National News as of 2:30 p.m. ET Aug. 9

Aug. 7, 2012

2:30 p.m. ET

NATIONAL NEWS ADVISORY

Here are the top National News stories from The Canadian Press. All times are Eastern unless otherwise stated. Coverage plans are included when available. Entries are subject to change as news develops.

Canada captures bronze in women's soccer

OLY-SOC-Canada-France

COVENTRY _ Canada's women's soccer team has its first medal in Olympic history.Diana Matheson scored in the 92nd minute to give the Canadians the bronze medal at the London Olympics with a thrilling 1-0 victory over France. PHOTO. Will be updated. FOR OLYMPIC PREMIUM SUBSCRIBERS ONLY

Verbeek wins silver medal at London Olympics

OLY-WRE-Canada

LONDON _ Canada's Tonya Verbeek could not prevent Saori Yoshida from winning her third straight Olympic wrestling title.Verbeek will go home with a silver medal after losing to the Japanese star in the 55-kilogram final at the London Games. PHOTO. Will be Updated

Legault wants schools to run 9 to 5

Que-Elxn

MIRABEL _ There will be a lot less late-afternoon texting and TV watching for Quebec high-school students if Francois Legault has his way.The leader of the Coalition for Quebec's Future says he would adjust secondary-school opening hours to 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. if he becomes premier, to better reflect the schedule of modern families and to help fight the province's high dropout rate. PHOTO.

Quebec construction boss to face more charges

Quebec-Fraud

MONTREAL _ Quebec construction magnate Tony Accurso has been arrested for the second time as police continue to crack down on alleged corruption in the industry.The RCMP says five men, including Accurso, were arrested Thursday, with the charges against them to include fraud, conspiracy and corruption. PHOTO.

McGuinty threatens legislation for teachers

Ont-Teachers-Election

TORONTO _ Attempts by Ontario's minority Liberal government to impose a wage freeze on teachers this summer could trigger a general election.Premier Dalton McGuinty says the Liberals have been sincere and honest in their efforts to reach new contracts with teachers by Sept. 1, but will introduce legislation if necessary. Will be updated

Axing CSIS watchdog a mistake, says former inspector general

CSIS-Watchdog

OTTAWA _ Abolition of the CSIS inspector general's office is ``a huge loss'' to the important task of keeping an eye on Canada's spy service, says the woman who held the job for the last eight years _ her first public comments on the Conservative decision to axe the watchdog.

Officers received tip before woman's murder

Police-Death-Warning

VANCOUVER _ Two Vancouver police officers have lost their attempt to block an external investigation into allegations they were neglectful when they decided not to warn a pregnant woman her life was in danger in the days before she was murdered.Det. Const. Craig Bentley and Staff Sgt. John Grywinski were working on the region's integrated gang task force in 2005 when Bentley received a tip that someone was plotting to kill 21-year-old Tasha Rosette. Will be writethru

Child abductor returns to sentencing hearing

Boy-Returned

CRANBROOK _ A B.C. judge is expected to rule today whether confessed child abductor Randall Hopley will undergo a 60-day psychiatric evaluation to help determine if he meets the criteria to be designated a dangerous offender.B.C. Supreme Court Justice Heather Holmes has had the past three weeks to consider the request from Crown prosecutor Lynal Doerksen who wants Hopley declared a dangerous or long-term offender. PHOTO. Will be writethru

RIM says ruling overturned in patent case

RIM-Lawsuit

WATERLOO _ Research in Motion says a California judge has overturned a ruling on a patent-infringement case involving mobile device management company Mformation Technologies and vacated a US$147.2-million jury award.``After considering motions presented by both parties as well as the jury verdict, the judge determined that RIM had not infringed on Mformation's patent,'' the company said early Thursday. Moves Business and National

Enbridge defends recent ad campaign

Northern-Gateway-PR

VANCOUVER _ Those reading major newspapers in British Columbia, Alberta or Ontario over the past two days might have noticed a full-page ad placed by Calgary-based Enbridge. The statement from the oil giant emphasized the company's ``99.999 per cent'' pipeline safety record and its commitment to preventing oil spills.

New house prices rose 0.2 per cent in June: StatsCan

StatsCan-Housing

OTTAWA _ Statistics Canada says its price index for new homes rose 0.2 per cent in June, following a 0.3 per cent increase in May.The largest May-to-June increases came in the southern Ontario region of Kitchener_Cambridge_Waterloo, where prices rose 1.7 per cent, followed by Winnipeg at 0.7 per cent and Victoria at 0.6 per cent. PHOTO. Moves National and Business.

Canadian trade deficit widens in June

StatsCan-Trade

OTTAWA _ Canada's trade performance with the rest of the world worsened for the third consecutive month in June, providing fresh evidence of the global economic slowdown's impact on the country's key sector.Statistics Canada reported Thursday the merchandise trade deficit nearly doubled to $1.8 billion during the month, from an upwardly revised $954 million in May. PHOTO. Moves National and Business.

GE dishwashers recalled due to fire hazard

Dishwasher-Recall

TORONTO _ General Electric is recalling more than a million dishwashers in the United States and Canada because of heating elements that can fail and cause fires.The Consumer Product Safety Commission in the US says the recall includes about 1.3 million GE, GE Adora, GE Eterna, GE Profile and Hotpoint dishwashers, including 94,500 units sold in Canada.

Indigenous media focus of UN panel

UN-Indigenous-Media

NEW YORK _ Indigenous media are in the spotlight today for the United Nations International Day of the World's Indigenous Peoples.This year's event is focusing on indigenous media's role in preserving culture, challenging stereotypes and putting important issues on the agenda.

BUZZ

Vancouver man says suspect using his name

US-Hammered-In-Head

NEW YORK _ When a Spanish tourist was abruptly pummelled in the head by a hammer-wielding stranger on a New York City park bench last week, there seemed to be little mystery about who attacked him _ a suspect was arrested nearby and confessed, authorities said.But now the case may not be so straightforward: Prosecutors are investigating whether the suspect gave authorities a phoney name after a chess master in Canada told them he believes the suspect is using his identity.

Electro-pop star Peaches supports Pussy Riot

EU-Germany-Punks-vs-Putin

BERLIN _ About 400 people joined Canadian electro-pop performance artist Peaches in a Berlin park to show support for the members of a feminist band on trial in Russia for performing a ``punk prayer'' against President Vladimir Putin.The three Pussy Riot band members are awaiting a verdict next week in their Moscow trial on charges of hooliganism motivated religious hatred for the February performance. PHOTO.

(The Canadian Press)