The Fredericton Independent

After losing the NB Liquor agency-store contract to a competitor, the owner of Freshmart in Hartland sued the Crown corporation for damages, claiming the selection process was unfair. But a judge struck the lawsuit recently due to a notice deadline issue. ftonindependent.substack.com/p/nb-liquor-ag…

Clayton Maynard Ernest Townes, 39, of McAdam, postponed his bail hearing for a third time Thursday on drug-trafficking & firearms charges, and sought to move his case to plea court. He's also facing new driving-related charges out of St. George on Dec. 31. ftonindependent.substack.com/p/drugfirearm-…

Michelle Elaine Davis, 41, of Astle, is facing charges alleging she sexually abused a minor, produced child pornography depicting that child and possessed that material in Fredericton and elsewhere in N.B. between January 2019 & July 2021. @CityFredPolice ftonindependent.substack.com/p/woman-accuse…

A 18-year-old man pleaded guilty Wednesday to second-degree murder in the June 2024 stabbing death of @Sitansisk elder Mark "Barnzie" Brooks II when the defendant was 17 years old, as the Crown withdrew its application to have him sentenced as an adult. ftonindependent.substack.com/p/teen-pleads-…

@LPNewBrunswick Thanks. I'm only one reporter, and there are only so many hours in the day. Other outlets aren't delivering the sort of fulsome court-beat coverage I can, so I specialize. I see the Fredericton Independent as part of the tapestry of local news coverage with others.

@FtonIndependent Love your court stuff, shame there's not more non-court stuff but I follow you to keep up on news I don't see from bigger outlets!

A jury trial is scheduled for later this year for nine members of the Welamukotuk (Oromocto) First Nation on break-in and assault charges, & a judge noted court staff are working to find a larger space for a proceeding with so many defendants and lawyers. ftonindependent.substack.com/p/space-sought…

The City of Fredericton is facing @WorkSafeNB charges stemming from an August 2024 accident at a municipal compost facility during which a worker was pinned in a hydraulic machine. The workplace-safety charges were set over for pleas to later this month. ftonindependent.substack.com/p/municipality…

Bradley Douglas Webb, 38, of Fredericton, now has new counsel to represent him on charges of impaired driving causing death and bodily harm, and his Court of King's Bench trial dates were confirmed for the fall of 2027 on Monday. #nbcourts @RCMPNB ftonindependent.substack.com/p/trial-dates-…

After @CityFredPolice say he barricaded himself in a Perry Court home Friday afternoon, leading to a standoff, Frederick John Washburn, 21, was arrested and charged with sexual assault, but he was released on Crown consent on conditions Monday. #nbcourts ftonindependent.substack.com/p/standoff-sus…

Brady Matthew Worden, 31, formerly of Fredericton, was sentenced to 10 years in prison Tuesday, less remand time, for possessing/transmitting child porn, & for grooming a 10-year-old girl in the capital region to be his sexual plaything, all in 2024-2025. ftonindependent.substack.com/p/child-sex-pr…

Dylan Horsman, 28, of Fredericton - who was arrested Saturday and charged with drug-trafficking and firearms offences - asked Monday for his bail hearing to be postponed so he can retain a specific lawyer. The hearing was rescheduled for Thursday. ftonindependent.substack.com/p/narcotics-su…

Benjamin Troy Dana Mundell, 29, of Fredericton - who was discovered to be selling cannabis and mushrooms through a website, and shipping orders by mail in the capital region in 2024 - was granted a 12-month conditional sentence Monday and a $2,500 fine. ftonindependent.substack.com/p/city-man-bus…

Dustin Mitchell Hill, 39, of no fixed address, is due back in court later this month to elect mode of trial and enter pleas to charges of sexually assaulting & touching a then-11-year-old girl for a sexual purpose in Fredericton more than three years ago. ftonindependent.substack.com/p/homeless-man…

.@CityFredPolice officers are looking for Justin Wilby-Niles, 38, of Fredericton, on outstanding warrants and in connection with open criminal investigations, and the force turned to the public Monday for tips on his whereabouts. ftonindependent.substack.com/p/capital-resi…

A judge sentenced Cory Urquhart, 52, of Keswick Ridge, to three years in prison Monday for sexually assaulting a teenage girl in his home in December 2022, noting that binding precedents are directing courts to treat sexual abuse of minors more harshly. ftonindependent.substack.com/p/keswick-ridg…

Evan James Polchies, 39, of of Bilijk First Nation, who's serving a 13.5-year prison sentence for manslaughter, admitted Monday to drug and driving crimes, committed in Fredericton while he was on day parole, which has since been a revoked. #nbcourts ftonindependent.substack.com/p/federal-inma…

Defence counsel for @NB_Power pleaded not guilty Monday to @WorkSafeNB charges alleging it failed in its duty to inform and protect workers from potential asbestos exposure at one of its facilities in Fredericton over the course of almost 12 years. ftonindependent.substack.com/p/utility-deni…

Firefighters with @CityFredFire were able to contain a butane-tank blaze to a single unit in an apartment building Saturday, limited damage. Tenants have been forced out, but only for a few days, the fire department reports. ftonindependent.substack.com/p/tenants-disp…

ONLY ON THE INDEPENDENT: A case against a Maugerville man on @RCMPNB charges alleging sexual abuse of a minor could be in jeopardy because a recorded statement by the complainant taken by @CityFredPolice was purged from its system and never disclosed. ftonindependent.substack.com/p/police-delet…

The @CityFredPolice has charged Tiffany Johnston, 33, of Fredericton, with arson in connection with a Jan. 28 fire at Tim Hortons on Union Street. She's been remanded pending a bail hearing, scheduled for Monday. #nbcourts ftonindependent.substack.com/p/woman-charge…