The second court appearance for the former bookkeeper of Oilfields High School charged with sexually exploiting students was as uneventful as the first.
Neither the accused woman nor her lawyer appeared in Okotoks Provincial Court last Friday. Another lawyer spoke on behalf of defence lawyer Lisa Burgis and asked that the case return to court on March 30. During her first two scheduled appearances the woman did not appear in court and has not entered a plea to any of the charges.
Burgis will be reviewing a large amount of documents that …

A man who scared a mother who was in her home alone with her two small children will be sentenced in late April.
The Turner Valley mom heard noises in her kitchen and went to investigate when she found a man in her home and she attempted to get him out by beating him with a part from a vacuum cleaner. He was driven down a hallway, where he found a six-year-old sleeping in a bedroom. According to police he grabbed the child and shook it. He also threw the woman …

A teen who lived most of her life with an abusive mother has found a safe haven in Black Diamond and now she is paying it forward.
A year ago Erika Turner was living on the streets of Calgary after a fight with her mother. Turner said she often shouldered the blamed when things went wrong in her mother’s life, whether it was a breakup, losing a job or even when her brother decided to go live with his father.
It took a long time and some counseling for the teen to …

Sheriffs will be working with Mounties over the next two years to synthesize their efforts to stop dangerous drivers.
The Province held a six-month pilot project where four detachments tried different strategies of delivering traffic initiatives. At the conclusion of the project Solicitor General Frank Oberle said the Wetaskiwin model, where the Mounties and sheriffs worked in collaboration, was the most effective. As a result, RCMP traffic units will join forces with sheriffs at 19 locations across Alberta.
“We are using our best model going forward,” Oberle said.
Sheriffs were introduced into the …

Threatening and hitting a cab driver has landed an Eden Valley man a nine-month prison sentence.
Elvis Clayton Dixon was sentenced last week for verbally and physically attacking an Associated Cab driver who picked up Dixon, his wife and daughter in Calgary and drove them to the Eden Valley reserve west of Longview.
The sentence was reduced by six weeks because Dixon was given double credit for the three weeks he had already spent in the Calgary Remand Centre.
The driver was given a $50 deposit when he picked up the trio, but …

The Foothills School Division (FSD) said it will not fund a mandated increase to teachers’ salaries with their savings unless they are forced to.
Last week officials from the division determined they would not dip into their reserves to cover the additional $400,000 it would cost to cover an increase is salaries.
“We are going to run a deficit,” said FSD superintendent Jim McLellan. “We don’t have any reserves to speak of. Our board doesn’t support paying for ongoing costs out of our savings.”
He said the division’s philosophy is not to sock …

Students at Dr. Morris Gibson Elementary School in Okotoks proved that two bits can buy you a lot more than a shave and a haircut. It turns out when that 25 cents comes from the heart, a quarter can raise thousands of dollars to help Haitian earthquake victims.

The students organized a Heart to Heart Flea Market on Feb. 12 in which they donated items ranging from cookies and cupcakes to used toys and books that were all sold for 25 cents. The market raised $2,700 for Haiti relief, but …

New rules for mortgages will help protect first-time homebuyers, but will also make it more difficult to get into the real estate investment market, say market insiders.
Okotoks realtor Sheryl Lauinger said the new rules will not be an issue for homebuyers, but the requirement for a higher down payment will make it more difficult for people who want to invest in real estate.
“I don’t think it’s a bad thing. It will help to ensure they aren’t going in over their head, should interest rates go up when their mortgage matures,” …

Four new housing units are expected to open their doors to residents this spring in an effort to ease Okotoks’ affordable housing crunch.
The Foothills Foundation, which is constructing and managing the houses on the Town’s behalf, has contracted Excel Homes to build four houses in Okotoks.
Okotoks Coun. Ed Sands said the first residents could start moving into the houses in April or May.
“They’re well underway, in terms of construction,” said Sands, who is council’s representative to the foundation.
The basic homes are all two-stories with three bedrooms and no garages.
“They’re modest …

An 18-year-old woman from Millarville who spent approximately 40 harrowing hours in a lifeboat was greeted with a hero’s welcome when she arrived home on Monday night.
When some of the more than 20 friends and family burst into a rendition of ‘Alana Row The Boat Ashore Hallelujah’ upon her arrival, all Alana Johnson could do was burst into a wide grin and start hugging people.
Johnson was one of 48 students in the Class Afloat program aboard the tall ship the SV Concordia that sank approximately 550 kilometres off the Brazilian …