Sentencing today for man who stabbed girlfriend to death By Tim Petruk
STAFF REPORTER
tim@kamloopsthisweek.com
Gerald Peters and Deborah Joseph used to drink a lot, but neither of them have had a drop of alcohol in more than a year-and-a-half. In that time, Peters, has been in a jail cell. Joseph has been in a grave. Peters pleaded guilty this week to manslaughter — an 11th-hour plea bargain on the day a jury was to be selected before which he would have stood trial on a charge of second-degree murder. He was 48 on Oct. 20, 2012, and living with Joseph, his girlfriend
of the same age, in a trailer on East Shuswap Road — a few blocks from the Kamloops Rural RCMP detachment and the entrance to Sun Rivers. In the early afternoon of that day, Peters flagged down his brother and sister-in-law, who were driving by on East Shuswap, asking for a ride for him and Joseph. They obliged and drove the couple to Cooper’s Foods in Valleyview. In the car, Peters and Joseph were happy and sober. They talked about buying a new vehicle and about tying the knot. There was no indication they were hours away from tragedy. X See I DID NOT A16
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Get ready for another hot and dry summer Page A3
THURSDAY
Thursday, June 5, 2014 X Volume 27 No. 65
Kamloops, B.C., Canada X 30 cents at Newsstands
THIS WEEK
Students cite class sizes The few kids who protested labour dispute spoke of classroom challenges By Dale Bass
STAFF REPORTER
dale@kamloopsthisweek.com
While a mass student walkout yesterday (June 4) did not materialize, a smattering of kids from various schools in Kamloops did leave classes to add their voice to the ongoing labour dispute between the B.C. Teachers’ Federation and provincial government. A group of about 10 students walked out of Beattie School of the Arts’ secondary campus on Ninth Avenue, some with placards in hand. Brendan Stokes said he transferred to Beattie School of the Arts from Brock middle school for Grade 9 because he was tired of “the emotional stress of the teachers” at Brock “with large classes and many students needing or asking for extra help.” Shanna Dewaard,
a Grade 8 student at Beattie, said she also chose the school in hopes of avoiding larger classes she knows exist in other secondaries in the city. Even at Beattie, however, Shanna said class size is an issue. “Teachers can’t help everybody they want to,” she said. “They want to give that extra support, but it’s hard.” Grade 8 student Rebecca Mayrhofer said she wants to succeed in school, but finds it difficult. “Because a lot of people need more help than I do and, sometimes, I can’t get help,” she said. “And it’s not the teachers’ fault.” At Valleyview secondary, Bailey Lukow and Keenen Warren were debating on whether to join fellow students who had planned to protest via a walkout. Bailey, a Grade 9 stu-
dent, said she wanted to join the protest, but felt that, with classmates on the sidewalk with their protest signs, “I might be able to get some help in a class I need it in and can’t get it. “The classes are really, really big and you don’t get all the help you need.” Keenen, a student taking classes in grades 10 and 11, agreed. “Every single teacher I have is frustrated with how big the classes are,” he said. “So many students and they all want one-onone help and the teachers can’t do it all.” He spoke of one socials-studies teacher who, apparently frustrated one day at his inability to handle all requests for help, “threw his arms in the air and just walked out.” Shay Paul, a Grade 8 student at Beattie, said
she always sees teachers spending their breaks and lunch hours helping students. She transferred to Beattie from Valleyview to get away from large classes, noting there were as many as 37 students in her socials-studies class. Jacob Neigel, a Grade 8 student at Beattie, knows he needs a good education to be successful, but pointed to larger class sizes as being a challenge. “It makes it harder to learn. There are just too many people and not enough people to help. “When it comes down to it, you need school,” he added, acknowledging there are days he just doesn’t want to go. “You can’t do anything without school.” � For more on the sparse student walkout, turn to page A4. � Teachers will be on strike today as part of the union’s job action. � The LRB has ruled the 10% pay cut to teachers is legal. Go online to kamloopsthisweek.com.
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The motocross nationals are roaring to town this weekend Page A19 Thompson River Publications Limited Partnership
Twin siblings Owen and Rebecca Mayrhofer, Grade 8 students at Beattie School of the Arts, let passersby know they have a voice in the labour dispute between the teachers’ union and the provincial government. Dave Eagles/KTW