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    • 'Nothing is going to move': How a rail lockout might impact the Maritimes

    A train is seen at a CN Rail yard in New Brunswick. (CTV/Derek Haggett) A train is seen at a CN Rail yard in New Brunswick. (CTV/Derek Haggett)
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    Trains were running at the hump yard in Moncton on Friday, but they could come to a screeching halt in a few days.

    Both Canadian National Railway [CN] and Canadian Pacific Kansas City [CPKC] say they’ll lock out workers if a tentative agreement can’t be reached by next Thursday.

    Christopher Monette, director of public affairs for Teamsters Canada, told CTV News on Friday that negotiations with both companies are ongoing.

    “We believe that a deal is still possible. All that’s missing is just a bit of flexibility and willingness to compromise on the part of both CN and CPKC,” said Monette.

    The union represents around 10,000 conductors, engineers and railyard workers from both companies.

    Monette said the main sticking points revolve around safety, scheduling rest and fatigue management after long shifts.

    “That makes it very difficult to consistently show up to work rested and fit for duty,” said Monette.

    A work stoppage would have a massive impact on Canada’s economy.

    In the Maritimes, the big concern are the ports in Saint John and Halifax which are both heavily reliant on rail.

    A sign points towards a CN Rail yard. (CTV/Derek Haggett)Port of Halifax spokesperson Lori MacLean said their supply chain partners are monitoring the situation closely.

    “Rail serves approximately 60 per cent of containerized cargo business at the Port of Halifax,” said MacLean in a statement to CTV News. “Cargo imported at Halifax travels largely by rail to other parts of the continent; and cargo exported from Halifax is delivered largely to the port by rail as well.”

    Jonathan Abecassis, Director of Public Affairs for CN, said they’ve made four offers to the union, but with no response.

    “Whether it’s the sawmill worker in B.C., whether it’s the miner in Alberta, the farmer in Saskatchewan, Manitoba, the auto plant worker in Ontario or people working in ports in Atlantic Canada. The impacts will be across industries and across the country,” said Abecassis.

    Abecassis said if workers are locked out, “nothing is going to move by rail,” including propane that is delivered to Atlantic Canada.

    “That’s not only the goods coming from the ports, that’s also the goods going to the ports and are heading out,” said Abecassis.

    When asked what a lockout could mean for the Maritimes, Monette said his thoughts go directly to the ports in Halifax and Saint John.

    “Obviously a lockout would mean that our members are no longer able to operate trains in the Maritimes and continue working to keep the economy of the maritime provinces on track,” said Monette.

    Both sides have been negotiating for months and talks are expected to resume over the weekend.

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    A man who has brain damage has a murder conviction reversed after a 34-year fight

    A man who has brain damage and was sentenced to life in prison for the murder of a shopkeeper in London had his decades-old conviction quashed Wednesday by an appeals court troubled by the possibility police elicited a false confession from a mentally vulnerable man. Oliver Campbell, who suffered cognitive impairment as a baby and struggles with his concentration and memory, was 21 when he was jailed in 1991 after being convicted based partly on admissions his lawyer said were coerced. “The fight for justice is finally over after nearly 34 years," Campbell said. “I can start my life an innocent man.” Campbell, now in his 50s, was convicted of the robbery and murder of Baldev Hoondle, who was shot in the head in his shop in the Hackney area of east London in July 1990. He had a previous appeal rejected in 1994 and was released from prison in 2002 on conditions that could have returned him to prison if he got into trouble. Defense lawyer Michael Birnbaum said police lied to Campbell and “badgered and bullied” him into giving a false confession by admitting he pulled the trigger in an accident. He was interviewed more than a dozen times, including sessions without either a lawyer or other adult present. His learning disability put him “out of his depth” and he was "simply unable to do justice to himself,” Birnbaum said. He said the admissions were nonsense riddled with inconsistencies that contradicted facts in the case. At trial, he testified that he was not involved in the robbery and had been somewhere else though he couldn't remember where. A co-defendant, Eric Samuels, who has since died, pleaded guilty to the robbery and was sentenced to five years in prison. At the time, he told his lawyer Campbell was not the gunman and later told others Campbell wasn’t with him during the robbery. Lawyers continued to advocate for Campbell that he wasn't the killer and his case was referred to the Court of Appeal by the Criminal Cases Review Commission which investigates potential injustices. The three judges on the Court of Appeal rejected most of Birnbaum's grounds for appeal but said they were troubled by the conviction in light of a new understanding of the reliability of admissions from someone with a mental disability. The panel quashed the conviction as 'unsafe,' and refused to order a retrial.

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