Conduct Case MPCC‑2012‑042‑1 Summary

On October 10, 2012, the complainant sent an email to a number of recipients, including the headquarters of the Canadian Forces National Counter-Intelligence Unit (CFNCIU) in Ottawa. In the email, the complainant provided some information about his past actions in reporting on a foreign student studying at the CF Leadership and Recruit School in St. Jean. He also made reference to various personal and employment-related issues including references to ongoing grievances and complaints about his treatment by CF personnel.

The Sergeant of the CFNCIU HQ unit replied to the email the next day. In the reply email, the Sergeant cautioned the complainant about disclosing too much personal information and noted that, since there was some allegation of mistreatment in the email, she would be forwarding it to his chain of command for follow-up.

After receiving the Sergeant’s reply, the complainant made a complaint to the Canadian Forces Military Police Group/Professional Standards (PS). In the complaint, he objected to the fact that the Sergeant forwarded his email to his chain of command. He also criticized the tone of the Sergeant in the email. On November 22, 2012, the complainant sent a further email to the PS Major providing more information about the complaint. He details a lack of ethics and a conflict of interest on the part of the Sergeant in that she should not have become involved in his personal matters.

The Final Letter of Disposition from the Deputy Commander, Canadian Forces Military Police Group/Professional Standards (Deputy Commander) was sent to the Complainant on December 14, 2012. In the letter, it was noted the complainant had already discussed with an officer in the CFNCIU his dissatisfaction with the conduct of the Sergeant. The Deputy Commander further explained that the Sergeant had been spoken to by her supervisor, so a similar situation would not happen again. Therefore, since the complaint was already acted upon by the chain of command, the Deputy Commander directed there be no investigation of the complaint.

The complainant requested a review of this decision on January 26, 2013.

After having reviewed the relevant MP files and all the documentation provided by the complainant and the Deputy Commander, the Commission considered the specific context of this complaint; specifically, that the Sergeant was posted to the CFNCIU. The CFNCIU is a national unit which is not exclusively comprised of MPs. It specializes in security and counter intelligence activities. The unit is assigned to the Deputy Chief of the Defence Staff and is under the functional control of J2/Director General Intelligence, rather than under the command of the CFPM. This is not to say that all activities of MPs posted to the CFNCIU are necessarily outside the jurisdiction of the MPCC. However, the sending of an email to the CFNCIU, as the complainant did in this situation, cannot be seen in and of itself as a request for policing services. As such, the content of the email, combined with the fact that it was sent to the CFNCIU, reinforces the lack of jurisdiction in this case.

Date modified:

2014-03-18