Tag: Police

Nova Scotia MLAs Clash Over Racism in Policing [VIDEO]

Halifax Needham MLA Suzy Hansen questioned the provincial government on October 3, 2025 about the lack of support for Truro police officer Brent Bowden, an African Nova Scotian officer on leave after an alleged racist incident. The exchange highlighted ongoing tensions around government responses to racism complaints.

[VIDEOs] – The Lyle Howe Legal Odyssey

Lyle Howe

Former Halifax lawyer Lyle Howe says he was investigated by the Nova Scotia Barrister’s Society in 2011 by way of a practice review. Then, in 2014 Howe was convicted of sexual assault before then having that conviction overturned. Howe was initially suspended following the criminal conviction but went back to practicing law once the conviction was overturned. It was then, Howe says, that the Society laid their own set of serious charges against him and Howe was suspended a second time. Howe attempted to sue the society over that decision, but his lawsuit was initially dismissed. Recently, the Nova Scotia Court of Appeal overturned that decision, meaning Howe can proceed with his lawsuit. Howe said that the legal professionals who he said acted against him in bad faith will now be compelled to testify under oath by way of the discovery process in his lawsuit. In an interview with Community Update, Howe says it was the Society’s intention to collect as much evidence as they could to use it against him. Howe, who is Black, says he has evidence and transcripts that demonstrate he was singled out and targeted by former members of the Nova Scotia Barrister’s Society and by current members of the legal community because of his race. When giving examples, Howe says he was accused of double booking himself in court, a something he says is a common and accepted practice among all lawyers in the local legal community. “I’m literally the only person that’s been charged with it in Nova Scotia.” Speaking with Community Update, Howe also talked about the nature of systemic racism in the legal and justice system in Nova Scotia, he names specific names of people he’s dealt with who, through his experience, he feels are guilty of upholding the system of racism and white supremacy, and he talked about some things he feels need to happen to build on improvements he feels are in fact taking place.

Halifax appoints first Black police chief: Don MacLean

Halifax Regional Council approved the recommendation by the Board of Police Commissioners to appoint Don MacLean as the Acting Chief of Police. MacLean, who is currently Deputy Chief of Operations, assumes the position on Sept. 16 following the retirement of Chief Dan Kinsella on Sept. 15.

[VIDEO] – SIRT’s first director of African descent welcomes questions from Black community

Alonzo Wright is the new director of the Serious Incident Response Team (SIRT). Credit: Nova Scotia Government/Twitter

One of the longest-tenured Black senior crown prosecutors in Nova Scotia’s history recently appointed as director of Nova Scotia’s Serious Incident Response Team (SIRT) is encouraging and welcoming questions from the Black community about cases in his new role.

Alonzo Wright becomes the fourth director of SIRT since its 2012 launch. He’s SIRT’s first director of African descent.

‘This town is very racist’: African student in Wolfville speaks out about experience with RCMP, mayor after filing complaint about an assault

Sara Micheal says it took over two weeks to give a statement to RCMP following a racist assault that left her with neck scars.

Sara Micheal is speaking out about her experience with King’s District RCMP and Wolfville Mayor Wendy Donovan following an incident that left her with visible injuries and during which she said she was verbally attacked with racial remarks.

In an interview with the Halifax Examiner, Micheal, who is a permanent resident from Eritrea, said she moved out of an apartment where she experienced a lot of racism from the landlord, and into a house with more than half a dozen other roommates she didn’t know.