Thursday September 4 2014
The
Leader
▲ School strike won’t stop football 26
▲ Rookie coach up for a challenge 28
MAN, 23, CHARGED IN SEX ASSAULT OF NINEYEAR-OLD
▶ GIRL WAS LURED FROM HER SURREY BEDROOM AUG. 27
KEVIN DIAKIW
A 23-year-old man has been arrested in connection with the nighttime sexual assault of a nineyear-old girl in Surrey last week. Police arrested Donovan Christopher Adams Thursday evening (Aug. 28) and on Tuesday (Sept. 2) charged him with break and Donovan Adams enter, kidnapFELICITY DON ILLUSTRATION ping, sexual assault, sexual interference and committing an indecent act. Investigators say the suspect in the Aug. 27 incident is of no fixed address and that the victim did not know her alleged attacker. continued on page 3
A crowd gathered outside Education Minister Peter Fassbender’s constituency office in Fleetwood on Tuesday afternoon to protest the ongoing public education dispute. EVAN SEAL
CLASSROOMS STILL CLOSED
▶ PARENTS, TEACHERS RALLY IN SURREY AS PUBLIC SCHOOLS FACE PROLONGED SHUTDOWN JEFF NAGEL & SHEILA REYNOLDS
Pickets were brandished instead of pencils at public schools this week, as classes were cancelled amid the ongoing B.C. teachers’ dispute. As of Tuesday morning – which was to be the first day of class for Surrey’s 72,000 and Delta’s
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15,500 students – teachers were back walking picket lines outside all local schools and parents were making alternate plans for their children. Surrey mom Meera Gill’s two kids graduated in the spring, but that didn’t stop her from getting involved this week. She helped organize a parent walk in Holland Park last night (after The Leader’s press deadline), which was expected to draw a significant crowd. “I struggled through the 12 years as a single mom and I know how hard it is,” Gill said. “It wasn’t fun, it wasn’t easy, but when you see something not right, you speak up.” She said other parents she’s spoken with have
waited patiently for both sides in the teacher dispute to come to some agreement, but are quickly becoming angry and frustrated as their children are denied an education. “We understand it’s a complex matter, we’re not looking for fault,” said Gill. “What we want is a resolution. Figure this out.” The B.C. Federation of Labour (BCFL) also organized a series of “solidarity rallies” this week – the first of which was held Tuesday in Surrey outside the office of Education Minister Peter Fassbender, who is also the MLA for Surrey-Fleetwood. continued on page 3
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