Victoria De La Ronde, centre, and Zexi Li, the first witnesses to appear at the Public Order Emergency Commission, arrive at the hearing room, in Ottawa, Friday, Oct. 14, 2022. A former senior officer from the Ontario Provincial Police told the inquiry into the use of the Emergencies Act that “Freedom Convoy” protests in Ottawa could have been ended without using the law.THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld

In The News is a roundup of stories from The Canadian Press designed to kickstart your day. Here is what's on the radar of our editors for the morning of Oct. 31 ...

What we are watching in Canada ...

Former Ottawa police chief Peter Sloly is expected to continue his testimony this morning at the public inquiry investigating Ottawa's use of the Emergencies Act during "Freedom Convoy" protests last winter.

Sloly appeared in front of the Public Order Emergency Commission on Friday and described disorganization and a lack of communication within the Ottawa Police during the occupation of the city's downtown.

Other witnesses, including top Ontario Provincial Police officials, had blamed Sloly for failing to co-ordinate with other police forces to get the protests under control.

Sloly resigned amid widespread criticism on Feb. 15, the day after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau invoked the Emergencies Act.

The inquiry has so far painted a picture of conflict and confusion within police services and among all levels of government in the wake of the convoy's arrival in Ottawa in late January.

Key protest organizers are expected to testify this week, beginning with Chris Barber, who is one of several people facing criminal charges related to their involvement.

---

Also this ...

Laurie O'Connor says more people in Saskatoon are struggling to get food for themselves and their families as the prices in grocery stores rise out of reach.

A newly released Canada-wide survey found people in the Prairie provinces were much more likely to have used emergency measures like food banks or a community fridge.

The survey by the Canadian Hub for Applied and Social Research at the University of Saskatchewan asked people how they cope with increasing food costs.

The majority of respondents said they were using coupons or hunting for sales.

But nearly 20 per cent of people were also reducing meal sizes or skipping them altogether to save money.

Quebec saw the starkest difference from the Prairies, with 95 per cent of respondents there saying they could afford to eat a balanced diet.

---

What we are watching in the U.S. ...

NEW YORK _ For years, as Donald Trump was soaring from reality TV star to the White House, his real estate empire was bankrolling big perks for some of his most trusted senior executives, including apartments and luxury cars.

Now Trump's company, the Trump Organization, is on trial this week for criminal tax fraud _ on the hook for what prosecutors say was a 15-year scheme by top officials to hide the plums and avoid paying taxes.

Opening statements and the first witnesses are expected Monday in New York. Last week, 12 jurors and six alternates were picked for the case, the only criminal trial to arise from the Manhattan district attorney's three-year investigation of the former president.

Among the key prosecution witnesses: Trump's longtime finance chief Allen Weisselberg, who pleaded guilty and has agreed to testify against the company in exchange for a five-month jail sentence.

If convicted, the Trump Organization could be fined more than $1 million and could face difficulty in securing new loans and deals. Some partners and government entities could seek to cut ties with the company. It could also hamper its ability to do business with the U.S. Secret Service, which sometimes pays the company for lodging and services while protecting Trump as a former president.

Neither Trump nor any of his children who have worked as Trump Organization executives are charged or accused of wrongdoing. Trump is not expected to testify or even attend the trial.

Prosecutors say The Trump Organization _ through its subsidiaries Trump Corp. and Trump Payroll Corp. _ is liable in part because former Weisselberg was a "high managerial agent'' entrusted to act on behalf of the company and its various entities.

The Trump Organization has said it did nothing wrong. The company's lawyers argue that Weisselberg and other executives acted on their own and that, if anything, their actions harmed the company financially.

---

What we are watching in the rest of the world ...

MORBI, India _ Military teams were hunting Monday for people missing after a century-old cable suspension bridge collapsed into a river Sunday in the western Indian state of Gujarat, sending hundreds plunging into the water and killing at least 132 in one of the worst accidents in the country in the past decade.

At least 177 survivors were pulled from the river and teams from the army, navy and air force were searching for others still missing, said Jigar Khunt, an information department official in Gujarat said.

Live video reports showed hundreds of others desperately clinging to the broken structure and trying to make their way to safety, as crowds onshore shouted or swam to try to rescue who had fallen in.

Authorities said the 19th-century, colonial-era pedestrian bridge over the Machchu river in the state's Morbi district collapsed because it could not handle the weight of the large crowd, as the Hindu festival season drew hundreds of sightseers to the recently opened tourist attraction.

The 232-metre-long bridge had been closed for repairs for almost six months and had reopened just four days earlier for the Gujarati New Year. Visuals from the disaster site showed the bridge split in the middle and the metal carriageway hanging down, its metal cables snapped in places.

State minister Harsh Sanghvi told reporters that 132 people were confirmed dead and many were admitted to hospitals in critical condition. Sanghvi said emergency responders and rescuers worked overnight to search for the survivors. Most of the victims were teens, women and older people, he said.

It was not immediately clear exactly how many people were on the bridge when it collapsed but survivors said it was so densely packed that the crowd was unable to move to safety when the cable strings began to snap.

---

On this day in 1997 ...

The Supreme Court of Canada, in a landmark ruling, said a "woman and her unborn child are one'' and nobody has the legal right to interfere with a pregnant woman whose behaviour threatens her fetus.

---

In entertainment ...

"Black Adam,'' the Dwayne Johnson-fronted DC superhero film, kept its hold on the No. 1 spot at the North American box office in its second weekend in theatres. Down 59 per cent from its launch, and facing little new competition, "Black Adam'' added $27.7 million in ticket sales, bringing its domestic total to $111.1 million, according to studio estimates Sunday.

Johnson spent a decade trying to bring the character to the big screen and has visions for followups involving Superman. But the future of "Black Adam'' is not written quite yet, though it's earned $250 million worldwide. The Warner Bros. film carried a hefty price tag of $200 million, not including marketing and promotion costs, and a sequel has not been officially greenlit.

But big changes are afoot at DC_the studio just announced a new leadership team of Peter Safran and James Gunn, whose love for propping up little-known comic book characters is well-documented. And on Sunday, Johnson posted a note to his 344 million Instagram followers about the end of the world press tour, thanking those who worked behind the scenes to launch "our NEW DC FRANCHISE known as BLACK ADAM.''

Bucking recent romantic comedy trends, moviegoers remained curious about "Ticket to Paradise,'' Universal's Julia Roberts and George Clooney destination romp, which fell only 37 per cent in weekend two to claim second place. The genre has not been the most reliable bet at the box office lately, with films like "Bros'' stumbling in theatres, but the star power of Roberts and Clooney is proving hard to resist. "Ticket to Paradise'' added $10 million from 3,692 North American theatres, bringing its domestic total to $33.7 million.

Globally, it's grossed $119.4 million to date.

Horror movies, meanwhile, claimed spots three through five on the weekend before Halloween on Monday. Lionsgate's "Prey for the Devil'' opened in third place with $7 million from 2,980 theatres. Notably, it is the only of the three horror films that carried a PG-13 rating. The others were R-rated.

Paramount's "Smile'' took fourth place in its fifth weekend with another $5.1 million, bringing its domestic total to $92.4 million (on a $17 million budget), while "Halloween Ends'' landed in fifth place in its third weekend with $3.8 million. "Ends,'' which has grossed $60.3 million in North America, was released simultaneously on NBC Universal's streaming service Peacock.

---

Did you see this?

A Canadian was among those injured in a crowd surge that killed more than 150 people in Seoul, South Korea, Global Affairs confirmed Sunday, while Korean Canadians said they were shocked by the disaster.

The federal department said Canadian officials are in touch with local authorities to gather more information and provide consular assistance to those affected.

It said it can't release any further information about the person who was hurt, including whether the person was hospitalized or the severity of the injuries, due to privacy considerations.

"Canada offers its deepest condolences to the families and friends of those killed during yesterday's Halloween festivities and wishes a speedy recovery to those injured,'' the department said in a statement issued on Sunday. "To our friends in South Korea, we stand with you during this difficult time.''

As of Sunday evening, South Korean officials said 153 people were killed and 133 were injured after a huge Halloween party crowd surged into a narrow alley in the nightlife district of Itaewon.

Tens of thousands of people were believed to have gathered Saturday night for the festivities.

Nearly two-thirds of those who were trapped and crushed _ 97 _ were women. Most were in their 20s and 30s, and at least four were teenagers.

The Ministry of the Interior and Safety said the death count could further rise as 37 of the injured people were in serious condition.

---

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 31, 2022.

News from © The Canadian Press, 2022