Latest news with #TammyTremblay
Ottawa Citizen
13 hours ago
- Ottawa Citizen
Canadian military police leaders refuse civilian oversight mandated by Parliament, watchdog report says
A new report paints Canada's military police leadership as shutting down complaints, ignoring parliamentary-mandated civilian oversight and bungling investigations to the point where a criminal convicted of attempted murder almost went free. Article content The report by the Military Police Complaints Commission, a civilian watchdog created by Parliament, outlines a deteriorating situation in which the office of the Canadian Forces Provost Marshal has been resisting independent oversight. 'The situation escalated from resistance to outright refusal to respect the oversight regime mandated by Parliament,' commission chairperson Tammy Tremblay wrote in her annual report released Tuesday. Article content Article content Article content At times the office of the Canadian Forces Provost Marshal, or CFPM, has shut down complaints into police actions before they could be heard, the MPCC report noted. The CFPM has also refused to provide information needed for the commission to carry out its oversight function and has declined to follow recommendations on improving how it functions, according to the report. Among the recommendations the CFPM refused to accept was a request to remind military police officers of the importance of keeping evidence on file. Article content Article content The report also outlined how a bungled investigation by the CFNIS nearly allowed a person, eventually convicted of attempted murder, to escape justice. Article content In that case, the CFNIS had been brought in to investigate a CFB Edmonton house fire in which a soldier was suspected of trying to kill her children. But the MPCC report pointed out that military police decided not to lay charges despite conclusions by the insurance company and the fire marshal's office that the fire had been deliberately set as well as the discovery of an apparent suicide note from the soldier. Article content Article content The Military Police Complaints Commission reviewed the case and determined there was evidence of a crime that ought to be reinvestigated. The soldier was found guilty in 2023 of trying to kill her three children by setting their house on fire. Article content Article content Canadian Forces Provost Marshal Brig.-Gen. Vanessa Hanrahan provided the Ottawa Citizen with a statement acknowledging 'the criticism toward the Office of the CFPM contained within the MPCC's 2024 Annual Report.' Article content 'Notwithstanding this, the CFPM remains fully committed to, and supportive of the MPCC's mandate,' Hanrahan's statement added. Article content Hanrahan noted that her office carefully considered each request for information from the MPCC, 'providing disclosure not only under legal obligation, but also when it is determined that the information requested is pertinent to the matter being investigated by the MPCC.'
CBC
13 hours ago
- Politics
- CBC
Watchdog says military police still resisting civilian oversight
The military police watchdog says resistance to civilian oversight in the Canadian Forces provost marshal's office "worsened" last year. The Military Police Complaints Commission released a report Tuesday accusing the provost marshal's office or CFPM — which commands all military police in Canada — of "shutting down" complaints based on a "dubious" interpretation of the National Defence Act. In its report, the watchdog said the provost marshal's office has been failing to advise complainants of their right to have their cases reviewed by the complaints commission as required by law, and is routinely refusing to respond to complaints made in interference cases. Interference cases come up when a military police member files a complaint alleging that a member of the Canadian Armed Forces or a senior official in the Department of National Defence has attempted to influence an investigation. "These issues not only persisted but have worsened. In 2024, the [provost marshal] interpreted the National Defence Act in a way that avoids civilian independent oversight. The situation escalated from resistance to outright refusal to respect the oversight regime mandated by Parliament," the report said. It says the provost marshal is "shutting down complaints" and "hindering the civilian oversight of the military police." Tammy Tremblay, Military Police Complaints Commission chair, declined an interview request. Office says recommendations 'considered carefully' Lt.-Cmdr. Melanie Aqiqi, public affairs officer at the provost marshal's office, said that they "acknowledge the criticism" in the watchdog report and remain "fully committed" to the commission's mandate. "The CFPM acknowledges that the interpretation of this legislative framework is at times different than that of the [commission]. Most notably, as it relates to the disclosure of information," Aqiqi said in an emailed response. "All recommendations from the MPCC are considered carefully with a view to determining their merit, practicality and effectiveness to bring positive changes." The report accuses the provost marshal's office of "terminating" complaints without an investigation when a criminal probe is launched. The report said complaints are supposed to be paused pending the completion of a criminal investigation and any judicial proceedings. However, the report said that this year the provost marshal's office began to "simply terminate" some complaints without investigating them. Aqiqi denied this claim. "Regarding ongoing criminal proceedings, this is never used as a tool to avoid complaint investigations. In some instances, a criminal investigation may be a more appropriate manner to address a complaint received under the act," she said. "Should this be the case, the military police require criminal proceedings to be concluded prior to proceeding." Report calls for further reform The report calls for National Defence Act reform to ensure the commission has the ability to access "information necessary to investigate complaints." "Without this legislative reform, there is a risk that the barriers the MPCC faces in exercising its mandate continue to dilute the will of Parliament in establishing an oversight system for the military police," the report said. The report also says that individual members of the military police "respect and understand" the watchdog's mandate and the problem of "refusal of civilian oversight" stems from senior leadership. Aqiqi said that the provost marshal's office remains committed to a "fair, transparent and independent process" to address public complaints.
CBC
21-05-2025
- CBC
Military police watchdog calling rare public hearing into alleged mishandling of suicide case
Social Sharing WARNING: This story contains references to suicide. The country's military police watchdog is launching its first public interest hearing in over a decade into an alleged negligence case involving a defence intelligence analyst in Ottawa who died by suicide. A complaint alleges military police may have played a role in the death of Master Corporal Shaun Orton in April 2024 by failing to conduct a welfare check sooner and delaying going into his home and performing first aid. "The allegations in this complaint are serious," wrote the watchdog's chairperson Tammy Tremblay in her decision to hold a public hearing. "If substantiated, they could amount to a failure to conduct a welfare check in an adequate and timely manner which could have potentially saved a life." It's rare for the Military Police Complaints Commission (MPCC) to hold this kind of public hearing. The commission said that despite repeated attempts over the past year, the Canadian Forces Provost Marshal — an advisor to the military's top soldier on police matters — still has not disclosed information it requested about the case. A public interest hearing gives the watchdog the power to summon witnesses to testify and compel the military to disclose information, the commission said. Tremblay also wrote in her decision that this kind of hearing can ensure there's accountability and broader systemic issues about responding to suicides is addressed. Orton died after "the challenges of his youth and the demons of his past finally overtook him," his obituary says. He served in the 2nd Battalion Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry including a tour in Afghanistan where he was involved in counter-insurgence operations, according to his LinkedIn. He later transferred to the intelligence branch in Ottawa as an advisor, his obituary said, and was part of a one-year tour in Kuwait with Operation IMPACT. That mission's aim is to build up military capabilities in the Middle East. Orton's wife filed a complaint with the watchdog last year saying she told military police on April 21, 2024 she was concerned about her husband's safety after receiving "disturbing communications" from him. The complaint alleges that military police "repeatedly dismissed her concerns" and when they finally agreed to check on her husband stood outside his house for 45 minutes before going inside, Tremblay's decision to conduct a public interest hearing said. The complaint also said when military police found Orton's body, they called civilian police who discovered Orton was still alive and began first aid, Tremblay's decision said. His wife told the commission that he was transported by ambulance to the hospital where he was pronounced dead. Military police did not go to the hospital or notify Orton's wife about his death, she told the commission. The complaint also said military police misplaced Orton's suicide note and failed to collect other evidence in the house. Orton's wife also reported struggling to get information updates from military police. "She also noted that the military police detachment Commanding Officer sent a priest to provide her with support without asking her permission and even though she had made known that she was Jewish," Tremblay wrote in her decision. None of the allegations have not been proven in court. Orton's spouse also filed a complaint with the Canadian Forces Provost Marshal office in June 2024. The office closed the file without investigating and instead said it would be more appropriate to deal with it through an ongoing criminal investigation, Tremblay wrote in her decision. Tremblay sent a letter saying that a criminal investigation is not a substitute for an investigation into a complaint about military police conduct and urged them reconsider. But they declined, Tremblay wrote. The MPCC said it received confirmation in March that the military's criminal investigation was complete, but the forces still has not shared documents related to the case. The commission said in the past, the military cited the ongoing criminal investigation as a reason for not disclosing information. CBC News asked the defence department for the results of the criminal investigation and it's response to the allegations, but has not yet received a response. A date for the hearing which will be virtual has not yet been released.
