any other country in the world. A firearms murder is harder to solve than a stabbing. In 2023, the U.S. homicide rate with guns was 4.4 per 100,000; in Canada, it was 0.7 per 100,000.
– The U.S. also has more gang crime than other Western nations. These crimes are harder to solve.
– For sheer volume, no one can touch the U.S. More murders and fewer cops is a recipe for disaster. One detective noted, “We are swamped.”
– A long history of distrust between the cops and the community harms homicide detectives’ ability to solve murders.
The American murder rate has dropped dramatically since the 1990s, when battles over crack turf turned city streets into slaughterhouses. But for the above-mentioned reasons, murder remains as American as apple pie.
More resources and modern technology could provide an Rx to stem the march to the morgue.
But in the end, murder is about the victims, their friends and families.
“I want someone to be held accountable for taking my son’s life,” said Delphine Prentice, the mother of Damion Morton, who was shot and killed in 2017.
But after eight years, she added, “I’m about to give up hope.”
bhunter@postmedia.com
@HunterTOSun
torontosun.com
Author of the article:Brad Hunter
Published Jul 07, 2025 • Last updated 16 hours ago • 3 minute read
If you are murdered in the United States, there’s a 50% chance your killing is going to go cold.
According to The New York Times, in cities like Louisville, Kentucky, police don’t even make an arrest in half of their homicide investigations.
The problem is nationwide, the Times reported. While the clearance rate was 58% in 2023, that number is inflated because it includes homicides from previous years that the police solved in 2023.
For comparison, the homicide clearance rate in Canada is around 70% The Toronto Police Service’s clearance rate is one of the highest in North America, with an 80% solve rate over the past five years.
Experts in the U.S. claim the volume of investigations and distrust of the police have stymied countless murder probes. And the fact that solving a case has come down to a flip of the coin, criminals have become emboldened.
“It’s a vicious cycle,” Brian Forst, a criminologist at American University, told the Times. “When the bad guys see that the police are not there to deter crime and catch criminals, they remain on the streets to do more bad stuff. And the rest of the community is less deterred from crime. They think, ‘Why not? I’m not going to get caught.’”
Experts say the most powerful deterrent to violent crime is the would-be killer knowing cops will catch them quickly. The idea that they will be captured and punished somewhere down the road doesn’t work.
“The certainty of being caught is a vastly more powerful deterrent than the punishment,” concluded the National Institute of Justice in its review of the evidence.
Most of the victims in the mounting tally of unsolved murders are poor and Black.
“Take a bunch of teenage boys from the whitest, safest suburb in America and plunk them down in a place where their friends are murdered and they are constantly attacked and threatened,” author Jill Leovy wrote in Ghettoside: A True Story of Murder in America.
“Signal that no one cares, and fail to solve murders. Limit their options for escape. Then see what happens.”
Experts told the Times there are five key reasons why murder investigations go cold.
– Lack of attention and police resources. Cops in New York and Boston boast the country’s highest clearance rate because they are well-funded.
– America has more guns than any other country in the world. A firearms murder is harder to solve than a stabbing. In 2023, the U.S. homicide rate with guns was 4.4 per 100,000; in Canada, it was 0.7 per 100,000.
– The U.S. also has more gang crime than other Western nations. These crimes are harder to solve.
– For sheer volume, no one can touch the U.S. More murders and fewer cops is a recipe for disaster. One detective noted, “We are swamped.”
– A long history of distrust between the cops and the community harms homicide detectives’ ability to solve murders.
The American murder rate has dropped dramatically since the 1990s, when battles over crack turf turned city streets into slaughterhouses. But for the above-mentioned reasons, murder remains as American as apple pie.
More resources and modern technology could provide an Rx to stem the march to the morgue.
But in the end, murder is about the victims, their friends and families.
“I want someone to be held accountable for taking my son’s life,” said Delphine Prentice, the mother of Damion Morton, who was shot and killed in 2017.
But after eight years, she added, “I’m about to give up hope.”
bhunter@postmedia.com
@HunterTOSun
SHOCK STATISTIC: 50% of U.S. murders now going unsolved
If you are murdered in the United States, there's a 50% chance your killing is going to go cold.
So, shouldn't the saying be "The Mounties get their man maybe 3/4 of the time or so?"
Gary Coleman's ex-wife fails lie-detector test about actor's death from fall
Author of the article:Spiro Papuckoski
Published Jul 09, 2025 • 2 minute read
Actor Gary Coleman’s ex-wife wasn’t able to pass a lie-detector test when questioned about the circumstances surrounding his death.
Whatcha talkin’ ’bout?
Shannon Price is set to appear on A&E’s Lie Detector: Truth or Deception series after she was asked yes or no questions about Coleman’s death by a retired FBI agent and polygraph examiner George Olivo.
Price married the Diff’rent Strokes actor in 2007 after they met on the set of the film Church Ball. However, the following year they divorced and Coleman was granted a restraining order to keep her away from his home when he was hospitalized.
Despite the restraining order, Coleman and Price lived together in a common-law relationship until his death in May 2010 after he fell down the stairs at his Utah home.
According to A&E, Price took the test to “address persistent public suspicion regarding her potential involvement in his death, even though she was never charged in connection with it.”
She answered Olivo’s questions while hooked up to the machine, according to The Hollywood Reporter, which obtained a copy of the episode before it aired.
“Did you ever strike Gary during your relationship?”
“No,” she answered.
“Did you intentionally decide to withhold help to Gary when he fell?”
“No,” she replied again.
The polygraph determined her answers to those two questions were inconclusive, meaning she didn’t score high enough to pass or low enough to fail.
“Did you physically cause Gary’s fall? Did you physically cause Gary to fall that day?”
“No,” she said.
That response was rated a failing grade with deception. Olivo asked her what she thought about the results.
“That’s false,” she said.
Olivo said he doesn’t know what exactly happened the day Coleman fell down the stairs and injured his head, resulting in a brain bleed that ultimately led to his death at 42.
“I don’t know what happened in that house, but what could have happened is that she and Gary got into a shouting match or an argument that turned into a shoving match, he fell and hit the ground,” Olivo told The Hollywood Reporter. “It doesn’t have to be any more sinister than that.”
He added that she may not want to explain how the events unfolded in the home if Coleman’s head injury happened by accident.
“All I know for sure, what I’m 100% certain of — at least through my process — is that there is more to the story than she’s telling.”
The two-hour premiere airs Thursday night on A&E.
hollywoodreporter.com
torontosun.com
Author of the article:Spiro Papuckoski
Published Jul 09, 2025 • 2 minute read
Actor Gary Coleman’s ex-wife wasn’t able to pass a lie-detector test when questioned about the circumstances surrounding his death.
Whatcha talkin’ ’bout?
Shannon Price is set to appear on A&E’s Lie Detector: Truth or Deception series after she was asked yes or no questions about Coleman’s death by a retired FBI agent and polygraph examiner George Olivo.
Price married the Diff’rent Strokes actor in 2007 after they met on the set of the film Church Ball. However, the following year they divorced and Coleman was granted a restraining order to keep her away from his home when he was hospitalized.
Despite the restraining order, Coleman and Price lived together in a common-law relationship until his death in May 2010 after he fell down the stairs at his Utah home.
According to A&E, Price took the test to “address persistent public suspicion regarding her potential involvement in his death, even though she was never charged in connection with it.”
She answered Olivo’s questions while hooked up to the machine, according to The Hollywood Reporter, which obtained a copy of the episode before it aired.
“Did you ever strike Gary during your relationship?”
“No,” she answered.
“Did you intentionally decide to withhold help to Gary when he fell?”
“No,” she replied again.
The polygraph determined her answers to those two questions were inconclusive, meaning she didn’t score high enough to pass or low enough to fail.
“Did you physically cause Gary’s fall? Did you physically cause Gary to fall that day?”
“No,” she said.
That response was rated a failing grade with deception. Olivo asked her what she thought about the results.
“That’s false,” she said.
Olivo said he doesn’t know what exactly happened the day Coleman fell down the stairs and injured his head, resulting in a brain bleed that ultimately led to his death at 42.
“I don’t know what happened in that house, but what could have happened is that she and Gary got into a shouting match or an argument that turned into a shoving match, he fell and hit the ground,” Olivo told The Hollywood Reporter. “It doesn’t have to be any more sinister than that.”
He added that she may not want to explain how the events unfolded in the home if Coleman’s head injury happened by accident.
“All I know for sure, what I’m 100% certain of — at least through my process — is that there is more to the story than she’s telling.”
The two-hour premiere airs Thursday night on A&E.
Gary Coleman’s Ex-Wife Didn’t Do Well on a Polygraph About His Death
The Hollywood Reporter grilled Shannon Price’s lie-detector test administrator over her A&E episode.
hollywoodreporter.com
Gary Coleman's ex-wife fails lie-detector test about actor's death from fall
Actor Gary Coleman's ex-wife wasn't able to pass a lie-detector test when questioned about the circumstances surrounding his death.
thankfully midgets are not endangered.Gary Coleman's ex-wife fails lie-detector test about actor's death from fall
Author of the article:Spiro Papuckoski
Published Jul 09, 2025 • 2 minute read
Actor Gary Coleman’s ex-wife wasn’t able to pass a lie-detector test when questioned about the circumstances surrounding his death.
Whatcha talkin’ ’bout?
Shannon Price is set to appear on A&E’s Lie Detector: Truth or Deception series after she was asked yes or no questions about Coleman’s death by a retired FBI agent and polygraph examiner George Olivo.
Price married the Diff’rent Strokes actor in 2007 after they met on the set of the film Church Ball. However, the following year they divorced and Coleman was granted a restraining order to keep her away from his home when he was hospitalized.
Despite the restraining order, Coleman and Price lived together in a common-law relationship until his death in May 2010 after he fell down the stairs at his Utah home.
According to A&E, Price took the test to “address persistent public suspicion regarding her potential involvement in his death, even though she was never charged in connection with it.”
She answered Olivo’s questions while hooked up to the machine, according to The Hollywood Reporter, which obtained a copy of the episode before it aired.
“Did you ever strike Gary during your relationship?”
“No,” she answered.
“Did you intentionally decide to withhold help to Gary when he fell?”
“No,” she replied again.
The polygraph determined her answers to those two questions were inconclusive, meaning she didn’t score high enough to pass or low enough to fail.
“Did you physically cause Gary’s fall? Did you physically cause Gary to fall that day?”
“No,” she said.
That response was rated a failing grade with deception. Olivo asked her what she thought about the results.
“That’s false,” she said.
Olivo said he doesn’t know what exactly happened the day Coleman fell down the stairs and injured his head, resulting in a brain bleed that ultimately led to his death at 42.
“I don’t know what happened in that house, but what could have happened is that she and Gary got into a shouting match or an argument that turned into a shoving match, he fell and hit the ground,” Olivo told The Hollywood Reporter. “It doesn’t have to be any more sinister than that.”
He added that she may not want to explain how the events unfolded in the home if Coleman’s head injury happened by accident.
“All I know for sure, what I’m 100% certain of — at least through my process — is that there is more to the story than she’s telling.”
The two-hour premiere airs Thursday night on A&E.
Gary Coleman’s Ex-Wife Didn’t Do Well on a Polygraph About His Death
The Hollywood Reporter grilled Shannon Price’s lie-detector test administrator over her A&E episode.Gary Coleman's ex-wife fails lie-detector test about actor's death from fall
Actor Gary Coleman's ex-wife wasn't able to pass a lie-detector test when questioned about the circumstances surrounding his death.
K-9 unit dog, Devi, is mourned following her death
Author of the article:Jane Stevenson
Published Jul 11, 2025 • Last updated 19 hours ago • 1 minute read
K-9 Unit's T.C. Andrews and his dog, Devi
Devi, a K-9 unit police dog in Toronto, has passed after over a decade of service including working the Pan Am Games. Photo by Toronto Police Association
A “beloved” K-9 Unit dog has died after more than a decade of service in Toronto including during the 2015 Pan Am Games.
The Toronto Police Association says police service dog has Devi, who worked with handler T.C. Andrews, has passed.
“We’re deeply saddened by the passing of Police Service Dog Devi, a beloved member of our K9 Unit,” said the TPA on it’s X account.
“Devi was certified in Explosive Firearm Detection in May 2015, just in time for the Pan-Am Games, and spent over a decade working side by side with her handler, T.C. Andrews. She was exceptional at her job. Focused, fearless, and full of heart.”
The TPA continues in its post on X: “Devi left a lasting impression on everyone she met. Her dedication, loyalty, and presence will never be forgotten. Our heartfelt condolences to T.C. Andrews and everyone who served with Devi.”
torontosun.com
Author of the article:Jane Stevenson
Published Jul 11, 2025 • Last updated 19 hours ago • 1 minute read
K-9 Unit's T.C. Andrews and his dog, Devi
Devi, a K-9 unit police dog in Toronto, has passed after over a decade of service including working the Pan Am Games. Photo by Toronto Police Association
A “beloved” K-9 Unit dog has died after more than a decade of service in Toronto including during the 2015 Pan Am Games.
The Toronto Police Association says police service dog has Devi, who worked with handler T.C. Andrews, has passed.
“We’re deeply saddened by the passing of Police Service Dog Devi, a beloved member of our K9 Unit,” said the TPA on it’s X account.
“Devi was certified in Explosive Firearm Detection in May 2015, just in time for the Pan-Am Games, and spent over a decade working side by side with her handler, T.C. Andrews. She was exceptional at her job. Focused, fearless, and full of heart.”
The TPA continues in its post on X: “Devi left a lasting impression on everyone she met. Her dedication, loyalty, and presence will never be forgotten. Our heartfelt condolences to T.C. Andrews and everyone who served with Devi.”
'Focused, fearless and full of heart' K-9 unit dog, Devi, is mourned following her death
A “beloved” K-9 Unit dog has died after more than a decade of service in Toronto including during the Pan-Am Games.
Aww - I wish they lived longer. I had to put down our 16 y.o. terrier last September & still get weepy sometimes when I think about him. It's hard!! RIP DeviK-9 unit dog, Devi, is mourned following her death
Author of the article:Jane Stevenson
Published Jul 11, 2025 • Last updated 19 hours ago • 1 minute read
K-9 Unit's T.C. Andrews and his dog, Devi
Devi, a K-9 unit police dog in Toronto, has passed after over a decade of service including working the Pan Am Games. Photo by Toronto Police Association
A “beloved” K-9 Unit dog has died after more than a decade of service in Toronto including during the 2015 Pan Am Games.
The Toronto Police Association says police service dog has Devi, who worked with handler T.C. Andrews, has passed.
“We’re deeply saddened by the passing of Police Service Dog Devi, a beloved member of our K9 Unit,” said the TPA on it’s X account.
“Devi was certified in Explosive Firearm Detection in May 2015, just in time for the Pan-Am Games, and spent over a decade working side by side with her handler, T.C. Andrews. She was exceptional at her job. Focused, fearless, and full of heart.”
The TPA continues in its post on X: “Devi left a lasting impression on everyone she met. Her dedication, loyalty, and presence will never be forgotten. Our heartfelt condolences to T.C. Andrews and everyone who served with Devi.”
View attachment 29975
'Focused, fearless and full of heart' K-9 unit dog, Devi, is mourned following her death
A “beloved” K-9 Unit dog has died after more than a decade of service in Toronto including during the Pan-Am Games.
London woman speaks out after rare tick-borne disease kills dog
A London woman is warning pet owners in the Long Point area to be vigilant after a rare tick-borne disease killed her dog.
Author of the article:Jacob Robinson • Simcoe Reformer
Published Jul 15, 2025 • 2 minute read
Londoner Taylor Walpole and her late dog, Tobi.
Londoner Taylor Walpole and her late dog, Tobi.
A London woman is warning pet owners in the Long Point area to be vigilant after she says a rare tick-borne disease killed her dog.
Taylor Walpole would often visit family members at a cottage in Long Point – a Norfolk County community on Lake Erie, about a 90-minute drive southeast of London – during the summer months and bring along Tobi, her white husky rescue pup from northern Manitoba.
As a sometimes–travelling nurse, Walpole left Tobi in Long Point this spring as she left for a stint working in British Columbia.
“He loved to go to Long Point,” Walpole said. “He would swim in the water, loved walking on the beach and all the trails and everything there.
“I was still in British Columbia, and I got a text from my family saying Tobi wouldn’t eat breakfast that morning, he was really lazy and didn’t want to go on any walks. They had to push him to get out the door, which is really unlike him.”
Tobi’s health worsened in the coming days. He was taken to Walpole’s regular clinic in London and an emergency hospital in Toronto. Despite a number of attempts to get the regularly spry six-year-old to health, including plasma transfusion, nothing worked.
“I decided to put him down June 16, three days after I got a call from the vet and all his extended bloodwork and tests came back,” Walpole said. “He tested positive for Rickettsia rickettsii bacteria . . . Tobi was on tick prevention medication 12 months of the year, but it didn’t protect him.”
Rickettsia rickettsii bacteria causes Rocky Mountain spotted fever (RMSF), a very rare, dangerous and fast-acting tick-borne disease not typically seen in Ontario.
In his blog about responsible pet ownership, Scott Weese, veterinary internal medicine specialist and the chief of infection control at University of Guelph’s Ontario Veterinary College, said the disease hadn’t been considered a risk locally, but now five dogs have tested positive in Ontario, four having a history of visiting Long Point.
“We need to be more aware of this disease and pay even more attention to the ticks,” Weese wrote. “In Ontario, RMSF can be transmitted by the American dog tick, Dermacentor variabilis, which is well established here, but a different species from the tick that typically get the most attention, the black legged tick Ixodes scapularis, which is associated with transmission of Lyme disease.”
Weese advises that folks in Long Point should regularly perform checks for ticks both on themselves and their pets as RMSF can be dangerous for humans and animals. If any people or animals in the area become sick following what is assumed to be a tick bite, they should seek medical assistance immediately.
Walpole said she notified local public health officials of the dog’s diagnosis. She says she’s doing her best to let everyone visiting the lakeshore know they should be cautious in the wake of Tobi’s death.
“I think for me and my family, the thing we’re really doing in our grief is just trying to spread the word,” she said. “We can’t bring Tobi back, but we can hopefully save some other dogs.”
To learn more about RMSF, visit Weese’s blog at wormsandgermsblog.com.
wormsandgermsblog.com
torontosun.com
A London woman is warning pet owners in the Long Point area to be vigilant after a rare tick-borne disease killed her dog.
Author of the article:Jacob Robinson • Simcoe Reformer
Published Jul 15, 2025 • 2 minute read
Londoner Taylor Walpole and her late dog, Tobi.
Londoner Taylor Walpole and her late dog, Tobi.
A London woman is warning pet owners in the Long Point area to be vigilant after she says a rare tick-borne disease killed her dog.
Taylor Walpole would often visit family members at a cottage in Long Point – a Norfolk County community on Lake Erie, about a 90-minute drive southeast of London – during the summer months and bring along Tobi, her white husky rescue pup from northern Manitoba.
As a sometimes–travelling nurse, Walpole left Tobi in Long Point this spring as she left for a stint working in British Columbia.
“He loved to go to Long Point,” Walpole said. “He would swim in the water, loved walking on the beach and all the trails and everything there.
“I was still in British Columbia, and I got a text from my family saying Tobi wouldn’t eat breakfast that morning, he was really lazy and didn’t want to go on any walks. They had to push him to get out the door, which is really unlike him.”
Tobi’s health worsened in the coming days. He was taken to Walpole’s regular clinic in London and an emergency hospital in Toronto. Despite a number of attempts to get the regularly spry six-year-old to health, including plasma transfusion, nothing worked.
“I decided to put him down June 16, three days after I got a call from the vet and all his extended bloodwork and tests came back,” Walpole said. “He tested positive for Rickettsia rickettsii bacteria . . . Tobi was on tick prevention medication 12 months of the year, but it didn’t protect him.”
Rickettsia rickettsii bacteria causes Rocky Mountain spotted fever (RMSF), a very rare, dangerous and fast-acting tick-borne disease not typically seen in Ontario.
In his blog about responsible pet ownership, Scott Weese, veterinary internal medicine specialist and the chief of infection control at University of Guelph’s Ontario Veterinary College, said the disease hadn’t been considered a risk locally, but now five dogs have tested positive in Ontario, four having a history of visiting Long Point.
“We need to be more aware of this disease and pay even more attention to the ticks,” Weese wrote. “In Ontario, RMSF can be transmitted by the American dog tick, Dermacentor variabilis, which is well established here, but a different species from the tick that typically get the most attention, the black legged tick Ixodes scapularis, which is associated with transmission of Lyme disease.”
Weese advises that folks in Long Point should regularly perform checks for ticks both on themselves and their pets as RMSF can be dangerous for humans and animals. If any people or animals in the area become sick following what is assumed to be a tick bite, they should seek medical assistance immediately.
Walpole said she notified local public health officials of the dog’s diagnosis. She says she’s doing her best to let everyone visiting the lakeshore know they should be cautious in the wake of Tobi’s death.
“I think for me and my family, the thing we’re really doing in our grief is just trying to spread the word,” she said. “We can’t bring Tobi back, but we can hopefully save some other dogs.”
To learn more about RMSF, visit Weese’s blog at wormsandgermsblog.com.
Worms & Germs Blog
The Worms and Germs Blog authored by Drs. Scott Weese and Maureen Anderson covers animal health and diseases and is published by the Ontario Veterinary College University of Guelph.
wormsandgermsblog.com
London woman speaks out after rare tick-borne disease kills dog
A London woman is warning pet owners in the Long Point area to be vigilant after she says a rare tick-borne disease killed her dog.
Vandals who cut down Sycamore Gap tree sentenced in England to more than 4 years in prison
Author of the article:Associated Press
Associated Press
Brian Melley
Published Jul 15, 2025 • 4 minute read
This combination created in Londonon May 9, 2025 of undated handout pictures released by Britain's Northumbria Police taken in Newcastle, shows Daniel Graham (L) and Adam Carruthers, the two men convicted over felling of the tree at Sycamore Gap. Photo by - /Northumbria Police/AFP via Getty
LONDON (AP) — Two men who cut down England’s beloved Sycamore Gap tree were sentenced Tuesday to more than four years in prison.
The tree stood for nearly 150 years before Daniel Graham and Adam Carruthers carried out what a prosecutor called a “moronic mission” and cut it down in the middle of the night, toppling it onto Hadrian’s Wall.
Graham, 39, and Carruthers, 32, were each convicted of two counts of criminal damage — one for destroying the tree, the other for damaging the ancient wall.
Justice Christina Lambert sentenced the pair each to four years and three months in prison during the hearing in Newcastle Crown Court.
The tree, perched in a saddle between two hills, had been known to locals for its scenic setting but became famous after a cameo in Kevin Costner’s 1991 film “Robin Hood: Prince Of Thieves.” It drew tourists, lovers, landscape photographers and even those who spread the ashes of loved ones. It was voted English “Tree of the Year” in 2016.
THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows below.
LONDON (AP) — The two men who long denied cutting down England’s beloved Sycamore Gap tree changed their tune Tuesday as they faced several years in prison for the crime.
Daniel Graham and Adam Carruthers previously testified at trial that they had nothing to do with the vandalism, but a prosecutor said that the two convicts now blame booze for the act as they admitted before sentencing that they had been on what he termed a “moronic mission” to topple the tree.
Prosecutor Richard Wright said that it was a “fanciful proposition” that they didn’t intend to cut down the tree along Hadrian’s Wall or realize what they were doing until it was too late.
“The court can be sure they were sober, prepared and planned to do what they did,” Wright said. He said the pair should serve prison sentences between 18 months and 4 years.
Justice Christina Lambert was due to sentence the pair later in the afternoon at Newcastle Crown Court.
Graham, 39, and Carruthers, 32, were each convicted in May of two counts of criminal damage — one for killing the tree, and the other for damaging the ancient wall.
The illegal felling in Northumberland National Park on Sept. 28, 2023, caused instant outrage and news quickly spread beyond the ancient wall built by Emperor Hadrian in A.D. 122 to protect the northwest frontier of the Roman Empire.
It wasn’t Britain’s biggest or oldest tree, but the sycamore was prized for its picturesque setting, symmetrically planted between two hills along the wall that is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The tree had long been known to locals but became famous after a cameo in Kevin Costner’s 1991 film “Robin Hood: Prince Of Thieves.” It drew tourists, lovers, landscape photographers and even those who spread the ashes of loved ones. It was voted English “Tree of the Year” in 2016.
“This iconic tree can never be replaced,” Andrew Poad, general manager of the heritage and nature conservation charity National Trust, said in a statement read in court by a prosecutor. “It belonged to the people. It was a totemic symbol for many; a destination to visit whilst walking Hadrian’s Wall, a place to make memories, take photos in all seasons; but it was also a place of sanctuary.”
One man wielded a chainsaw while the other captured the felling on grainy video on a cellphone. Prosecutors couldn’t say who cut down the tree and who memorialized the senseless act, but both were equally culpable.
In less than three minutes, the tree that had stood nearly 150 years crashed to the ground.
Police officers look at the tree at Sycamore Gap
Police officers look at the tree at Sycamore Gap, next to Hadrian’s Wall, in Northumberland, England, Thursday Sept. 28, 2023 which has come down overnight. Photo by Owen Humphreys /THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Carruthers will have to carry the burden for his actions like a “form of personal penance,” attorney Andrew Gurney said.
“It was no more than drunken stupidity,” Gurney said, “and something he would regret for the rest of his life.”
At trial, the two men — once the best of friends who have fallen out since their arrests — testified they were at their respective homes on the night of the crime and downplayed their skills working with chainsaws.
But evidence shown to the jury implicated both men.
Graham’s Range Rover was near the tree around the time it fell. Video of the felling was found on his phone — with metadata showing that it was shot at the location of the tree.
As digital data showed Graham’s vehicle on its way back to where the two lived about 40 minutes away, Carruthers got a text from his girlfriend with footage of their 12-day-old son.
“I’ve got a better video than that,” Carruthers replied.
The jury didn’t hear evidence of a motive for the crime, but Wright suggested in his closing argument that the two had been on a “moronic mission” and cut down the tree as a joke.
“They woke up the morning after and … it must have dawned on them that they couldn’t see anyone else smiling,” Wright said.
![aptopix-britain-hadrians-wall-felled-tree[1].jpg](https://forums.canadiancontent.net/data/attachments/28/28295-79da38484b909e718f118cc153f1ad46.jpg "aptopix-britain-hadrians-wall-felled-tree[1].jpg")
torontosun.com
Author of the article:Associated Press
Associated Press
Brian Melley
Published Jul 15, 2025 • 4 minute read
This combination created in Londonon May 9, 2025 of undated handout pictures released by Britain's Northumbria Police taken in Newcastle, shows Daniel Graham (L) and Adam Carruthers, the two men convicted over felling of the tree at Sycamore Gap. Photo by - /Northumbria Police/AFP via Getty
LONDON (AP) — Two men who cut down England’s beloved Sycamore Gap tree were sentenced Tuesday to more than four years in prison.
The tree stood for nearly 150 years before Daniel Graham and Adam Carruthers carried out what a prosecutor called a “moronic mission” and cut it down in the middle of the night, toppling it onto Hadrian’s Wall.
Graham, 39, and Carruthers, 32, were each convicted of two counts of criminal damage — one for destroying the tree, the other for damaging the ancient wall.
Justice Christina Lambert sentenced the pair each to four years and three months in prison during the hearing in Newcastle Crown Court.
The tree, perched in a saddle between two hills, had been known to locals for its scenic setting but became famous after a cameo in Kevin Costner’s 1991 film “Robin Hood: Prince Of Thieves.” It drew tourists, lovers, landscape photographers and even those who spread the ashes of loved ones. It was voted English “Tree of the Year” in 2016.
THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows below.
LONDON (AP) — The two men who long denied cutting down England’s beloved Sycamore Gap tree changed their tune Tuesday as they faced several years in prison for the crime.
Daniel Graham and Adam Carruthers previously testified at trial that they had nothing to do with the vandalism, but a prosecutor said that the two convicts now blame booze for the act as they admitted before sentencing that they had been on what he termed a “moronic mission” to topple the tree.
Prosecutor Richard Wright said that it was a “fanciful proposition” that they didn’t intend to cut down the tree along Hadrian’s Wall or realize what they were doing until it was too late.
“The court can be sure they were sober, prepared and planned to do what they did,” Wright said. He said the pair should serve prison sentences between 18 months and 4 years.
Justice Christina Lambert was due to sentence the pair later in the afternoon at Newcastle Crown Court.
Graham, 39, and Carruthers, 32, were each convicted in May of two counts of criminal damage — one for killing the tree, and the other for damaging the ancient wall.
The illegal felling in Northumberland National Park on Sept. 28, 2023, caused instant outrage and news quickly spread beyond the ancient wall built by Emperor Hadrian in A.D. 122 to protect the northwest frontier of the Roman Empire.
It wasn’t Britain’s biggest or oldest tree, but the sycamore was prized for its picturesque setting, symmetrically planted between two hills along the wall that is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The tree had long been known to locals but became famous after a cameo in Kevin Costner’s 1991 film “Robin Hood: Prince Of Thieves.” It drew tourists, lovers, landscape photographers and even those who spread the ashes of loved ones. It was voted English “Tree of the Year” in 2016.
“This iconic tree can never be replaced,” Andrew Poad, general manager of the heritage and nature conservation charity National Trust, said in a statement read in court by a prosecutor. “It belonged to the people. It was a totemic symbol for many; a destination to visit whilst walking Hadrian’s Wall, a place to make memories, take photos in all seasons; but it was also a place of sanctuary.”
One man wielded a chainsaw while the other captured the felling on grainy video on a cellphone. Prosecutors couldn’t say who cut down the tree and who memorialized the senseless act, but both were equally culpable.
In less than three minutes, the tree that had stood nearly 150 years crashed to the ground.
Police officers look at the tree at Sycamore Gap
Police officers look at the tree at Sycamore Gap, next to Hadrian’s Wall, in Northumberland, England, Thursday Sept. 28, 2023 which has come down overnight. Photo by Owen Humphreys /THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Carruthers will have to carry the burden for his actions like a “form of personal penance,” attorney Andrew Gurney said.
“It was no more than drunken stupidity,” Gurney said, “and something he would regret for the rest of his life.”
At trial, the two men — once the best of friends who have fallen out since their arrests — testified they were at their respective homes on the night of the crime and downplayed their skills working with chainsaws.
But evidence shown to the jury implicated both men.
Graham’s Range Rover was near the tree around the time it fell. Video of the felling was found on his phone — with metadata showing that it was shot at the location of the tree.
As digital data showed Graham’s vehicle on its way back to where the two lived about 40 minutes away, Carruthers got a text from his girlfriend with footage of their 12-day-old son.
“I’ve got a better video than that,” Carruthers replied.
The jury didn’t hear evidence of a motive for the crime, but Wright suggested in his closing argument that the two had been on a “moronic mission” and cut down the tree as a joke.
“They woke up the morning after and … it must have dawned on them that they couldn’t see anyone else smiling,” Wright said.
Vandals who cut down Sycamore Gap tree sentenced in England to more than 4 years in prison
The tree stood for nearly 150 years before Daniel Graham and Adam Carruthers carried out what a prosecutor called a "moronic mission".
they committed an act of treeson.Vandals who cut down Sycamore Gap tree sentenced in England to more than 4 years in prison
Author of the article:Associated Press
Associated Press
Brian Melley
Published Jul 15, 2025 • 4 minute read
This combination created in Londonon May 9, 2025 of undated handout pictures released by Britain's Northumbria Police taken in Newcastle, shows Daniel Graham (L) and Adam Carruthers, the two men convicted over felling of the tree at Sycamore Gap. Photo by - /Northumbria Police/AFP via Getty
LONDON (AP) — Two men who cut down England’s beloved Sycamore Gap tree were sentenced Tuesday to more than four years in prison.
The tree stood for nearly 150 years before Daniel Graham and Adam Carruthers carried out what a prosecutor called a “moronic mission” and cut it down in the middle of the night, toppling it onto Hadrian’s Wall.
Graham, 39, and Carruthers, 32, were each convicted of two counts of criminal damage — one for destroying the tree, the other for damaging the ancient wall.
Justice Christina Lambert sentenced the pair each to four years and three months in prison during the hearing in Newcastle Crown Court.
The tree, perched in a saddle between two hills, had been known to locals for its scenic setting but became famous after a cameo in Kevin Costner’s 1991 film “Robin Hood: Prince Of Thieves.” It drew tourists, lovers, landscape photographers and even those who spread the ashes of loved ones. It was voted English “Tree of the Year” in 2016.
THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows below.
LONDON (AP) — The two men who long denied cutting down England’s beloved Sycamore Gap tree changed their tune Tuesday as they faced several years in prison for the crime.
Daniel Graham and Adam Carruthers previously testified at trial that they had nothing to do with the vandalism, but a prosecutor said that the two convicts now blame booze for the act as they admitted before sentencing that they had been on what he termed a “moronic mission” to topple the tree.
Prosecutor Richard Wright said that it was a “fanciful proposition” that they didn’t intend to cut down the tree along Hadrian’s Wall or realize what they were doing until it was too late.
“The court can be sure they were sober, prepared and planned to do what they did,” Wright said. He said the pair should serve prison sentences between 18 months and 4 years.
Justice Christina Lambert was due to sentence the pair later in the afternoon at Newcastle Crown Court.
Graham, 39, and Carruthers, 32, were each convicted in May of two counts of criminal damage — one for killing the tree, and the other for damaging the ancient wall.
The illegal felling in Northumberland National Park on Sept. 28, 2023, caused instant outrage and news quickly spread beyond the ancient wall built by Emperor Hadrian in A.D. 122 to protect the northwest frontier of the Roman Empire.
It wasn’t Britain’s biggest or oldest tree, but the sycamore was prized for its picturesque setting, symmetrically planted between two hills along the wall that is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The tree had long been known to locals but became famous after a cameo in Kevin Costner’s 1991 film “Robin Hood: Prince Of Thieves.” It drew tourists, lovers, landscape photographers and even those who spread the ashes of loved ones. It was voted English “Tree of the Year” in 2016.
“This iconic tree can never be replaced,” Andrew Poad, general manager of the heritage and nature conservation charity National Trust, said in a statement read in court by a prosecutor. “It belonged to the people. It was a totemic symbol for many; a destination to visit whilst walking Hadrian’s Wall, a place to make memories, take photos in all seasons; but it was also a place of sanctuary.”
One man wielded a chainsaw while the other captured the felling on grainy video on a cellphone. Prosecutors couldn’t say who cut down the tree and who memorialized the senseless act, but both were equally culpable.
In less than three minutes, the tree that had stood nearly 150 years crashed to the ground.
Police officers look at the tree at Sycamore Gap
Police officers look at the tree at Sycamore Gap, next to Hadrian’s Wall, in Northumberland, England, Thursday Sept. 28, 2023 which has come down overnight. Photo by Owen Humphreys /THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Carruthers will have to carry the burden for his actions like a “form of personal penance,” attorney Andrew Gurney said.
“It was no more than drunken stupidity,” Gurney said, “and something he would regret for the rest of his life.”
At trial, the two men — once the best of friends who have fallen out since their arrests — testified they were at their respective homes on the night of the crime and downplayed their skills working with chainsaws.
But evidence shown to the jury implicated both men.
Graham’s Range Rover was near the tree around the time it fell. Video of the felling was found on his phone — with metadata showing that it was shot at the location of the tree.
As digital data showed Graham’s vehicle on its way back to where the two lived about 40 minutes away, Carruthers got a text from his girlfriend with footage of their 12-day-old son.
“I’ve got a better video than that,” Carruthers replied.
The jury didn’t hear evidence of a motive for the crime, but Wright suggested in his closing argument that the two had been on a “moronic mission” and cut down the tree as a joke.
“They woke up the morning after and … it must have dawned on them that they couldn’t see anyone else smiling,” Wright said.
View attachment 30033
Vandals who cut down Sycamore Gap tree sentenced in England to more than 4 years in prison
The tree stood for nearly 150 years before Daniel Graham and Adam Carruthers carried out what a prosecutor called a "moronic mission".
Cosby Show actor Malcolm-Jamal Warner, 54, dies in accidental drowning
Author of the article:Javier Cordoba and Andrew Dalton, Associated Press
Published Jul 21, 2025 • Last updated 12 hours ago • 4 minute read
SAN JOSE, Costa Rica — Malcolm-Jamal Warner, the actor who played teenage son Theo Huxtable on The Cosby Show, has died at age 54 in an accidental drowning in Costa Rica, authorities there said Monday.
Costa Rica’s Judicial Investigation Department said Warner drowned Sunday afternoon on a beach on Costa Rica’s Caribbean coast. He was swimming at Playa Cocles in Limon province when a current pulled him deeper into the ocean.
“He was rescued by people on the beach,” the department’s initial report said, but first responders from Costa Rica’s Red Cross found him without vital signs and he was taken to the morgue.
Warner created many TV moments etched in the memories of generation X children and their parents, including a pilot-episode argument with Bill Cosby’s Cliff Huxtable about money, and another episode where Theo tries to hide his ear piercing from his dad. His Theo was the only son among four daughters in the household of Cliff Huxtable and Phylicia Rashad’s Clair Huxtable on the NBC sitcom, and he would be one of the prime representations of American teenage boyhood on a show that was the most popular in America for much of its run from 1984 to 1992.
He played the role for eight seasons, appearing in each of the show’s 197 episodes and earning an Emmy nomination for supporting actor in a comedy in 1986. For many the lasting image of the character, and of Warner, is of him wearing a badly botched mock designer shirt sewed by his sister Denise, played by Lisa Bonet. The “Gordon Gartrell” shirt later became a meme-able image: Anthony Mackie wore one on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon and the profile picture on Warner’s Instagram shows a toddler sporting one.
Basketball Hall of Famer Magic Johnson was among those paying him tribute Monday. Johnson said on X that he and his wife are sad to hear of the death of their friend.
“We were both super fans of the hit Cosby Show and continued to follow his career on shows like Malcolm and Eddie and The Resident,” Johnson said. “Every time I ran into Malcolm, we would have deep and fun conversations about basketball, life, and business. He will truly be missed.”
Like the rest of the Cosby Show cast, Warner had to contend with the sexual assault allegations against its titular star, whose conviction in a Pennsylvania court was later overturned.
Warner told The Associated Press in 2015 that the show’s legacy was “tarnished.
“My biggest concern is when it comes to images of people of colour on television and film,” Warner said. “We’ve always had The Cosby Show to hold up against that. And the fact that we no longer have that, that’s the thing that saddens me the most because in a few generations the Huxtables will have been just a fairy tale.”
Representatives for Cosby declined an immediate comment.
Warner later appeared on the sitcom Malcolm & Eddie, co-starring with comedian Eddie Griffin in the series on the defunct UPN network from 1996 to 2000. And in the 2010s, he starred opposite Tracee Ellis Ross as a family-blending couple for two seasons on the BET sitcom Read Between the Lines. He also had a role as O.J. Simpson’s friend Al Cowlings on American Crime Story and was a series regular on Fox’s The Resident.
“First I met you as Theo with the rest of the world then you were my first TV husband,” Ross said on Instagram. “My heart is so so sad. What an actor and friend you were: warm, gentle, present, kind, thoughtful, deep, funny, elegant.”
His film roles included the 2008 rom-com Fool’s Gold with Matthew McConaughey and Kate Hudson. A poet and a musician, Warner was a Grammy winner, for best traditional R&B performance, and was nominated for best spoken word poetry album for Hiding in Plain View.
Warner had been married for about 10 years with a daughter about five years old, but chose to not publicly disclose their names. Warner’s representatives declined an immediate comment on his death.
“I grew up with a maniacal obsession with not wanting to be one of those ‘where are they now kids,’” Warner told the AP in 2015. “I feel very blessed to be able to have all of these avenues of expression … to be where I am now and finally at a place where I can let go of that worry about having a life after Cosby.”
— AP Entertainment Writer Andrew Dalton reported from Los Angeles. AP National Writer Jocelyn Noveck contributed reporting from New York.
instagram.com
torontosun.com
Author of the article:Javier Cordoba and Andrew Dalton, Associated Press
Published Jul 21, 2025 • Last updated 12 hours ago • 4 minute read
SAN JOSE, Costa Rica — Malcolm-Jamal Warner, the actor who played teenage son Theo Huxtable on The Cosby Show, has died at age 54 in an accidental drowning in Costa Rica, authorities there said Monday.
Costa Rica’s Judicial Investigation Department said Warner drowned Sunday afternoon on a beach on Costa Rica’s Caribbean coast. He was swimming at Playa Cocles in Limon province when a current pulled him deeper into the ocean.
“He was rescued by people on the beach,” the department’s initial report said, but first responders from Costa Rica’s Red Cross found him without vital signs and he was taken to the morgue.
Warner created many TV moments etched in the memories of generation X children and their parents, including a pilot-episode argument with Bill Cosby’s Cliff Huxtable about money, and another episode where Theo tries to hide his ear piercing from his dad. His Theo was the only son among four daughters in the household of Cliff Huxtable and Phylicia Rashad’s Clair Huxtable on the NBC sitcom, and he would be one of the prime representations of American teenage boyhood on a show that was the most popular in America for much of its run from 1984 to 1992.
He played the role for eight seasons, appearing in each of the show’s 197 episodes and earning an Emmy nomination for supporting actor in a comedy in 1986. For many the lasting image of the character, and of Warner, is of him wearing a badly botched mock designer shirt sewed by his sister Denise, played by Lisa Bonet. The “Gordon Gartrell” shirt later became a meme-able image: Anthony Mackie wore one on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon and the profile picture on Warner’s Instagram shows a toddler sporting one.
Basketball Hall of Famer Magic Johnson was among those paying him tribute Monday. Johnson said on X that he and his wife are sad to hear of the death of their friend.
“We were both super fans of the hit Cosby Show and continued to follow his career on shows like Malcolm and Eddie and The Resident,” Johnson said. “Every time I ran into Malcolm, we would have deep and fun conversations about basketball, life, and business. He will truly be missed.”
Like the rest of the Cosby Show cast, Warner had to contend with the sexual assault allegations against its titular star, whose conviction in a Pennsylvania court was later overturned.
Warner told The Associated Press in 2015 that the show’s legacy was “tarnished.
“My biggest concern is when it comes to images of people of colour on television and film,” Warner said. “We’ve always had The Cosby Show to hold up against that. And the fact that we no longer have that, that’s the thing that saddens me the most because in a few generations the Huxtables will have been just a fairy tale.”
Representatives for Cosby declined an immediate comment.
Warner later appeared on the sitcom Malcolm & Eddie, co-starring with comedian Eddie Griffin in the series on the defunct UPN network from 1996 to 2000. And in the 2010s, he starred opposite Tracee Ellis Ross as a family-blending couple for two seasons on the BET sitcom Read Between the Lines. He also had a role as O.J. Simpson’s friend Al Cowlings on American Crime Story and was a series regular on Fox’s The Resident.
“First I met you as Theo with the rest of the world then you were my first TV husband,” Ross said on Instagram. “My heart is so so sad. What an actor and friend you were: warm, gentle, present, kind, thoughtful, deep, funny, elegant.”
His film roles included the 2008 rom-com Fool’s Gold with Matthew McConaughey and Kate Hudson. A poet and a musician, Warner was a Grammy winner, for best traditional R&B performance, and was nominated for best spoken word poetry album for Hiding in Plain View.
Warner had been married for about 10 years with a daughter about five years old, but chose to not publicly disclose their names. Warner’s representatives declined an immediate comment on his death.
“I grew up with a maniacal obsession with not wanting to be one of those ‘where are they now kids,’” Warner told the AP in 2015. “I feel very blessed to be able to have all of these avenues of expression … to be where I am now and finally at a place where I can let go of that worry about having a life after Cosby.”
— AP Entertainment Writer Andrew Dalton reported from Los Angeles. AP National Writer Jocelyn Noveck contributed reporting from New York.
Tracee Ellis Ross on Instagram: "I love you, Malcolm. First I met you as Theo with the rest of the world then you were my first TV husband. My heart is so so sad. What an actor and friend you were: warm, gentle, present, kind, thoughtful, deep, funny
694K likes, 8,308 comments - traceeellisross on July 21, 2025: "I love you, Malcolm. First I met you as Theo with the rest of the world then you were my first TV husband. My heart is so so sad. What an actor and friend you were: warm, gentle, present, kind, thoughtful, deep, funny, elegant. You...
instagram.com
Cosby Show actor Malcolm-Jamal Warner, 54, dies in accidental drowning
Malcolm-Jamal Warner, the actor who played Theo Huxtable on The Cosby Show, has died at age 54 in an accidental drowning in Costa Rica.
Neighbours accuse Toronto builder of gaming system to uproot beloved tree for parking pad
Author of the article:Canadian Press
Canadian Press
Sharif Hassan
Published Jul 26, 2025 • 4 minute read
A tree stump and chopped up branches are shown after a tree was removed from a property in Toronto, in this undated handout photo.
A tree stump and chopped up branches are shown after a tree was removed from a property in Toronto, in this undated handout photo. Photo by Handout /THE CANADIAN PRESS
The big, backyard honey locust had a seating area set up under its canopy and a swing hanging from a sturdy branch.
It was one of many trees in Leaside, a residential neighborhood northeast of downtown Toronto that is famous for its old growth and green space, but it was special, says Karen Hwang.
It was nothing short of an “oasis” for her neighbour, who liked to entertain in the backyard. It also benefited Hwang’s family next door from the time they moved in 34 years ago, supplying fresh air and blocking noise pollution.
“That tree provided, you know, the wonderful shade, the beautiful esthetic,” she recalled in a recent interview.
“It just had so many positive environmental impacts.”
Without the city’s permission, the beloved giant was recently brought down, in a case that has sparked neighbourhood outrage and calls for change at city hall.
On the morning of June 26, Hwang said she and her husband were eating breakfast while watching the news when they heard a “big bang” and their television screen went dark.
The couple rushed outside to check what happened, and they saw the tree was being cut down, and a big branch had hit their satellite dish.
At the time, developer Modcity was preparing to build a fourplex and garden suite on the property after Hwang’s neighbour sold her house.
The city confirmed there was no permit to remove the tree before construction began. It said it has launched an investigation.
The Canadian Press made several unsuccessful attempts to reach Modcity for comment, including email inquiries and a visit to a location listed on its website as the company’s address.
Privately owned trees with a diameter of 30 cm or more are protected under the city’s tree protection bylaw. The diameter of the one removed was closer to 80 cm, according to neighbors.
Kim Statham, the city’s director of urban forestry, said there was an application to remove a privately owned tree in October, and city staff worked with the builder for five months to revise the multiplex’s design to protect the tree.
“The revised tree-friendly multiplex design created a minor variance that was approved by the Committee of Adjustment,” Statham said.
“The honey locust tree was to remain and not be removed.”
Rachel Chernos Lin, the councillor representing the area, said the intent was to protect the tree by moving the building’s footprint onto the front yard closer to the street.
The developer removed the tree anyway without the city’s support. And to add insult to injury, Lin said, the developer applied to place a parking pad where the tree had stood.
For community members, the idea of paving a little piece of paradise to put in a parking spot was a bridge too far.
“People feel like (the developer) has really taken advantage of the system and disregarded the rules, and people really care and are very angry about that,” Lin said.
Currently, the offence of removing a tree without a permit can carry a fine between $500 and $100,000. It has no impact on permits issued under Ontario’s Building Code.
The current fine structure is not enough to disincentivize the practice, Lin said.
On Thursday, city council adopted a motion Lin proposed that would make tree removal more difficult and add “additional tools” to protect the city’s tree canopy.
The motion requests that the provincial Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing add the tree bylaw as an applicable law for the purposes of issuing building permits.
It also suggests repeat offenders be named and shamed publicly.
City staff are expected to report back about progress towards achieving these goals by the end of the year.
“I want to make sure this doesn’t happen again,” said Lin.
Geoff Kettel, co-president of the Leaside Residents Association, said the builder should not be able to use the revised footprint after taking out the tree that the new design was meant to protect.
The supposed compromise allowed the builder to put the multiplex more than two metres closer to the sidewalk, and Kettel said neighbours’ bungalows and two-storey homes are now at greater risk of being overshadowed.
“If they destroyed the reason for moving it forward in the first place, there’s now no reason to move it forward,” he said.
“People should be obeying the law. They should be doing it right, following the best practices,” he added. “It’s very, very disappointing.”
Last week, The Canadian Press visited the construction site, where a concrete foundation had been laid and tree roots were still visible under a pile of soil.
Elizabeth Marsden and her friend Ann Aveling walked by the area and stopped to comment on the tree’s unfortunate fate.
“It was a beautiful, big red locust and there are not many red locusts,” said Marsden who has lived in the neighborhood for four decades.
“It was just a lovely tree,” she said. “I was angry. How dare they?”
She said she thinks the fines given to builders for such violations are “peanuts,” and there needs to be better enforcement.
Aveling said the uprooting was “totally unnecessary” and it made her feel sad, especially as the life cycle of many other trees in the neighbourhood is coming to a natural end.
“What drew us to Leaside 40 years ago was the trees, the tree canopy, and you’d have these beautiful shaded streets,” she said. “Which of course we’re now losing.”
![Leaside-tree-e1753549405792[1].jpg](https://forums.canadiancontent.net/data/attachments/28/28470-fffed3d3b27612ca59fb6b26c0c63936.jpg "Leaside-tree-e1753549405792[1].jpg")
torontosun.com
Author of the article:Canadian Press
Canadian Press
Sharif Hassan
Published Jul 26, 2025 • 4 minute read
A tree stump and chopped up branches are shown after a tree was removed from a property in Toronto, in this undated handout photo.
A tree stump and chopped up branches are shown after a tree was removed from a property in Toronto, in this undated handout photo. Photo by Handout /THE CANADIAN PRESS
The big, backyard honey locust had a seating area set up under its canopy and a swing hanging from a sturdy branch.
It was one of many trees in Leaside, a residential neighborhood northeast of downtown Toronto that is famous for its old growth and green space, but it was special, says Karen Hwang.
It was nothing short of an “oasis” for her neighbour, who liked to entertain in the backyard. It also benefited Hwang’s family next door from the time they moved in 34 years ago, supplying fresh air and blocking noise pollution.
“That tree provided, you know, the wonderful shade, the beautiful esthetic,” she recalled in a recent interview.
“It just had so many positive environmental impacts.”
Without the city’s permission, the beloved giant was recently brought down, in a case that has sparked neighbourhood outrage and calls for change at city hall.
On the morning of June 26, Hwang said she and her husband were eating breakfast while watching the news when they heard a “big bang” and their television screen went dark.
The couple rushed outside to check what happened, and they saw the tree was being cut down, and a big branch had hit their satellite dish.
At the time, developer Modcity was preparing to build a fourplex and garden suite on the property after Hwang’s neighbour sold her house.
The city confirmed there was no permit to remove the tree before construction began. It said it has launched an investigation.
The Canadian Press made several unsuccessful attempts to reach Modcity for comment, including email inquiries and a visit to a location listed on its website as the company’s address.
Privately owned trees with a diameter of 30 cm or more are protected under the city’s tree protection bylaw. The diameter of the one removed was closer to 80 cm, according to neighbors.
Kim Statham, the city’s director of urban forestry, said there was an application to remove a privately owned tree in October, and city staff worked with the builder for five months to revise the multiplex’s design to protect the tree.
“The revised tree-friendly multiplex design created a minor variance that was approved by the Committee of Adjustment,” Statham said.
“The honey locust tree was to remain and not be removed.”
Rachel Chernos Lin, the councillor representing the area, said the intent was to protect the tree by moving the building’s footprint onto the front yard closer to the street.
The developer removed the tree anyway without the city’s support. And to add insult to injury, Lin said, the developer applied to place a parking pad where the tree had stood.
For community members, the idea of paving a little piece of paradise to put in a parking spot was a bridge too far.
“People feel like (the developer) has really taken advantage of the system and disregarded the rules, and people really care and are very angry about that,” Lin said.
Currently, the offence of removing a tree without a permit can carry a fine between $500 and $100,000. It has no impact on permits issued under Ontario’s Building Code.
The current fine structure is not enough to disincentivize the practice, Lin said.
On Thursday, city council adopted a motion Lin proposed that would make tree removal more difficult and add “additional tools” to protect the city’s tree canopy.
The motion requests that the provincial Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing add the tree bylaw as an applicable law for the purposes of issuing building permits.
It also suggests repeat offenders be named and shamed publicly.
City staff are expected to report back about progress towards achieving these goals by the end of the year.
“I want to make sure this doesn’t happen again,” said Lin.
Geoff Kettel, co-president of the Leaside Residents Association, said the builder should not be able to use the revised footprint after taking out the tree that the new design was meant to protect.
The supposed compromise allowed the builder to put the multiplex more than two metres closer to the sidewalk, and Kettel said neighbours’ bungalows and two-storey homes are now at greater risk of being overshadowed.
“If they destroyed the reason for moving it forward in the first place, there’s now no reason to move it forward,” he said.
“People should be obeying the law. They should be doing it right, following the best practices,” he added. “It’s very, very disappointing.”
Last week, The Canadian Press visited the construction site, where a concrete foundation had been laid and tree roots were still visible under a pile of soil.
Elizabeth Marsden and her friend Ann Aveling walked by the area and stopped to comment on the tree’s unfortunate fate.
“It was a beautiful, big red locust and there are not many red locusts,” said Marsden who has lived in the neighborhood for four decades.
“It was just a lovely tree,” she said. “I was angry. How dare they?”
She said she thinks the fines given to builders for such violations are “peanuts,” and there needs to be better enforcement.
Aveling said the uprooting was “totally unnecessary” and it made her feel sad, especially as the life cycle of many other trees in the neighbourhood is coming to a natural end.
“What drew us to Leaside 40 years ago was the trees, the tree canopy, and you’d have these beautiful shaded streets,” she said. “Which of course we’re now losing.”
Neighbours accuse Toronto builder of gaming system to uproot beloved tree for parking pad
The big, backyard honey locust had a seating area set up under its canopy and a swing hanging from a sturdy branch.
The law of unintended consequences strikes again. I haven't paid much attention to Toronto, but BC government has mandated that single family zoning in cities be changed to include 4 plexes. Without any consideration given to required services, like electricity, water, sewer, and extra traffic. Or, the vast amount of time and money cities have spent creating Official Community Plans. All out the window. I understand that most people want a tree in their yard, but they should grow their own, not demand that someone else supply one for them and deal with the annual mess.Neighbours accuse Toronto builder of gaming system to uproot beloved tree for parking pad
Author of the article:Canadian Press
Canadian Press
Sharif Hassan
Published Jul 26, 2025 • 4 minute read
A tree stump and chopped up branches are shown after a tree was removed from a property in Toronto, in this undated handout photo.
A tree stump and chopped up branches are shown after a tree was removed from a property in Toronto, in this undated handout photo. Photo by Handout /THE CANADIAN PRESS
The big, backyard honey locust had a seating area set up under its canopy and a swing hanging from a sturdy branch.
It was one of many trees in Leaside, a residential neighborhood northeast of downtown Toronto that is famous for its old growth and green space, but it was special, says Karen Hwang.
It was nothing short of an “oasis” for her neighbour, who liked to entertain in the backyard. It also benefited Hwang’s family next door from the time they moved in 34 years ago, supplying fresh air and blocking noise pollution.
“That tree provided, you know, the wonderful shade, the beautiful esthetic,” she recalled in a recent interview.
“It just had so many positive environmental impacts.”
Without the city’s permission, the beloved giant was recently brought down, in a case that has sparked neighbourhood outrage and calls for change at city hall.
On the morning of June 26, Hwang said she and her husband were eating breakfast while watching the news when they heard a “big bang” and their television screen went dark.
The couple rushed outside to check what happened, and they saw the tree was being cut down, and a big branch had hit their satellite dish.
At the time, developer Modcity was preparing to build a fourplex and garden suite on the property after Hwang’s neighbour sold her house.
The city confirmed there was no permit to remove the tree before construction began. It said it has launched an investigation.
The Canadian Press made several unsuccessful attempts to reach Modcity for comment, including email inquiries and a visit to a location listed on its website as the company’s address.
Privately owned trees with a diameter of 30 cm or more are protected under the city’s tree protection bylaw. The diameter of the one removed was closer to 80 cm, according to neighbors.
Kim Statham, the city’s director of urban forestry, said there was an application to remove a privately owned tree in October, and city staff worked with the builder for five months to revise the multiplex’s design to protect the tree.
“The revised tree-friendly multiplex design created a minor variance that was approved by the Committee of Adjustment,” Statham said.
“The honey locust tree was to remain and not be removed.”
Rachel Chernos Lin, the councillor representing the area, said the intent was to protect the tree by moving the building’s footprint onto the front yard closer to the street.
The developer removed the tree anyway without the city’s support. And to add insult to injury, Lin said, the developer applied to place a parking pad where the tree had stood.
For community members, the idea of paving a little piece of paradise to put in a parking spot was a bridge too far.
“People feel like (the developer) has really taken advantage of the system and disregarded the rules, and people really care and are very angry about that,” Lin said.
Currently, the offence of removing a tree without a permit can carry a fine between $500 and $100,000. It has no impact on permits issued under Ontario’s Building Code.
The current fine structure is not enough to disincentivize the practice, Lin said.
On Thursday, city council adopted a motion Lin proposed that would make tree removal more difficult and add “additional tools” to protect the city’s tree canopy.
The motion requests that the provincial Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing add the tree bylaw as an applicable law for the purposes of issuing building permits.
It also suggests repeat offenders be named and shamed publicly.
City staff are expected to report back about progress towards achieving these goals by the end of the year.
“I want to make sure this doesn’t happen again,” said Lin.
Geoff Kettel, co-president of the Leaside Residents Association, said the builder should not be able to use the revised footprint after taking out the tree that the new design was meant to protect.
The supposed compromise allowed the builder to put the multiplex more than two metres closer to the sidewalk, and Kettel said neighbours’ bungalows and two-storey homes are now at greater risk of being overshadowed.
“If they destroyed the reason for moving it forward in the first place, there’s now no reason to move it forward,” he said.
“People should be obeying the law. They should be doing it right, following the best practices,” he added. “It’s very, very disappointing.”
Last week, The Canadian Press visited the construction site, where a concrete foundation had been laid and tree roots were still visible under a pile of soil.
Elizabeth Marsden and her friend Ann Aveling walked by the area and stopped to comment on the tree’s unfortunate fate.
“It was a beautiful, big red locust and there are not many red locusts,” said Marsden who has lived in the neighborhood for four decades.
“It was just a lovely tree,” she said. “I was angry. How dare they?”
She said she thinks the fines given to builders for such violations are “peanuts,” and there needs to be better enforcement.
Aveling said the uprooting was “totally unnecessary” and it made her feel sad, especially as the life cycle of many other trees in the neighbourhood is coming to a natural end.
“What drew us to Leaside 40 years ago was the trees, the tree canopy, and you’d have these beautiful shaded streets,” she said. “Which of course we’re now losing.”
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Neighbours accuse Toronto builder of gaming system to uproot beloved tree for parking pad
The big, backyard honey locust had a seating area set up under its canopy and a swing hanging from a sturdy branch.
Might that not be appropriate to the smaller families we're seeing these days?
Shouldn't those problems be up to the private sector to resolve. Given your absolute conviction that the gol-dang gummint can't do anything right, I'd think you would be happy they're leaving it to the lean, mean, capitalist machine.