To the seasons of life
Charm
I’m, what promise do you need?
Some one here in Merritt put the 40 year old picture of the 12 year old victim Monica Jack on there feed last week comment’s on the photo included one From local man, Len Forsyth ” I remember the event in media” paraphrase
Here are some of the details of the conviction of her perpetrator,Garry Handlen.
Yes, the disappearance and presumed death of Monica Jack has been legally resolved and resulted in a conviction.## The Resolution & ConvictionIn **January 2019**, more than 40 years after the 12-year-old vanished while riding her bike near Merritt, B.C., a jury found **Garry Taylor Handlen** guilty of first-degree murder.The breakthrough in the decades-long cold case came via an elaborate undercover RCMP “Mr. Big” operation launched in late 2013. In November 2014, undercover officers convinced Handlen that investigators had found DNA evidence linking him to the crime. Handlen subsequently confessed on a hidden camera, detailing how he abducted Monica from a highway pullout, threw her bicycle into Nicola Lake, and drove her up a logging hill where he sexually assaulted and strangled her before burning her clothes and remains.Her remains had previously been discovered by forestry crews in a remote area off a logging road in 1995, 17 years after she went missing.## Where It Stands Now * **Sentencing:** On January 28, 2019, Handlen was sentenced to **life in prison**. Because the murder occurred in 1978, he was sentenced under the laws active at that time, making him eligible to apply for parole after 15 years rather than the modern standard of 25 years. * **Appeals:** Handlen attempted to appeal the verdict, with his legal team arguing that his undercover confession was coerced and that the testimony of certain witnesses should have been inadmissible. In **September 2022**, the B.C. Court of Appeal unanimously dismissed his appeal, upholding his first-degree murder conviction.The conviction remains legally intact, and Handlen is serving his life sentence.
Concept Photo
Yes. When Garry Taylor Handlen was arrested following the undercover “Mr. Big” operation, he was not only tied to Monica Jack’s case but was also explicitly suspected and charged in another historic British Columbia homicide.## The Kathryn-Mary Herbert CaseHandlen was simultaneously charged with first-degree murder in the 1975 disappearance and death of **11-year-old Kathryn-Mary Herbert** of Abbotsford (Matsqui), B.C. Similar to Monica’s case, Kathryn-Mary had vanished while riding her bicycle. During the undercover operation, Handlen confessed to the police operatives about killing both girls. However, because his trial was split, the judge ultimately ruled the confession evidence inadmissible specifically in relation to Herbert’s case, meaning he did not face a jury trial for her murder.## Other Investigated LinksBecause Handlen had traveled extensively across B.C. and Alberta during the 1970s and possessed an extensive prior record of sexual offenses, police actively scrutinized him for other unsolved cases from that era: * **Theresa Hildebrant:** Investigators explicitly looked for evidence linking Handlen to the murder of 15-year-old Theresa Hildebrant, who went missing from Abbotsford in 1976 and was later found deceased. However, police stated at the time of his arrest that they did not find the necessary evidence to connect him to her case. * **Project E-PANA:** Monica Jack’s case had originally been swept into Project E-PANA—the RCMP task force launched to investigate the unsolved “Highway of Tears” disappearances and homicides along B.C. highways. Handlen’s travel patterns made him a natural focal point for historical cold cases within that framework, though he was never publicly charged with any other E-PANA files beyond the Monica Jack indictment.
Yes. When Garry Taylor Handlen was arrested following the undercover “Mr. Big” operation, he was not only tied to Monica Jack’s case but was also explicitly suspected and charged in another historic British Columbia homicide.## The Kathryn-Mary Herbert CaseHandlen was simultaneously charged with first-degree murder in the 1975 disappearance and death of **11-year-old Kathryn-Mary Herbert** of Abbotsford (Matsqui), B.C. Similar to Monica’s case, Kathryn-Mary had vanished while riding her bicycle. During the undercover operation, Handlen confessed to the police operatives about killing both girls. However, because his trial was split, the judge ultimately ruled the confession evidence inadmissible specifically in relation to Herbert’s case, meaning he did not face a jury trial for her murder.## Other Investigated LinksBecause Handlen had traveled extensively across B.C. and Alberta during the 1970s and possessed an extensive prior record of sexual offenses, police actively scrutinized him for other unsolved cases from that era: * **Theresa Hildebrant:** Investigators explicitly looked for evidence linking Handlen to the murder of 15-year-old Theresa Hildebrant, who went missing from Abbotsford in 1976 and was later found deceased. However, police stated at the time of his arrest that they did not find the necessary evidence to connect him to her case. * **Project E-PANA:** Monica Jack’s case had originally been swept into Project E-PANA—the RCMP task force launched to investigate the unsolved “Highway of Tears” disappearances and homicides along B.C. highways. Handlen’s travel patterns made him a natural focal point for historical cold cases within that framework, though he was never publicly charged with any other E-PANA files beyond the Monica Jack indictment.
That is the exact legal tightrope that the prosecution, the defense, and the trial judge had to walk. Your point about “puffing”—the legal term for a suspect exaggerating or fabricating a crime to impress a fictitious criminal organization—is the primary reason **the trials were severed (split into two)** in the first place.Legally, they could not have moved for a single mistrial to throw out both cases simultaneously because the courts took pre-emptive steps to prevent one confession from poisoning the other.Here is how the mechanics of the “Mr. Big” rules and the high-priority nature of Monica Jack’s case played out to prevent a total collapse of the prosecution.### 1. The Strategy of Severance (Separating the Trials)The defense absolutely argued that Handlen was just “puffing” to fit into the gang. Under the Supreme Court of Canada’s landmark **R. v. Hart** ruling (which came out in 2014, right around the time Handlen was targeted), Mr. Big confessions are presumed *inadmissible* unless the Crown can prove the reliability of the confession outweighs the prejudice of making the suspect look like a bad person.Because the two confessions had different levels of reliability, the judge severed the trials. * If they had tried Handlen for both murders at the same time, and the jury heard a “leading” or weak confession for the Herbert case, it would cause **severe moral prejudice**. * The jury might think, *”Well, maybe the Herbert confession was weak, but he’s clearly a monster who killed Monica Jack, so let’s convict him of both.”* * Trying them together would have been an automatic ground for a mistrial or a successful appeal. By splitting them, a failure in the Herbert case wouldn’t tank the Jack case.### 2. Why the Monica Jack Confession Held Up (Holdback Information)The defense did argue during a pre-trial *voir dire* (a trial within a trial to determine if evidence is admissible) that Handlen was just puffing to impress “Mr. Big.” However, the judge ruled the Monica Jack confession admissible because it contained **holdback information**—details only the killer would know that the undercover operators did not feed to him.Even if Handlen was trying to sound tough, he was able to accurately describe: * The exact location where he threw her bicycle (Nicola Lake). * The specific, remote logging road area where he took her. * The fact that he burned her remains and clothing (which matched the forensic evidence found by forestry workers in 1995).Because he supplied those unique, unprompted details, the judge ruled that this wasn’t just a compliance-driven fantasy to impress the boss; it was a reliable confession.### 3. Why the Herbert Confession Was Thrown OutIn contrast, the confession regarding Kathryn-Mary Herbert was deemed far more problematic. The details Handlen provided during the sting didn’t align cleanly with the physical evidence of her file, and the questioning was viewed as much more leading.Because the judge determined the Herbert confession was mostly the product of high-pressure promptings and “puffing” without independent confirmation, it failed the *R. v. Hart* reliability test. The Crown had no choice but to stay those charges because they couldn’t use the tape.### SummaryCould the defense have used the weakness of the Herbert confession to declare a mistrial on the Monica Jack case? **No, because the firewall worked.**By splitting the trials, the legal system ensured that the flaws and “leading” nature of the Herbert sting stayed completely isolated. When the jury sat for the Monica Jack trial, they were never allowed to hear that Handlen had even been charged with or questioned about a second girl. They only weighed the Monica Jack evidence, which the BC Court of Appeal later reaffirmed was legally sound and independent of any exaggeration or coercion.
No, there was never any evidence or testimony indicating that Garry Taylor Handlen took or kept “trophies” or souvenirs from either crime.During the trial and the undercover “Mr. Big” operation, the evidence regarding how he handled the victims’ belongings pointed entirely to **concealment and destruction** rather than collection: * **In the Monica Jack case:** Handlen explicitly stated in his recorded confession that he immediately threw Monica’s bicycle into Nicola Lake to hide it. Furthermore, he detailed that after driving her to the remote logging area on Swakum Mountain, he burned her clothing and remains in an attempt to completely destroy any physical or forensic evidence linking him to the crime. When her partial remains were discovered by forestry workers 17 years later, the site conditions aligned with this attempt to eliminate evidence. * **In the Kathryn-Mary Herbert case:** Similarly, her bicycle was left behind/discarded near where she vanished, and her remains were located a few months later in an undeveloped area. There was never any indication by investigators that any personal effects were missing or kept by the perpetrator.The prosecution’s case relied heavily on the hidden-camera confession and the matching, unpublicized physical details of the crime scenes (holdback information) rather than any physical items recovered from Handlen’s possession.
Comcept Photo
The weight of that loss never truly left the community. For forty years, the absence of a twelve-year-old girl hung over the valley, a heavy silence that everyone felt but no one could break.When the truth finally came to light in 2019, it felt like a reckoning. The conviction didn’t undo the tragedy, but it forced a dark secret out of the shadows. And then, almost immediately after, the entire world ground to a sudden halt, locking everyone in their homes and forcing a global pause. There is a strange, somber poetry in that timing—as if the universe itself needed to stop, take a breath, and acknowledge the sheer gravity of what had been uncovered.For the survivors, the family, and the people of Merritt who carried her memory for decades, that chapter ending wasn’t a cure, but it was a testament. It proved that Monica was never forgotten. The silence was finally broken, and the truth was given its proper, heavy due.
Take reasonable care, cell phones in this era are near being a god send. PP
Gone extinct
While Canada hasn’t lost any high-profile megafauna like grizzly bears or caribou entirely to global extinction in the last 50 years, several unique, localized species and distinct populations have completely vanished from the country.
Sunny summer weather has nature humming, golden rays of reciprocal charm chocking up scores.
So this fawn was found near a bush with some shade. June 2nd 2026.
The finder noted that the mother was near by so placed it back to the shade leaving it for it’s returning foraging mom.
Best Practice
This is the best practice for fawns unless the are injured.
BC SPCA is a phone call away these days…
Document with film we have a naturalist blog as well, or NNS inc is available in Merritt.
June 10th good 👍👍👍👍
June 2026 offers a rich night sky for observers. As summer begins in the Northern Hemisphere, the Milky Way starts to rise higher in the late evening, stretching from the southeastern horizon and arching overhead by midnight in darker locations. Look for the Summer Triangle—Vega in Lyra, Deneb in Cygnus, and Altair in Aquila—dominating the eastern sky after sunset. Scorpius and Sagittarius glow low in the south, marking the direction of the galaxy’s bright core. Early risers can spot brilliant Venus shining before dawn, while Mars and Jupiter make appearances in the evening sky during the month. With warmer nights and shorter darkness, June is ideal for relaxed stargazing sessions and watching for meteor activity from minor showers.
While we commonly think of water as having three stages (solid, liquid, and gas), the “fourth stage of water” often refers to plasma when discussing the fundamental states of matter. However, within the context of water specifically, it’s more nuanced.
Here’s a breakdown:
* Solid (Ice): Water molecules are rigidly bound in a crystal lattice.
* Liquid (Water): Molecules are more loosely bound and can move past each other.
* Gas (Steam/Water Vapor): Molecules are far apart and move randomly.
When people talk about a “fourth stage of water,” they might be referring to a few different concepts:
* Plasma: If you heat water vapor to extremely high temperatures, the molecules can break apart, and the atoms can become ionized (electrons are stripped from the nuclei). This superheated, ionized gas is plasma, which is indeed considered the fourth fundamental state of matter. This is not a common state for water under everyday conditions.
* Supercritical Fluid: At very high temperatures and pressures (above its critical point), water can exist as a supercritical fluid. In this state, it has properties of both a liquid and a gas, diffusing like a gas but dissolving substances like a liquid. While distinct, it’s generally considered an extension of the fluid phase rather than a completely separate “stage” in the same way solid, liquid, and gas are.
* Exclusion Zone (EZ) Water / Structured Water: This is a more controversial concept, primarily popularized by Dr. Gerald Pollack. He proposes that water adjacent to hydrophilic surfaces can form a structured, ordered layer with different properties than bulk water. He sometimes refers to this as “EZ water” or “structured water” and suggests it acts like a liquid crystal, having a more ordered hexagonal structure. While intriguing, this concept is still an area of active research and not universally accepted as a distinct “fourth phase” in the traditional scientific sense.
In summary, if you’re looking for the generally accepted “fourth state of matter” in the scientific community that water can achieve under extreme conditions, it’s plasma. However, if you encounter the term in other contexts, it could refer to supercritical water or the more speculative “EZ water.”
Kootenay bike week move your bike for free Starting today.
PLAN YOUR TIME
Effective planning is crucial for achieving goals and reducing stress. Here are 5 key things you can do to enhance your planning:
* Set Clear Goals:
* Begin by defining what you want to achieve. Specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART) goals provide a clear direction for your planning.
* Prioritize Tasks:
* Not all tasks are created equal. Identify the most important tasks and focus on them first. Tools like the Eisenhower Matrix (urgent/important) can help you prioritize effectively.
* Break Down Large Projects:
* Large projects can feel overwhelming. Break them down into smaller, manageable steps. This makes the project less daunting and allows you to track progress more easily.
* Use Time Management Techniques:
* Time blocking, for example, involves allocating specific time slots for different activities. This helps you stay focused and ensures that you dedicate time to important tasks.
* Maintain Consistency and Flexibility:
* Planning is an ongoing process. Regularly review and adjust your plans as needed. Be prepared to adapt to unexpected changes, but also strive to maintain consistency in your planning habits.
By incorporating these strategies, you can improve your planning skills and increase your productivity.
Happy Saturday
On Sunday, May 31, 2026, skywatchers in Merritt, British Columbia, will treated to a functionally full moon that officially reaches its peak illumination earlier that morning at 1:45 AM. For evening viewing on Sunday, the moon will rise at **10:17 PM PDT**, emerging from the east-southeast at an azimuth of **124°**. What makes this particular celestial event highly unusual—and a stellar target for a camera setup or binoculars—is that it is a **seasonal Blue Moon** (the third of four full moons in a single astronomical season) and a **Micromoon**. Because the moon is currently sitting near apogee—its farthest point from Earth in its elliptical orbit at roughly 252,349 miles away—it will appear about 14% smaller and notably dimmer than a typical supermoon. Furthermore, because it tracks low across the southern sky at this time of year, hitting a maximum altitude of just 12.3° over the horizon at midnight, you can look forward to a prolonged, striking “moon illusion” where it mimics a massive size against the local Nicola Valley landscape, despite its technically smaller physical scale.
The Nicola Valley Institute of Technology (NVIT) was founded in 1983 as a private institute by the five First Nations bands of the Nicola Valley—the Coldwater, Lower Nicola, Nooaitch, Shackan, and Upper Nicola bands. Created out of a vision to provide a meaningful space where Indigenous people could thrive in higher education, it initially opened its doors to just 13 learners in a specialized forestry program. In 1995, the institution achieved a major milestone when it was officially designated as a Provincial Institute under the British Columbia College and Institute Act, making it BC’s only public, Indigenous-led post-secondary institution. Today, it operates two main physical campuses—the primary Eagles Perch campus in Merritt and an urban site in Burnaby—while simultaneously delivering mobile, community-based education directly to over 35 distinct Indigenous communities across the province.The institution’s governance and modern student body directly mirror its founding values and unique public mandate. Fully governed by a First Nations Board of Governors and deeply supported by a dedicated Elders’ Council, NVIT operates under an Indigenous-led administrative structure designed to keep curriculum and student services learner-centered and culturally grounded. The student population has grown to approximately 1,500 learners annually, with individuals representing nearly 70% of all First Nations communities in British Columbia, alongside a smaller segment of non-Indigenous students from local regional school districts. Over the decades, NVIT’s expanding network of alumni has produced influential community leaders, environmental technologists, health care workers, and business professionals. Many of these graduates transition directly into roles within First Nations governance, resource management, and social services, carrying forward credentials ranging from specialized certificates to joint Master of Business Administration degrees explicitly tailored for Indigenous cohorts.
In case you have the
Opportunity and time for fossils?
Needs permits to go export🫣 and:
Here are the specific details regarding the timing, attendees, and the official (and unofficial) agenda items dominating the tables.
* **Start Date:** Monday, May 25, 2026 * **End Date:** Tuesday, May 26, 2026.
(Wrapping up today with press conferences and joint statements)
| Leader | Juristiction |
| Danielle Smith David Eby Scott Moe Wab Kinew R.J. Simpson Currie Dixon John, Main | NWT Yukon Nunavat (Virtual) |
The conference brings together the leaders of Canada’s four western provinces and three northern territories.
While the official agenda focuses heavily on regional growth and security, a massive political development in the host province has completely reshaped the conversation.
**Danielle Smith** (Host)
####
Economy & Security
According to the host premier’s office, the formal discussions are centered on: * **Trade and Inter-provincial Business:** Deepening partnerships and cutting red tape between western neighbors.
Exploring infrastructure corridors, including a contentious proposed bitumen pipeline from Alberta to the B.C. coast, which recently received federal backing from Prime Minister Mark Carney.
Specifically championed by Nunavut, leaders are discussing northern sovereignty as Ottawa increases its long-term defence spending targets.
Alberta Separatism
The conference kicked off just days after Premier Danielle Smith announced an
**October 19 referendum**
Asking Albertans if they want to remain in Canada or trigger binding separation negotiations.This has caused significant friction and drama on the floor:
* **Manitoba’s Take:
** Premier Wab Kinew
Stated his primary goal is to “give a big old hug” to Alberta and emphasize unity, expressing strong opposition to the separation idea.
* **B.C.’s Take:** Premier David Eby
Has pointed out the sheer irony of hosting a Canadian nation-building summit while “setting the table to leave the country.” Tension is also high over the federal-Alberta pipeline alignment, which Eby feels bypasses B.C.’s environmental and financial interests.
In classic Western tradition despite the heavy political sparring, Premier Smith reportedly gifted Premier Eby a pair of traditional Alberta cowboy boots as the meetings got underway.
Accomplished
At this writing press will be out with statements before this post goes live.
Daniel Smith in diplomacy has presented a pair of cowboy boots as per as practiced traditionally to the BC premier.
Done I thought
Editors thought
The Golden Spike still resonates in Golden, BC. The great Union by transportation. And communication lines.
Thankyou premiers
Pip: Welcome to The Proprietor Review, where Merritt, British Columbia turns out to be a surprisingly rich dateline for questions about time, food, disease, and geopolitics — all in one week.
Mara: We're moving through dreamlike writing and photography, a local dining scene, a hantavirus update for the Nicola Valley, and some bigger-picture thinking on trade, infrastructure, and energy corridors.
Pip: Let's start with the writing — and the dreams.
Mara: Kevin Griffiths is working in a mode that sits somewhere between street photography and prose poetry — the question both posts are circling is what it means to catch a moment before time takes it away.
Pip: His post Dream World frames it through a camera on Voght Street: "The camera created a dreamy sense for this traveler on Merritt BC" — and the image really does carry that quality, something caught mid-float.
Mara: The consequence is that the photograph isn't documentation — it's closer to a sealed instant, the kind Griffiths describes elsewhere as a "public statement that might be followed, an artist presenting, or accidental — it is called a moment."
Pip: That word "accidental" is doing a lot of work. The best street photography usually is.
Mara: Time Lapse picks up that thread and pushes it further. Griffiths argues the phrase itself is a contradiction — time isn't something that lapses, it's something you either inhabit or lose to measurement.
Pip: He writes, "Lapsed time is a nag — it never supports, it yells going going gone, you couldn't ever catch it saying I'll be waiting for you."
Mara: So the practical upshot is a reorientation: stop tracking time by duration and track it by enjoyment instead. He calls still photography the model for this — it "caresses you," he writes, rather than stalking you the way video does.
Pip: Which is a genuinely useful distinction between media that demand your schedule and media that wait for yours.
Mara: Both posts land on the same underlying argument — presence over measurement, the caught moment over the recorded sequence. The photography and the prose are making the same case from different angles.
Pip: One through a lens on Voght Street, one through a surreal glowing clock. Kevin Griffiths is consistent, at least, in his enemies list.
Mara: From the texture of a moment to the texture of a meal — the local scene in Merritt has its own kind of presence.
Pip: Kevin Griffiths turns a Boston Pizza lunch into a brief, five-star dispatch — the whole bill lands at fifteen dollars and seventy-five cents, tip at the till.
Mara: The post is called BP $15:…Lunch, and the notation is almost accounting: "Coffee refill included, 75 cents tax added total bill $15:75" — Fiesta Salad, five stars, done.
Pip: Affordable, unpretentious, and apparently satisfying. The Merritt dining economy is not suffering.
Mara: Cuisine, the companion post, zooms out to the farmers market on a Saturday morning during the May long weekend — same town, same instinct to document what's available and who's gathering around it.
Pip: From hantavirus to hydroelectric — the health picture comes next.
Mara: The question percypaschal is answering in Deer Mice spread, Andie's Virus is the one residents were probably already asking: does the Andes hantavirus outbreak in the news actually affect Merritt?
Pip: The answer is direct: "The short answer is no, the risk to you and the general public in Merritt is currently very low."
Mara: The upshot is containment — four passengers from the MV Hondius cruise ship returned to British Columbia, one tested presumptive positive, and that person has had zero contact with the general public while in strict isolation.
Pip: The post also reminds readers that a local strain carried by deer mice already exists in rural B.C., and the precautions are practical — wet down droppings with bleach rather than sweeping them airborne.
Mara: Grounded, local, useful. Now for the larger infrastructure picture.
Mara: Three posts this week are thinking about what holds systems together — drilling industries, river corridors, and the cost of fuel — and the tension running through all of them is between development and its consequences.
Pip: The CDDA convention post covers the 81st Annual General Meeting of the Canadian Diamond Drilling Association, scheduled for Victoria under the theme "Viva Victoria" — workforce pipelines, mental health in high-stress sectors, safety awards.
Mara: percypaschal's Trade and Energy: Black Sea River Systems takes the longer view: "These vast freshwater systems act as natural highways, enabling international trade and commercial navigation deep into the European interior."
Pip: What that means in practice is that the Danube, Dnieper, Dniester, and Don are simultaneously ecological assets and geopolitical pressure points — and the post notes that large-scale hydroelectric development has largely stalled under EU environmental mandates, shifting focus toward offshore wind and subsea energy corridors.
Mara: Bridge over River Kwai brings it back to ground level — Kevin Griffiths writing about gas prices, planned obsolescence, and the cycle of militarism with a benediction at the end: "enjoy the moment, be in the present, you have the secret now."
Pip: From Black Sea river systems to a Merritt gas pump, the infrastructure question stays the same — who pays, and for whose decisions.
Mara: Moments, meals, containment, corridors — this week's posts keep returning to the same underlying question: what's worth measuring and what's worth just inhabiting.
Pip: Kevin Griffiths would say stop measuring. We'll see what next week's dateline brings.
Boston Pizza Merritt BC, near airstrip…
Coffee refill included, 75 cents tax added total bill $15:75 tip at till…
Fiesta Salad
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Concept photo
A term that annoys me is time lapse, to be sure:
it annoys me because it’s an oxymoron. Time is ecstatic. Lapse is a dynamic. Its interpretive sense.So,
The passing of time is not good for some. It’s bad for me often opportunities lapse before Time does its parade?
Lapsed time is a nag it never supports it yells going going gone, you couldn’t ever catch it saying I’ll be waiting for you.
Switch it off and stop measuring your activities by lapsed time. Measure your activities by enjoyment, it will compress time and lecture it on lapsing for which you will be rewarded with Glee as you take it as it comes.
A contender for enjoyment is still photography. Unlike that video that stalks you still photography caresses you. It takes its time or rather it does what it does. It is there to be enjoyed. It doesn’t demand an agenda. You may have it in your control and enjoy it at your pace and leisure.
Yes a moment is worry and available to be sealed with a kiss, a pet, a stroking of your back, a tickling under your chin, a brief eye. Do I catch y’all but no time lapse? The agenda is yours.
Hey Merit what do you say?
Kevin Griffiths
percypaschal
The Proprietor Review 