American millionaire Jonathan Lehrer denied bail after being charged with killing Canadian couple
American millionaire Jonathan Lehrer, one of two men charged in the killings of a Canadian couple in Dominica, has been denied bail.
A National Hockey League team with a Russian player has decided against wearing special warmup jerseys to commemorate Pride night, citing an anti-gay Kremlin law that could imperil Russian athletes when they return home.
The Chicago Blackhawks, who have at least two more players with connections to Russia, will not wear Pride-themed warmup jerseys before Sunday's game against Vancouver, a person with knowledge of the matter told The Associated Press, because of security concerns involving the law, which expands restrictions on supporting LGBTQ rights. Russian President Vladimir Putin signed it in December.
The decision was made by the Blackhawks following discussions with security officials within and outside the franchise, according to a person familiar with the situation who spoke Wednesday to the AP on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the move.
Chicago coach Luke Richardson said Thursday that he and his players were disappointed and called it “an unfortunate situation.”
“I don’t think we can control the world issues, so that takes it out of our hands,” Richardson said. "We’re just making decisions as best we can as an organization and for everybody.”
The league declined to comment through a spokesperson.
The decision comes amid increasing threats to freedom of expression in the U.S. and abroad. Conservative political forces have sought to ban LGBTQ-themed books from American school libraries and to forbid classroom lessons that mention sexuality and some aspects of race relations.
Similar pressures have forced Russian players to walk a careful line since the invasion of Ukraine, with some cautiously speaking out against the war even with family members still living in Russia. Last year, Minnesota Wild star Kirill Kaprizov ran into several roadblocks as he travelled back to the U.S., raising concerns about his safety.
“There’s such a sensitivity to the topic, and you have concerns for the Russians, especially,” Buffalo Sabres captain Kyle Okposo said, emphasizing that he does not “understand what it’s like to be in Russia and to grow up there. And I don’t think we’re able to speak about the psychology of those players because we don’t understand."
Chicago defenceman Nikita Zaitsev is a Moscow native, and there are other players with family in Russia or other connections to the country.
The Florida Panthers — whose star goaltender, Sergei Bobrovsky, is Russian — went forward with plans to wear Pride-themed jerseys Thursday night before their home game against Toronto. Bobrovsky took part, while brothers Eric and Marc Staal did not, and cited religion as the reason.
“We carry no judgement on how people choose to live their lives, and believe that all people should be welcome in all aspects of the game of hockey,” the Staal brothers said in a statement. “Having said that, we feel that by us wearing a Pride jersey it goes against our Christian beliefs.”
The jerseys are just one part of many initiatives the Panthers built into the annual event, including auctioning off the jerseys, matching the money raised and donating it to nonprofits that work with the LGBTQ community.
“As an organization, we’ve decided, and rightfully so, to move forward with it and support it and celebrate it,” Panthers coach Paul Maurice said. “Teams around the league and players around the league, they’ve got the right to their opinion, and we’ve got the right to ours.”
The Sabres and Vancouver Canucks have Pride nights upcoming. The Canucks have not announced specific plans for the event. Sabres management was scheduled to hold discussions Thursday with its player leadership group on the matter, amid concern over whether defenceman Ilya Lyubushkin will participate because he is from Moscow, where he still has family and returns in the offseason to visit.
Lyubushkin and his family members could face a backlash in Russia, according to a Sabres employee with knowledge of the issue. The person spoke to the AP on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the discussions.
In other sports, members of Major League Baseball’s Tampa Bay Rays decided last season not to wear rainbow-coloured logos on their uniforms as part of their Pride night. Women's basketball star Brittney Griner, an American citizen who is gay, was arrested at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo Airport last year after Russian authorities said she was carrying vape canisters with cannabis oil. She was imprisoned for eight months until a high-profile prisoner swap with the U.S.
Kurt Weaver, chief operating officer of the You Can Play Project, which advocates for LGBTQ participation in sports, said he was upset when he learned of the Blackhawks’ decision, but he called the conversation an indicator of progress.
“We are certainly disappointed that the jerseys aren’t worn, because that’s the No. 1 visual representation from the athletes themselves, and I know a lot of the athletes do support this effort and support their community that comes to watch them,” Weaver said, adding praise for the Blackhawks’ commitment to Pride causes dating back more than a decade.
Ivan Provorov of the Philadelphia Flyers declined to take part in pregame warmups during the team’s Pride night in January, citing his Russian Orthodox religion. Russians Nikolai Knyzhov and Alexander Barabanov wore the Pride-themed jerseys for the San Jose Sharks Sharks on Saturday, when Canadian goaltender James Reimer refused to take part because, like the Staals, he said it conflicted with his religious beliefs.
The New York Rangers and Minnesota Wild opted not to wear Pride jerseys or use Pride stick tape as part of their events despite previously advertising they would.
The Blackhawks planned a variety of LGBT-related activities in conjunction with Sunday's game. DJs from the LGBTQ community will play before the game and during an intermission, and the Chicago Gay Men’s Chorus is slated to perform. There also are plans to highlight a couple of area businesses with ties to the gay community.
“We don’t want the jerseys to represent the entirety of the night," Blackhawks defenceman Seth Jones said. “We’re still doing a lot for the LGBTQ community, and us as players respect that. We just thought that this was best for our team."
___
AP Sports Writers John Wawrow, Josh Dubow and Tim Reynolds contributed to this report.
American millionaire Jonathan Lehrer, one of two men charged in the killings of a Canadian couple in Dominica, has been denied bail.
Health Canada will change its longstanding policy restricting gay and bisexual men from donating to sperm banks in Canada, CTV News has learned. The federal health agency has adopted a revised directive removing the ban on gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men, effective May 8.
Nearly half of China's major cities are suffering 'moderate to severe' levels of subsidence, putting millions at risk of flooding especially as sea levels rise.
The judge presiding over the trial of a man accused of fatally running over a Toronto police officer is telling jurors the possible verdicts they may reach based on the evidence in the case.
A male columnist has apologized for a cringeworthy moment during former University of Iowa superstar and college basketball's highest scorer Caitlin Clark's first news conference as an Indiana Fever player.
Prince Harry, the son of King Charles III and fifth in line to the British throne, has formally confirmed he is now a U.S. resident.
Sophie Kinsella, the best-selling author behind the 'Shopaholic' book series, has revealed that she is receiving treatment for brain cancer.
Cabinet minister Dominic LeBlanc says he plans to run in the next election as a candidate under Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's leadership, amid questions about his rumoured interest in succeeding his longtime friend for the top job.
The United States vetoed a widely backed UN resolution Thursday that would have paved the way for full United Nations membership for Palestine, a goal the Palestinians have long sought and Israel has worked to prevent.
Kevin the cat has been reunited with his family after enduring a harrowing three-day ordeal while lost at Toronto Pearson International Airport earlier this week.
Molly Knight, a grade four student in Nova Scotia, noticed her school library did not have many books on female athletes, so she started her own book drive in hopes of changing that.
Almost 7,000 bars of pure gold were stolen from Pearson International Airport exactly one year ago during an elaborate heist, but so far only a tiny fraction of that stolen loot has been found.
When Les Robertson was walking home from the gym in North Vancouver's Lower Lonsdale neighbourhood three weeks ago, he did a double take. Standing near a burrow it had dug in a vacant lot near East 1st Street and St. Georges Avenue was a yellow-bellied marmot.
A moulting seal who was relocated after drawing daily crowds of onlookers in Greater Victoria has made a surprise return, after what officials described as an 'astonishing' six-day journey.
Just steps from Parliament Hill is a barber shop that for the last 100 years has catered to everyone from prime ministers to tourists.
A high score on a Foo Fighters pinball machine has Edmonton player Dave Formenti on a high.
A compound used to treat sour gas that's been linked to fertility issues in cattle has been found throughout groundwater in the Prairies, according to a new study.
While many people choose to keep their medical appointments private, four longtime friends decided to undergo vasectomies as a group in B.C.'s Lower Mainland.