Brendan Kennedy
@bkstar.bsky.social
690 followers 57 following 54 posts
Toronto Star reporter, investigations. [email protected]. I'm on Signal. SecureDrop: http://thestar.com/securedrop
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bkstar.bsky.social
All of this contributes to the inhumane conditions that judges have been decrying for years and have led to reduced sentences.

What I tried to show with this story is that it's not just Maplehurst, Toronto South or a handful of jails. The problems are everywhere.

www.thestar.com/news/investi...
Ontario’s jail conditions are inhumane and disgraceful, judges say. Criminals are serving shorter sentences as a result
As the premier calls for bail reforms that would see more people locked up while awaiting trial, Ontario’s jails are “in a state of growing crisis.”
www.thestar.com
bkstar.bsky.social
The overcrowding leads to more triple-bunking, more lockdowns and more violence, both between inmates and against staff.

The union representing correctional officers said when jails are this overcrowded it’s challenging to “maintain a safe environment.”
bkstar.bsky.social
While Doug Ford's government continues to call for bail reforms that would see more people incarcerated while awaiting trial, Ontario's jails are more overcrowded than they've ever been. The province is holding 2,000 more people than its jails were built to hold. Several jails are >130% capacity.
bkstar.bsky.social
Premier Ford has called for bail reforms that would see more people incarcerated while awaiting trial, at the same time that the province's jails have never been more overcrowded. The most recent data I obtained via FOI shows Ont jails are holding about 2000 more inmates than they were built for.
bkstar.bsky.social
Most of my reporting on jail conditions this year has focused on Maplehurst in Milton. But the dysfunction in Ontario's jails is system-wide. Today's story shows how the inhumane conditions across the province impact staff, inmates & the judicial system as a whole. www.thestar.com/news/investi...
Ontario’s jail conditions are inhumane and disgraceful, judges say. Criminals are serving shorter sentences as a result
As the premier calls for bail reforms that would see more people locked up while awaiting trial, Ontario’s jails are “in a state of growing crisis.”
www.thestar.com
Reposted by Brendan Kennedy
balkissoon.bsky.social
This morning at 8 am, my child's teacher told me it was already 33 C inside the classroom. Members of the Ontario government have air conditioning in their offices, yet they're not doing basic repairs in Toronto schools, let alone protecting our kids from extreme heat. thelocal.to/ontario-educ...
Province Invests $1.3 Billion in New Schools—Just Not in Toronto | The Local
The Tories will fund 45 school building projects across the province—and not a single one in the TDSB, the biggest board in the province. Critics say the opaque process puts politics over students.
thelocal.to
bkstar.bsky.social
Ontario's Ombudsman is launching a new investigation into the Ministry of the Solicitor General's response to the December 2023 collective punishment incident at Maplehurst "due to significant public concerns about transparency, accountability and inmates’ rights."
www.thestar.com/news/canada/...
Ontario Ombudsman to probe complaints of province’s response to Maplehurst guards’ crackdown on inmates
The latest investigation followed the Ministry of Solicitor General's two internal investigative reports that found widespread institutional failure at the jail located in Milton.
www.thestar.com
bkstar.bsky.social
Dislike!
emmamci.bsky.social
When I left Calgary I was excited to stop having my summers ruined by wildfire smoke so much. Joke's on me I guess!
a fire smoke map showing the smoke missing Calgary but covering Toronto
bkstar.bsky.social
If you have some time today to spend on in-depth reporting, great writing & fantastic presentation, spend it with this Kate Allen & Nathan Pilla story about how more workers are critically injured as the temperature rises. www.thestar.com/interactives...
Hot days at work can be dangerous — even deadly. The Ford government said it would protect workers. But here’s what’s happening
An analysis of 13 years of critical injury data obtained by the Star shows heat poses a growing threat
www.thestar.com
bkstar.bsky.social
NEW: Hours of audio and video evidence is missing from Maplehurst's crackdown on inmates in December 2023.

The missing footage, which some jail staff allege was purposely destroyed, has fueled calls for a public inquiry into the violent incident.

www.thestar.com/news/investi...
Hours of audio and video evidence is missing from Maplehurst guards’ crackdown on inmates
The missing footage, which some jail staff allege was purposely destroyed, has fueled calls for a public inquiry into the violent incident.
www.thestar.com
bkstar.bsky.social
Our latest on the Maplehurst scandal focuses on the number of criminal prosecutions that have been compromised by the mass strip search and collective punishment of inmates, who are receiving reduced sentences or other judicial remedies because the jail violated their Charter rights.
thestar.com
#StarExclusive: A murder. Alleged human trafficking. Drugs.

More than 30 criminal prosecutions have been compromised by the violent crackdown of prisoners at Maplehurst Correctional Complex in December 2023.
A murder. Alleged human trafficking. Drugs. These are the cases that have been compromised by inmate abuse by Maplehurst guards
This is the first accounting of the scale of the disruption to the justice system caused by the violent crackdown at the Ontario jail.
www.thestar.com
bkstar.bsky.social
NEW: We obtained the province's internal investigations into the Dec 2023 crackdown on inmates at Maplehurst jail. The reports show widespread institutional failure, from the supt to rank-and-file guards. Solicitor General Michael Kerzner didn't respond to questions.
www.thestar.com/news/investi...
‘Code of silence’: Jail guards broke rules, then misled investigators probing crackdown on Maplehurst inmates, internal reports show
The ministry launched its investigation into the violent incident one day after the Star sent questions about it to Ontario’s solicitor general.
www.thestar.com
Reposted by Brendan Kennedy
rdassaly.bsky.social
"Trump is welcoming white South Africans after suspending the program for everyone else, including other Africans who have waited in refugee camps for years and were vetted and cleared, and Afghans who supported the U.S. war in their country."
www.nytimes.com/2025/05/14/u...
The Road to Trump’s Embrace of White South Africans
www.nytimes.com
bkstar.bsky.social
I'm grateful to @spaikin.bsky.social & the folks at @tvotoday.bsky.social for having me on yesterday to talk about Maplehurst & provincial jail conditions broadly.

The segment is streaming at TVO's website and on YouTube.
tvotoday.bsky.social
What's going on at Ontario's correctional institutions? @spaikin.bsky.social asks Demar Kemar Hewitt (Black Legal Action Centre), Lee Chapelle (Canadian Prison Consulting), Andrea Monteiro (Ethical Correctional Consulting), and @bkstar.bsky.social (@thestar.com)
What's Going on at Ontario's Correctional Institutions? | The Agenda
YouTube video by TVO Today
www.youtube.com
Reposted by Brendan Kennedy
tvotoday.bsky.social
What's going on in Ontario's jails? @spaikin.bsky.social asks @bkstar.bsky.social (@thestar.com), Demar Kemar Hewitt (Black Legal Action Centre), Lee Chapelle (Canadian Prison Consulting), and Andrea Monteiro (Ethical Correctional Consulting) tonight at 8/11pm #onpoli
Reposted by Brendan Kennedy
rdassaly.bsky.social
Spoke to music fans for their thoughts on Arcade Fire's attempted comeback, less than three years after Win Butler was accused by multiple people of sexual misconduct.

Announcing a tour without addressing the allegations is "deeply cynical," one fan told me.

www.thestar.com/entertainmen...
Arcade Fire returns with a slate of sold-out shows — including in Toronto — and a deeply divided fan base
In 2022, the band's frontman Win Butler faced multiple allegations of sexual misconduct. Here's how fans are reacting to news of a new album and world tour.
www.thestar.com
bkstar.bsky.social
The Trillium reports that in response to appeal by the NDP, the Information & Privacy Commissioner has ordered the Ford govt to ask former premier's office staff to search personal accounts for Greenbelt records.

Story references the Star's efforts to do same. www.thetrillium.ca/news/politic...
Former senior staff to Premier Ford to be asked to hand over any Greenbelt records in their personal accounts
The move would follow a new order by the province’s transparency oversight office
www.thetrillium.ca
bkstar.bsky.social
NEW: The Information & Privacy Commissioner has ruled in our favour regarding our attempts to access a former Ford govt staffer's Greenbelt-related emails in his personal email account. The AG report noted he & others had conducted govt business on personal email.
www.thestar.com/news/investi...
Former Ford government staffer must hand over any Greenbelt emails in his personal account — or else, watchdog warns
If he doesn’t comply, Ryan Amato could be called to explain himself under oath, Ontario’s information and privacy watchdog says.
www.thestar.com