DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Strict//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-strict.dtd"> Who Killed Theresa?: 09/01/2008 - 10/01/2008

Monday, September 29, 2008

Geographic Profiling - worthy of a chuckle



So this is me and Ken Robertson, Director General of Champlain College at last week's press conference announcing the commencement of the Theresa Allore Memorial Fund.

As I said in my statement, Ken is a prince. This is a guy who understands the commitment and the follow-through. Here is a guy who made sure I shook hands with every member of Champlain administration. Believe me, by the time we were finished there were no walls, and I was proud to pin the Champlain crest on my lapel.

A funny moment: so Ken's driving me to lunch, to a restaurant from Lennoxville to Sherbrooke. So we turn right and cross the Saint Francis river and I say, "Ooo! I've always wanted to see what's up here.".  And Ken says, "Well, it's just Bishops School and a backway into Sherbrooke." and I say, "Yes, I know, I know every inch of it... I've studied every map of Sherbrooke in matters of sexual aggressions, but some I've never traveled on". And Ken says, "Yes, I guess you'd have an intimate relationships of all roads in the region by now."

And I say... YES.

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Contributions to the Theresa Allore Memorial Fund can be made to one of two foundations in the United States and Canada. When you make a gift you will receive the full tax advantages available by law for gifts to public charities in the United States and Canada.

Benefactors from Canada may contact:

Foundation Champlain-Lennoxville Inc.
Theresa Allore Memorial Fund
c/o Marielle Denis, Treasurer
P.O. 5003 (Champlain Lennoxville Campus)
Sherbrooke, Québec, J1M 2A1


Tel: (819) 564-3600 ext. 638

Benefactors from the United States may contact:

Triangle Community Foundation
Theresa Allore Memorial Fund
c/o Fred Stang, Director of Development
324 Blackwell Street, Suite 1220
Durham, NC, 27701

Tel: 919-474-8370

With U.S. donations you may also take advantage of donating online using a credit card. Go to the following website and highlight the Theresa Allore Memorial Fund from the drop down menu:

http://www.trianglecf.org/page10001837.cfm

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Ebay for a Cause!

The "Botcha Bike"

Very soon I will be starting the great Theresa Allore Ebay auction to benefit the Theresa Allore Memorial Fund. In cooperation with Ebay's charitable entity, Giving Works and the Triangle Community Foundation I will be auctioning off items belonging to Theresa with all proceeds going to the endowment in her name. Items listed on Ebay will give a brief description of the item, but more importantly, what the item meant to Theresa - so you get a little history lesson as well.


Cashmere Pierre Cardin sweater

Winning bidders get some really good vintage stuff from the 70s. If you're into it, you also get a piece of Theresa's history. Nobody gets hurt, and a future student gets a scholarship to subsidize their educational expenses (which seem to be skyrocketing more and more each day).


Thin White Duke

How can you help?



Well if your interested in an item please consider bidding. If your not? Bid anyway and drive up the price. With charity auctions this is perfectly legit, in fact Ebay encourages it. (If you accidentally win it and don't want it, call me and we'll work something out)


Le Grand Orange

Check back here soon for more details. If you just can't wait, you can simply contribute the old-fashioned way by donating directly to a good cause. Click her for information on direct donations.

Thx,

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Saturday, September 27, 2008

Quebec and the Scholarship

Don't want to spend too much time on what happened with my visit to Quebec, I'll get to that later. Instead I'd like to focus on the monies we've raised to date for the scholarship. 


As of Friday we have raised $3,390, or 17% of the endowment, not bad for a week's work. But the graph below gives a representation of how far we have to go:


If you haven't already done so, I would urge you to contribute to the Theresa Allore Memorial Fund, which will provide future students with scholarship opportunities at Champlain College. Details on how to contribute may be found by clicking on the "Contribute" button in the upper-right corner, or by clicking here. (it just takes you to one of my pages, but you get the idea)

Thanks to all who have donated generously so far. Your contribution will ensure that Theresa is memorialized in a manner worthy of her character, and for a purpose she would have appreciated.

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Thursday, September 25, 2008

Fundraising Kickoff: The Theresa Allore Memorial Fund



The family of Theresa Allore and Champlain Regional College are pleased to announce the launching of the Theresa Allore Memorial Fund.

We are presently seeking benefactors that wish to contribute to an endowment scholarship in her memory. With your help, we hope to be able to offer the first scholarship for the 2008- 2009 academic year. We ask that you consider donating to the Theresa Allore Memorial Fund, so that we can continue to celebrate her life by encouraging a worthy student.

Contributions can be made to one of two foundations in the United States and Canada. When you make a gift you will receive the full tax advantages available by law for gifts to public charities in the United States and Canada.


Benefactors from Canada may contact:

Foundation Champlain-Lennoxville Inc.
Theresa Allore Memorial Fund
c/o Marielle Denis, Treasurer
P.O. 5003 (Champlain Lennoxville Campus)
Sherbrooke, Québec, J1M 2A1


Tel: (819) 564-3600 ext. 638

Benefactors from the United States may contact:

Triangle Community Foundation
Theresa Allore Memorial Fund
c/o Fred Stang, Director of Development
324 Blackwell Street, Suite 1220
Durham, NC, 27701

Tel: 919-474-8370

With U.S. donations you may also take advantage of donating online using a credit card. Go to the following website and highlight the Theresa Allore Memorial Fund from the drop down menu:

http://www.trianglecf.org/page10001837.cfm

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Wednesday, September 24, 2008

Comments from the Kick-off of the Theresa Allore Memorial Fund

My Big Sister Theresa

I am here to tell you some things about Theresa. When she and Andre were 4 and 3 years old, they got in my father’s car, with Andre behind the wheel. Theresa convinced Andre to put the car in gear, and there it went, rolling down Front Street toward a traffic intersection, my father running after to stop it just in time before any unfortunate tragedy. That was Theresa; sweet, convincing, manipulative, always courting excitement and danger.


We called her Treetops or Tweezers – because she was so thin – or Tee-ta – because I was too young to wrap my mouth around three syllables. And as she got older, the fun never stopped.
Theresa loved cycling, her prized possession being her expensive Italian Botecchia racing bicycle, which I dubbed, “The Bocha-Bike”. Many of us can recall a time when Theresa would ask if we’d like to go for “a little ride”. Usually this involved an all day affair to points unknown all over and off the island of Montreal. My own experience took us from Pierrefonds to Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue, a 40-k journey that left me with countless blisters, I remember stopping briefly in a diner in St. Anne for a Pepsi, listening to Paul McCartney and Wings on the diner booth jukebox, before I was whisked back in the saddle for the long journey home.

Theresa loved music. She introduced me to Jethro Tull, Rush, Pink Floyd, Genesis (the Peter Gabriel Genesis, she would have never tolerated how they later de-evolved and “sold out”), Manfred Mann, The Strawbs, Gentle Giant, in short, all things Prog-Rock – my musical tastes remain thoroughly stuck in the Seventies. Her favorite was David Bowie. We saw him once together at The Forum (separate sections of course, she would not have put up with being seen with her uncool, younger brother). She would have seen Bowie a second time, but she contracted Mono and my parents made her stay at home – something she never forgave them for.

All this is not to point out that Theresa was strong willed, but that Theresa was young… and a delight, a day does not pass when I do not laugh at something because of Theresa.

Thirty years ago today, at this hour Theresa was attending a Chemistry class in the Johnson building. Later in the day she would have English, and open-country running at the sports centre. She was planning for a camping trip her and some students would make in October at Mt. Orford. She was a real person, just like any of your students here today.

As some of you know, I have recently gone back to school, and am currently on leave from my PhD studies. My field is Public Policy and Administration, and I have a great interest in ethics and the hard choices we sometime face in life. A typical ethical problem solving tool involves using several ethical approaches to resolve an ethical dilemma. Thus matters of Virtue are considered in conjunction with questions of Principal and Consequence. The three methods battle it out until a clear 2/3rds majority is revealed, and an informed decision can be made.

Five years ago when I came calling on the door of Champlain College and then Director General, Gerry Cutting what was really in my heart was the Golden Rule and the idea of “do unto others as you would have them do unto you”. I wanted at that time a reconciliation. Yet in regard to Theresa’s death I still felt there were matters of Principal and The Greater Good that needed to be explored, so Virtue would have to be set aside for a time.

Today I feel the issue of Theresa’s death as it concerns Champlain has been thoroughly vetted; I have no wish to continue looking back in the past regarding Theresa and Champlain. So it was, last year that I came, again to Gerry Cutting with an olive branch and an idea to start a scholarship. At the time the offer was made I fully expected Champlain to reject it, so many ill-feelings had past between us. To my surprise and delight, Mr. Cutting fully embraced the idea, and from the moment he first insisted I call him Gerry to his retirement he was determined to make it work.

Now a new Director General, Kenneth Robertson, has stepped forward. I have a hard time expressing just how touched I have been by his actions. If I were to relay to you what he has done, I’m sure it would strike you as nothing out of the ordinary. But for me and my family, who have rarely seen any commitment and follow-through regarding Theresa, Mr. Robertson’s continued professionalism has been an extraordinary balm and comfort.

Theresa was tenacious with a T. Getting into an argument with her was like trying to wrestle a Frisbie out of the mouth of a Pit-Bull. If first she couldn’t beat you with logic, then she’d just beat you, and wear you down until you gave in. Some of that fight has rubbed off on me. But Theresa also had great capacity for understanding and forgiveness. She could be a friend to everyone; it wasn’t in her nature to hold a grudge, just as it is not within my truest nature to cling to resentment.

To the Townships community: For a very long time the name Theresa Allore has come to be associated with shame or gloom, if it was ever considered at all. Know that in my heart I bare this community no ill-will. When I come here, it gives me great pleasure to be here. Many of my closest friends live here, and there is nothing more beautiful than a Fall day by the lake. I would ask the people of the Townships to join with me in celebrating Theresa’s memory by contributing to this endowment so that future students may to take advantage of your community’s rich offerings.

With that I welcome any further questions, especially those concerning the particulars of the scholarship fund.

John Allore, brother of Theresa Allore


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National Post article by Allison Hanes

John will probably give this article its proper posting when he has the chance.  In the meantime, here's the link:


http://www.nationalpost.com/news/story.html?id+822114


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Sunday, September 21, 2008

Theresa Allore Memorial Fund



The family of Theresa Allore and Champlain Regional College are pleased to announce the launching of the Theresa Allore Memorial Fund.

We are presently seeking benefactors that wish to contribute to an endowment scholarship in her memory. With your help, we hope to be able to offer the first scholarship for the 2008- 2009 academic year. We ask that you consider donating to the Theresa Allore Memorial Fund, so that we can continue to celebrate her life by encouraging a worthy student.

Contributions can be made to one of two foundations in the United States and Canada. When you make a gift you will receive the full tax advantages available by law for gifts to public charities in the United States and Canada.


Benefactors from Canada may contact:

Foundation Champlain-Lennoxville Inc.
Theresa Allore Memorial Fund
c/o Marielle Denis, Treasurer
P.O. 5003 (Champlain Lennoxville Campus)
Sherbrooke, Québec, J1M 2A1

Tel: (819) 564-3600 ext. 638

Benefactors from the United States may contact:

Triangle Community Foundation
Theresa Allore Memorial Fund
c/o Fred Stang, Director of Development
324 Blackwell Street, Suite 1220
Durham, NC, 27701

Tel: 919-474-8370

With U.S. donations you may also take advantage of donating online using a credit card. Go to the following website and highlight the Theresa Allore Memorial Fund from the drop down menu:

http://www.trianglecf.org/page10001837.cfm

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Saturday, September 20, 2008

National Post highlights Theresa Allore Scholarship

I spoke to Allison Hanes of The National Post for about an hour yesterday afternoon. Expect an article next Tuesday or Wednesday. Topics we covered:

- The new scholarship created with Champlain Regional College

- How great it has been working with Champlain over the last year, especially with Director Generals, Gerry Cutting and Ken Robertson

- The Kim Rossmo book, what it was like writng that

- Reconciling with Sue Sutherland, and giving her full authority for investigating Theresa's murder

- The establishment of the cold case bureau in Quebec

- Meeting with Robert Lafreniere, from the Ministre of Public Safety's office

- The scheduled meeting this Tuesday with the Surete du Quebec and my expectations for that meeting

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Friday, September 19, 2008

Communique De Presse

COMMUNIQUÉ DE PRESSE
Le 24 septembre, 2008

Fonds Commémoratifs Theresa Allore
La famille de Theresa Allore et Champlain Regional College ont le plaisir d’annoncer la création
du Fonds Commémoratifs Theresa Allore.

Theresa Allore était une étudiante talentueuse du campus Champlain - Lennoxville en Estrie. Au
moment de son décès, elle étudiait les Sciences et avait exprimé son intérêt pour le domaine de la criminologie. Theresa aimait l’aventure, elle s’intéressait d’ailleurs au cyclisme, au parachutisme et à la randonnée. Passionnée du plein air, elle appréciait particulièrement les randonnées pédestres au Mont Orford. Theresa était une amie précieuse qui ne jugeait pas les autres, mais qui choisissait plutôt de s’inspirer de tous ceux et celles qu’elle rencontrait.

À partir des qualités inspirées par Theresa, nous espérons offrir une bourse reconnaissant
l’étudiant comme « personne entière », qui prendra en considération la réussite scolaire, la
participation active à la vie étudiante, le désir de servir les autres, et les besoins financiers. De plus, les bienfaiteurs auront l’opportunité de contribuer au développement de critères spécifiques permettant de rendre accessible cette bourse à un grand nombre d’étudiants et d’étudiantes autant traditionnels que non traditionnels.

Alors que nous avons lutté plusieurs années avec la perte tragique de cette jeune vie remplie
d’esprit d’aventure, il est maintenant venu le temps de célébrer la vie de Theresa afin qu’elle puisse en inspirer d’autres. Il n’y a aucun doute dans les coeurs de ceux et celles qui ont eu le privilège de la connaître que c’est de cette façon que Theresa aurait voulu qu’on se rappelle d’elle.

Nous sommes présentement à la recherche de bienfaiteurs et bienfaitrices qui désirent
contribuer à une bourse à sa mémoire. Avec votre aide, nous espérons offrir la première bourse en 2008-2009. Nous vous demandons de bien vouloir considérer votre don au Fonds Commémoratifs Theresa Allore, afin que nous puissions continuer de célébrer sa vie tout en encourageant un étudiant exceptionnel.

Merci de votre considération pour cet hommage important.

John Allore J. Kenneth Robertson
Frère de Theresa Directeur Général

Les contributions peuvent être faites à l’ordre de :

Bienfaiteurs du Canada::
Foundation Champlain-Lennoxville Inc.
Theresa Allore Memorial Fund
c/o Marielle Denis, Treasurer
P.O. 5003 (Champlain Lennoxville Campus)
Sherbrooke, Québec, J1M 2A1

Bienfaiteurs des États-Unis:
Triangle Community Foundation .
Theresa Allore Memorial Fund
c/o Fred Stang, Director of Development
324 Blackwell Street, Suite 1220
Durham, NC, 27701
http://www.trianglecf.org/page10001837.cfm
--------------------------------------------------------
PRESS RELEASE
September 24th, 2008


Theresa Allore Memorial Fund
The family of Theresa Allore and Champlain Regional College are pleased to announce the
launching of the Theresa Allore Memorial Fund.

Theresa Allore was a promising student at the Champlain Lennoxville Campus in Quebec’s
Eastern Townships. At the time of her death, she was studying the behavioral sciences, and
had expressed an interest in the field of criminology. Theresa loved adventure, which lead to
her interest in cycling, skydiving, and hiking. She loved being outdoors, and particularly
enjoyed hiking the local trails of Mount Orford. Her special qualities included being a good
friend, who did not judge others, but rather chose to draw encouragement and inspiration
from everyone and everything she encountered.

Based on these qualities inspired by Theresa, the hope is to establish a scholarship that will
take into consideration the student as a “total person”, including academic achievement,
active participation in campus life, desire to serve others, and financial need. Beyond these
qualities, benefactors will have the opportunity to contribute to the development of specific
criteria that will open this scholarship to a wide spectrum of students, providing support to
both traditional and non-traditional applicants.

While we have struggled for many years with the tragic loss of a young life filled with a spirit
of adventure, it has come the time to celebrate her life so that Theresa may inspire others.
There is no doubt in the hearts of those who had the privilege to share in her all too short life
that this is exactly how Theresa would want to be remembered.

We are presently seeking benefactors that wish to contribute to an endowment scholarship
in her memory. With your help, we hope to be able to offer the first scholarship for the 2008-
2009 academic year. We ask that you consider donating to the Theresa Allore Memorial
Fund, so that we can continue to celebrate her life by encouraging a worthy student.
Thank you for your consideration of this important tribute.

John Allore J. Kenneth Robertson
Brother of Theresa Director General
Contributions can be made to:

Benefactors from Canada:
Foundation Champlain-Lennoxville Inc.
Theresa Allore Memorial Fund
c/o Marielle Denis, Treasurer
P.O. 5003 (Champlain Lennoxville Campus)
Sherbrooke, Québec, J1M 2A1

Benefactors from the United States:
Triangle Community Foundation .
Theresa Allore Memorial Fund
c/o Fred Stang, Director of Development
324 Blackwell Street, Suite 1220
Durham, NC, 27701
http://www.trianglecf.org/page10001837.cfm

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Press Conference

CHAMPLAIN REGIONAL COLLEGE

Le 19 septembre 2007

Ceci est pour vous informer qu’une conférence de presse aura lieu le mercredi, 24
septembre 2008 à 10h30 pour annoncer la création du Fonds Commémoratifs Theresa Allore
au campus de Lennoxville, situé au 2580 rue College, Sherbrooke, à la salle C140.
Pour toute information supplémentaire, prière de consulter le communiqué de presse cijoint.
Pour d’autres informations communiquer avec M. J. Kenneth Robertson au (819) 564-3600
poste 638 ou par courriel krobertson@abacom.com.

September 19, 2007

Please be advised that a press conference will be held on Wednesday, September 24,
2008 at 10:30 a.m. to announce the launching of the Theresa Allore Memorial Fund at the
Lennoxville Campus located at 2580 College Street, Sherbrooke, in room C140.
For further information, please consult the attached press release. For additional
information, communicate with Dr. J Kenneth Robertson at (819) 564-3600 ext. 638 or by email
at krobertson@abacom.com.

J. Kenneth Robertson
Directeur Général / Director General

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New book chronicles Theresa Allore Investigation

For Immediate Release
September 22th, 2008


New book, Criminal Investigative Failures chronicles Theresa Allore Investigation


A new book documenting mistakes made in criminal investigations will feature a chapter on the death of Theresa Allore. Criminal Investigative Failures, to be published November 10th, 2008 features a chapter written by John Allore and Patricia Pearson that fully explores the 1978 investigation, and attempts made 30 years later to have the case reopened. It features never before seen photographs of the crime from that era.



The book is edited by Dr. Kim Rossmo, a pioneer in criminal geographic profiling, and a research professor at Texas State University’s Department of Criminal Justice. Criminal Investigative Failures defines and discusses the problems that are common to failed investigations. Exploring cognitive bias, errors in probability, and organizational traps.




Advanced praise for the chapter has been high. Dr. Rossmo calls it the cornerstone of the entire book. Editors for Taylor & Francis write,

… could not stop reading until I had finished it. I cannot imagine what Mr. Allore and his family have had to go through for the past 30 years. Absolutely disheartening to see the obvious holes in the police investigation. I was just dumbfounded at points reading about their mis-management of the case. A magnetic chapter.

Criminal Investigative Failures can be preordered through Amazon.com.

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Don't Quit Your Day Job

My comments to Durham City Council concerning financial markets from this morning's paper:



City moving around $171M in investments

By Ray Gronberg : The Herald-Sun
gronberg@heraldsun.com

Sep 19, 2008

DURHAM -- The Wall Street meltdown has prompted the city government to shuffle its $171 million investment portfolio to ensure that taxpayer monies remain safe amid the turmoil.

Officials in the city Finance Department started the move two weeks ago when it began dumping all but about $8.4 million of its holdings of "commercial paper," a type of security large banks and corporations issue to raise working capital.

The move came after officials noted what city Treasury Manager John Allore termed "whispering about volatility in that market," and thus preceded the weekend shakeup that produced the bankruptcy of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc., one of the country's major investment banks.

Interim Finance Director Keith Herrmann told elected officials Thursday that the city "has no exposure" to stock losses because of problems at Lehman, the American International Group and Washington Mutual.

Fund managers who handle the bulk of the $40 million the city's socked away in money market investments have assured city officials that they "don't hold any risky investments such as Lehman Brothers," Allore said in a memo to Herrmann.

The city does own $69.4 million in securities issued by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac -- the Federal National Mortgage Association and the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp. -- but that appears safe because the federal government effectively nationalized those enterprises earlier this month, Herrmann said.

That decision made those investments as safe as any "backed by the full faith and credit of the United States government," Herrmann said.

The Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac holdings are part of a $120 million group of "agencies," which are securities issued by U.S. government-sponsored corporations.

Allore and Herrmann did consider moving a bigger share of the city's money into U.S. Treasury instruments, but dropped the idea because so many people have bought Treasuries this week that the yields on them have dropped to nothing.

In fact, there's "risk of actual negative yields" on Treasuries, Allore said.

The city does hold $805,255 in Treasuries. The yield on those is safe because the city bought them long before the crisis began, Herrmann said.

The effective nationalization of American International Group -- also known as AIG -- shouldn't cause trouble for the city, in part, because it now obtains insurance from a different company, Herrmann said.

AIG was the city's insurer from April 2004 to April 2007. It has to pay claims arising from any incidents that occurred then, which means that it's on the line for part of any judgment arising from the lawsuits linked to the Duke lacrosse case.

But the commercial-insurance end of AIG's business is healthy, and its ability to "pay its obligations has never been in question," Herrmann said, declining to speculate on whether the federal government might force a sell-off of that unit.

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Thursday, September 18, 2008

Is this thing on?

If you had a private audience with the police what would you do? What would you ask for?


That's a question I've been pondering for the last 24 hours. For a limited time next week I will have the ear of the Director of Quebec's Cold Case Bureau, and his immediate supervisor, the head of Major Crime Investigations in Quebec. At my side will be the leader of the most influential victims' lobbying group in Quebec, perhaps in all of Canada.  What do I ask for?

Kim Rossmo, professor of criminology and a pioneer in crime profiling, suggests I ask for a proper investigation of my sister's murder, and a serious exploration of the possibility of links to the murders of Manon Dube and Lousie Camirand.  I concede that Kim's recommendation  justly re-frames the request back to the bare essentials: has everything been done to thoroughly investigate Theresa's death, and to rule out a possible link with the other two murders?

But in being so objective, I am concerned that this will give the Surete du Quebec the option to avoid scrutiny. They can answer yes to both questions, and there is nothing the public can do to validate their assertion. 

I was thinking of something more binding. Something that will hold the police accountable to future skepticism about the thoroughness of their actions. Something a little unprecedented. 

I already have something in mind, but I welcome your comments and suggestions to facilitate a relationship between police and public that has not been tried before.

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Tonight: Maher Arar on Fresh Air with Terry Gross

Fresh Air from WHYY,
September 18, 2008 


Maher Arar, a telecommunications engineer with dual Canadian and Syrian citizenship, was detained during a stop-over in JFK Airport in 2002 and deported on suspicion of being a member of Al Qaeda. He wound up in a Syrian prison where he was locked up and beaten for almost a year before protests from his wife led to his release.



Arar is pursuing a federal lawsuit charging that the United States government violated his constitutional right to due process as well as his right to choose a country of removal other than one in which he would be tortured, as guaranteed under the Torture Victim Protection Act.


Maria Lahood is Arar's lawyer through the Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR). A specialist in international human rights litigation, Lahood discusses her efforts to hold corporations and government officials accountable for torture, extra-judicial killings and war crimes abroad.

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Content Distribution / Who Killed Theresa?

Who Killed Theresa is now in syndication! A daily sample of the blog is marketed to potential buyers on Newstex.com. You can see a sample here: http://www.newstex.com/products/blogs.php.

I don't know exactly what this means, but it has someting to do with something called Twittering? Ya.... Basically, everytime I publish it gets sent out by Newstex. If people like the content I get paid a royalty.

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Wednesday, September 17, 2008

Meeting with the Surete du Quebec

En Chair


With things appearing to be going so well lately in our relations with Champlain Regional (the college Theresa was attending when she died), I have been lamenting of late my relations with the local police, the Surete du Quebec.  Why do things always seem strained and on the brink of collapse?

Here's what I was anticipating.  Another trip to Quebec, this time to promote the scholarship in Theresa's name. The media will press for information on the case, especially signs of strain and mishandling by the police. I will attempt to keep the focus on the scholarship. The press will persist, and I will eventually be forced to admit that things aren't that great.

Well the Surete du Quebec - finally - seem to have anticipated my anticipation. What was initially supposed to be a fairly routine meeting next week with my SQ contact has developed into a "summit" of sorts with people in positions of influence who are actually capable of making a difference.

Benoit - that's my guy with the SQ - has arranged for me to meet with police at their headquarters on Parthenais in Montreal. In attendance at the meeting will be Martin Hibbert, head of Quebec's newly established Cold Case Unit, and his superior, Lt. Bergeron, head of major crimes for Quebec. When I informed Benoit that I may bring along Pierre Hugues Boisvenu, head of the most powerful victims' advocacy group in Quebec, he welcomed the addition.

What an astonishing turn of events.

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Tuesday, September 16, 2008

The Theresa Allore Memorial Scholarship Fund




Next week I will be in Quebec to announce the commencement of the Theresa Allore Memorial Fund, a scholarship to be awarded to future students at Champlain Regional College. The press conference will occur on Wednesday, September 24th at 10:30 AM in the boardroom of Champlain College, which is in the administration building of the Lennoxville campus. The press conference will be chaired by myself, Pierre Hugues Boisvenu of l’Association des Familles de Personnes Assassinées ou Disparues (AFPAD), and Kenneth Robertson, Director General of Champlain Regional College. In the coming days I will post the official press release.

This is certainly an important day for me and my family. It is a time that we honor Theresa's memory and celebrate her spirit of giving and generosity. We are looking to raise enough funds to endow a $1,000 per year scholarship, to be awarded to a Champlain student for academic achievement and overall excellence.

While in Quebec I will also be meeting with representatives of the Surete du Quebec's cold case bureau, with Sue Sutherland - who currently represents my interests in the investigation - and I will be participating with Pierre Hugues Boisvenu in a lecture at the University of Montreal on crime victimization.

Any developments in the coming week will be reported here as they occur.

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Monday, September 15, 2008

Overhead the albatross hangs motionless upon the air


Ok, so here it is. In tribute to the passing of Monsieur Richard Wright, Pink Floyd, Echoes from Live at Pompeii. 

Enjoy:







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The Great Gig in the Sky



From reading this blog you will know I am a huge Pink Floyd fan, and that that appreciation was bred in the bone through my sister, Theresa's love of the band. Today we learn of the passing of Richard Wright, songwriter, keyboardist and vocalist for The Floyd.

Wright was probably the least colorful of members, greatly overshadowed by Waters, Gilmour and the crazy-diamond, Syd Barrett.

Some things I loved about Wright:

1. His vocals were pitch-perfect in tune with Gilmour's. At times it's difficult - especially on Echoes - to tell them apart. In the early days he did a lot of singing, especially when Syd started to lose his grip. He sings lead on Astronomy Domine, one of my favorites from their psychedelic period.

2. Wright's early participation in Floyd was huge, especially on Meddle and Dark Side Of The Moon.

3. Regardless of what Waters alleged was Wright's drug indulgence, and how it contributed to his lack of participation in later years, Roger was wrong to kick Wright out of Floyd. As such, Wright was only a paid musician on The Wall tour, and thus the only Floyd "member" who didn't lose money.

4. It was sweet and good for Gilmour to include Wright so much on tour in later years when his health was waning. To watch Wright, Gilmour and David Bowie during a performance of Arnold Layne brings a smile to my face:




Here's the obit:

Pink Floyd member Richard Wright dies age 65

By MEERA SELVA – 1 hour ago

LONDON (AP) — Richard Wright, a founding member of the rock group Pink Floyd, died Monday. He was 65.

Pink Floyd's spokesman Doug Wright, who is not related to the artist, said Wright died after a battle with cancer at his home in Britain. He says the band member's family did not want to give more details about his death.

Wright met Pink Floyd members Roger Waters and Nick Mason in college and joined their early band, Sigma 6. Along with the late Syd Barrett, the four formed Pink Floyd in 1965.
The group's jazz-infused rock and drug-laced multimedia "happenings" made them darlings of the London psychedelic scene, and their 1967 album, "The Piper at the Gates of Dawn," was a hit.

In the early days of Pink Floyd, Wright, along with Barrett, was seen as the group's dominant musical force. The London-born musician and son of a biochemist wrote songs and sang.
The band released a series of commercially and critically successful albums including 1973's "Dark Side of the Moon," which has sold more than 40 million copies. Wright wrote "The Great Gig In The Sky" and "Us And Them" for that album, and later worked on the group's epic compositions such as "Atom Heart Mother," "Echoes" and "Shine On You Crazy Diamond."
But tensions grew between Waters, Wright and fellow band member David Gilmour. The tensions came to a head during the making of "The Wall" when Waters insisted Wright be fired. As a result, Wright was relegated to the status of session musician on the tour of "The Wall," and did not perform on Pink Floyd's 1983 album "The Final Cut."

Wright formed a new band Zee with Dave Harris, from the band Fashion, and released one album, "Identity," with Atlantic Records.

Waters left Pink Floyd in 1985 and Wright began recording with Mason and Gilmour again, releasing the albums "The Division Bell" and "A Momentary Lapse of Reason" as Pink Floyd. Wright also released the solo albums "Wet Dream" (1978) and "Broken China" (1996).
In July 2005, Wright, Waters, Mason and Gilmour reunited to perform at the "Live 8" charity concert in London — the first time in 25 years they had been onstage together.

Wright also worked on Gilmour's solo projects, most recently playing on the 2006 album "On An Island" and the accompanying world tour.

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Thursday, September 11, 2008

This from the McGill Daily on the SQ investigation into the death of Freddy Villanueva:

Tensions to rise in Montreal North
Community one step further from justice with newly appointed crown prosecutor on Villanueva investigation, says activist
Shannon Kiely
The McGill Daily

Thirty days after Montreal police shot and killed Freddy Villanueva in Montreal North, the details of the altercation and the investigation into the 18-year-old's death remain unclear.

François du Canal, a member of the Collective Opposed to Police Brutality (COBP), worried about François Brière’s appointment by the government as the Crown Prosecutor in the case.

In 2007, Brière presided over a police investigation in which Quilem Registre, a black Montreal North resident, was killed after he was struck with up to six shots from a taser after police said he hit three parked cars and acted intoxicated. Brière dismissed charges against police.

Since 1987, there have been 43 people killed by police in Montreal. In the same period, only four police teams have been charged of murder. In half the cases, the officers were acquitted.

La Presse’s Jean-Paul Charbonneau was the first to discover and publicize Brière’s appointment, on August 19. COBP challenged the article’s statement that Brière’s experience with the justice system would prove an asset in calming tensions in Montreal North in a letter the newspaper refused to print.

Martine Bérubé, spokesperson for the Quebec Bureau of Criminal and Penal Prosecution, said Brière was selected because he worked with the St. Jérôme jurisdiction, 30 km north of Montreal, and thus could approach the case from an impartial point of view.

“Brière has a lot of experience, and we have no reason to believe that he won’t do a good job,” she said.

The COPB has organized annual marches against police brutality for the past 12 years.

McGill Daily: Are you confident that François Brière’s involvement with the Villanueva case will afford the family justice?

François Du Canal: No. Brière is known for being an anti-Mohawk prosecutor from his involvement with the Oka Crisis in 1990 and the 2004 police coup in Kanehsatake. He is an investigator who seems to enjoy putting Mohawks in jail. What’s even more scandalous is that he was the Crown Prosecutor in the Quilem Registre killing in Saint-Michel in 2007.... [He] decided not to lay charges against the officers involved. La Presse claimed that Brière was experienced and his work with the Sûreté du Québec (SQ) will calm people down, but we think that’s total nonsense. Brière’s nomination is a warning that the Freddy Villaneuva case will conclude the same way his other cases did.

MD: Do you think the SQ will pursue a fair investigation into Villanueva’s death?

FC: The system is always the same even if it is the other police corps who are investigating. Police forces are always in solidarity with each other.

MD: Is the SQ delivering as promised to make the results of their investigation public?

FC: The SQ investigation is always secret. The [Villanueva] family doesn’t have access to the police report. The family only heard about the investigation through the media. They also didn’t interrogate the cops involved. How can we trust this investigation when they’re not doing what they should? The SQ is claiming that they’ll make their conclusions public, but we haven’t seen anything yet.

MD: How do you think Brière’s involvement in the case will impact relations between the police and Montreal North residents?

FC: If people learn that Brière acquitted Registre, it won’t give people confidence in the system. He acquitted the cops in that case.... He’s really arrogant, and he showed no respect to Registre’s family. That will make relations between people in Montreal North and the police even worse.

MD: What action can Villanueva’s family take if they do not agree with the decision made by the SQ and Brière?
FC: They have to go through the coroner to get a public inquiry. The lawyer can then file a civil suit against the police and that will take time.

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Wednesday, September 10, 2008

Who Killed Theresa? on YouTube




It's all up on YouTube.. 14 news stories about the disappearance and death of my sister, Theresa Allore. So if you're like me, and need a visual representation rather than just words please check out my YouTube channel here.

And if you have any information to solve my sister's murder you may contact me at my email (referenced to your right) or contact Sue Sutherland (referenced above)

Thank you,

John A

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The Medication is Wearing Off

See this watch she gave me?




So this is Theresa's clock. One Christmas we all got one of these Monroe jobbies, I think mine and Andre's were yellow and orange (they's long gone).  

Theresa's I recovered from my parents. 

It stopped long ago. 

I'm determined to get it's heart pumping again. 

If it kills me.

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Tuesday, September 09, 2008

Go Ladies!


Sisters investigate aunt's murder in 1962

Out west, four sisters have launched their own personal investigation into a murder dating back more than 45 years. Their aunt, a 23-year old nurse, was beaten, raped and buried alive on the north side of Saskatoon in 1962. Alexandra Wiwcharuck was missing for two weeks before her body was discovered. Her niece Patty Storie and her three sisters have interviewed about 100 people about the case so far and are vowing to keep searching until the killer is found.

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Non Sequitur


I have 8 minutes this afternoon on Dick Gordon's The Story from American Public Media (NPR).  Dick and I talked some time ago about Fraud, Temptation and Integrity.  Dick's real nice (pssst... he's Canadian)




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Monday, September 08, 2008

Updated Film Footage on YouTube


I added three additional news pieces from 2006 to my YouTube channel:

- Global TV's coverage of the search party in 2006

- CTV's news coverage of the search party in 2006 (no that is not a picture of Theresa they flash on the screen, it is her friend, Suzanne DeRome)

- Telejournal's coverage of the search party on 2006 (en Français)

Should have the rest of it done by this evening (then on to fixing whokilledtheresa.com ... oh boy)

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Sunday, September 07, 2008

Who Killed Theresa?


I have recently loaded CTV's W-5 one-hour program, Who Killed Theresa? onto YouTube.

Please review and let me know if I made any critical errors. In the coming week I will upload all of the remaining news coverage onto YouTube.

JA

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Friday, September 05, 2008

Is There an Echo in Here?

Yes, 'cept in the U.S. no one would have the stones to call for an assault weapons ban. In fact the Virginia Tech shootings of the Spring 2007 saw lobbying for legislation that would allow students to arm themselves on campus. 


Two years after the assault on Montreal's Dawson College, here are the Quebec Coroner's recommendations -  a third of which address police's general lack of organization:

- Health and education officials should have access to the federal gun registry.

- Ban weapons where the charger is located behind the trigger.

- Police should immediately liaise with staff at the beginning of operations involving a shooter to maximize information about his location

- Police should consider equipping each station with one or two long-barrelled guns to be used by trained officers and kept in patrol car trunks.

- Police should keep track of patrol cars dispersed across their territory with electronic mapping such as GPS to make response more effective.

- Schools and colleges should prepare emergency plans to deal with potential shooters with the assistance of police.

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Monday, September 01, 2008

Just Sitting At Home Growing Tenser With The Times

(how I spent my fall vacation)

I've moved. If you recall, me and my parents were in a race to sell our houses. Mine sold in 4 days, the last 6 weeks was really just all about home-buyer due diligence (so much for the sub-prime crisis).

I'm glad to be out of it. I'm debt free and intend to stay that way.


The new shack

I've been less than personal lately. Business will do that to you. So here's what's going on:

1. I'll be in Quebec within the next 8 weeks to announce the Theresa Allore Memorial Fund in conjunction with Champlain College... let's lay this puppy to rest.

2. The Kim Rossmo book is due out the first week of November. Perfect timing; I intend to make hay with it. Namely: well done SQ! Now could you please publicize your new bureau, and give me a formal introduction to the Theresa's case file representative.

3. Suspects: I've got a few, why do the police have none? What's the problem here? Can you guys engage in a little creative thinking to solve this crime? 'Cause what you've been doing? It ain't working.

Also, if you recall, I had to pick up a lot of Theresa's personal belongings from my parents last Spring. Here's a slight inventory of the things I found:


Theresa's Brownie outfit


Theresa's piggy-bank. It still had all the money in it. (Here I will reiterate that she died 30 years ago)


Theresa's David Bowie poster (her sacred relic)


A wall hanging she concocted which resembles a Russian icon



You can imagine my surprise when I uncovered this. I framed it against one of my own shirts to emphasize how small she was.

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