"While [Lt. Gen. Trevor] Cadieu’s case will be heard in a civilian court and he faces charges under Canada’s Criminal Code, rather than its military law, the local police had refused to handle the case."
Thursday, June 16, 2022
"Houston, we have a problem"
Gene, we also have to remember that this investigation was commenced long before Louise Arbour offered her recommendations to the Minister of National Defence. And, it appears that the complaint was first made to the Military Police. While I do not have any direct knowledge of when the investigation was completed, it is not uncommon for review of an investigation by military prosecutors to take between 1 and 3 months. It is entirely possible that the investigation was completed by the CFNIS before Justice Arbour's recommendations were offered or made public. There may well be a nuance that is not conveyed in the reporting. For example, I would not be surprised if civilian police declined to take over an investigation that was already well underway by Military Police. And, changing investigative agencies midway through an investigation can be a recipe for error. What's more, the article (brief as it was) potentially misconstrues the nature of sexual assault as an offence under military law. The Code of Service Discipline incorporates Criminal Code offences by virtue of s 130 of the NDA. It is the same offence. What differs is the procedure - and our courts martial are increasingly similar to prosecution before civil courts.
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