Front Burner

Anthony Aust died last week, after falling 12 storeys during a raid by Ottawa police of his home. He was out on bail and under the supervision of his family. His mother, stepfather, and brother spoke to the CBC about how traumatizing the no-knock search was, and how they’re looking for answers about why it happened in the first place.

The case is currently under investigation by Ontario’s Special Investigations Unit. CBC reporter Judy Trinh spoke to Aust’s family, and investigated the practice of no-knock searches. She told host Jayme Poisson about what she found.

On Sunday, L.A. Lakers star LeBron James took home his fourth NBA championship and his fourth finals MVP award. He also became the first player to have won a championship on three different teams. Those wins are reviving an old debate over who gets to claim the title of the greatest basketball player of all time: Is it LeBron now, or does His Airness, Michael Jordan, still reign?

Today Ben Golliver, the Washington Post’s national NBA writer, and Alex Wong, a freelance sports writer, debate it.

Parts of Canada are back in lockdown as cases of COVID-19 spike across the country, particularly in Ontario and Quebec. And with the cold weather setting in, it’s tough to imagine how we may be able to return to normal. But there are some developments: Health Canada has now approved and bought over 20 million rapid tests. And Donald Trump’s COVID-19 treatment is raising a lot of questions about the use of experimental drugs. Today we’ll be talking about how the testing and treatment of coronavirus has evolved since the first wave with Dr. Isaac Bogoch, a physician and an infectious disease expert in Toronto.

When Yusef Salaam was 15, he and four other teenage boys were falsely accused of raping a woman in New York's Central Park. Salaam was imprisoned for nearly seven years before he was exonerated. His life story has inspired a new book called Punching the Air, which he co-wrote with young adult novelist Ibi Zoboi.

Salaam and Zoboi talk to host Josh Bloch about why the stories and perspectives of Black youth are so important right now, and how they connect to the global movement against anti-Black racism in America.

In 2018, the public outcry around the Gerald Stanley case, where a white farmer was acquitted in the killing of Colton Boushie, a young Indigenous man, paved the way for the creation of Bill C-75. It's legislation meant to address racism in the jury selection process. But some say it actually does the opposite. The dispute made its way to the country's highest court this week. And while the court upheld the law, opinions remain divided on its usefulness.

Today, we hear from two lawyers with different points of view on this jury reform legislation. Peter Thorning and Caitlyn Kasper both intervened in this week's hearings. Thorning represented the Canadian Association for Black Lawyers, and Kasper represented Aboriginal Legal Services.

Last night, Vice-Presidential candidates Mike Pence and Kamala Harris faced off in their one and only debate of the 2020 campaign. The debate comes less than a week after Donald Trump was diagnosed with coronavirus, and in a race between the two oldest presidential candidates in US history.

Today, CBC Washington Correspondent Katie Simpson recaps the unusually significant VP debate.

Annamie Paul, a Toronto-based human rights lawyer, was on Saturday elected leader of the Green Party of Canada — becoming the first elected Black leader of a major federal party. She takes over from Elizabeth May, who stepped down last year, after 14 years as leader. In her victory speech, Paul talked about how she believes the party is the one that Canadians need to guide them through, "the challenges of this time." Today on Front Burner, Paul on why that is, and how the Green Party plans to differentiate itself.

Iona Guindon felt lucky that her mother Perriette's long-term care home in Ottawa was spared in the first wave of the pandemic. But an outbreak that began on Aug. 30 exposed Iona to horrifying scenes inside the home, and left her wondering why West End Villa wasn't better prepared to control the virus.

In the spring, long-term care companies and the Ontario government promised they would be far better prepared for a second wave. Now, as outbreaks rip through 50 such homes in the province, advocates say too little has changed.

On Sunday, doctors at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center briefed the media on the health of U.S. President Donald Trump. The news conference came after a whirlwind weekend where a growing number of the president’s inner circle, including first lady Melania Trump, tested positive for COVID-19, and where the president's doctors and team issued conflicting messages about his medical status. CBC’s senior Washington editor Lyndsay Duncombe joins us to explain what’s known about the president’s health, how this outbreak could impact the U.S. election and what this means for the nomination of the next U.S. Supreme Court justice.

As she lay dying, Joyce Echaquan clicked on her phone to broadcast a Facebook Live video from her hospital bed, as staff hurled racist remarks at her. You can hear Joyce call out for her husband to come get her, but that would never happen.

The 37 year old Atikamekw mother of seven died on Monday. In response, one of the nurses captured on video has been fired, along with an orderly. Joyce's death has also sparked three investigations. Dr. Barry Lavallee, a physician CEO of Keewatinohk Innniniw Minoayawin, which works to advance the health care of First Nations communities in Northern Manitoba, spoke to host Josh Bloch about Joyce Echaquan's death, and what it says about the treatment of Indigenous peoples in Canada's health care system.