Conduct Case MPCC‑2013‑037 Summary
In June 2013, three Military Police (MP) members responded to a call for assistance with a domestic dispute. The complainant was the female partner, who had suffered minor injuries in the dispute. The MP were called by the male partner to provide assistance.
The MP members arrested the male partner for assault, later releasing him with conditions not to contact the complainant. The female partner was interviewed on scene, then taken to the Military Police Unit to provide a statement. Due to her alcohol consumption, a decision was made to delay the statement, but an MP member did ask her questions in order to complete a Domestic Violence Supplementary Report (DVSR). The complainant agreed to make a statement to police at a later date. The complainant alleged the MP members recorded false information and made false reports regarding the injuries she sustained, and did not accurately record her answers to the DVSR questions. Approximately 5 days later, an MP member called the complainant to arrange for an interview. The complainant declined and sought information about having the charges dropped and her partner’s release conditions altered. The complainant alleged that, during this conversation, and during several other interactions with members of the military police on base, she was threatened with arrest and criminal charges if she contacted her partner or did not cooperate with the criminal process. The complainant also alleged that, in the months following the domestic dispute, she was intimidated and stalked by the MP while on base.
The Deputy Commander, Canadian Forces Military Police Group, investigated the complaint and found the allegations were not substantiated.
The complainant requested a review of her complaint by the MPCC pursuant to section 250.31 of the National Defence Act.
The MPCC found all of the allegations to be unsubstantiated. Specifically the MPCC found no evidence to substantiate the allegations that the subject MP members falsely reported information about her injuries or failed to accurately record her answers to the DVSR questions. The MPCC identified several incidents where the subject MP members informed the complainant, sometimes in a curt manner, about the possibility of arrest and criminal charges for contacting her partner, but ultimately found that the conduct of the subject MP members was reasonable in the circumstances. Finally, the MPCC found no evidence to substantiate the allegation of intimidation and stalking by the subject MP members. The MPCC confirmed the observations made by the Deputy Commander that photographs taken on the night of the incident should have been documented and included in the investigation file, and that a completed copy of the DVSR should have been scanned into the file. The MPCC made two further recommendations in regard to the contemporaneous taking of witness statements and regular reminders about the protocols for domestic disputes and the services available to victims.
In response to the MPCC’s report, the Canadian Forces Provost Marshal accepted all of the MPCC’s findings and recommendations, and outlined the steps that will be taken to implement the recommendations.
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