XIII: Summary of the Chairperson's Recommendations

Chairperson's Recommendation #1: The Canadian Forces Provost Marshal must ensure that military police members, in particular Canadian Forces National Investigation Service investigators, receive essential training on police report writing with emphasis on the need to be objective, accurate and unbiased. Police reports should state relevant facts and details only. There is no place for personal comments irrelevant to the investigation being conducted.

Chairperson's Recommendation #2: Military police members and Canadian Forces National Investigation Service investigators must be thorough in conducting service offence/criminal investigations. The subject of an investigation must be given every reasonable opportunity to provide input in their own defence. The Canadian Forces Provost Marshal must ensure that Military Police policies and procedures provide such a guarantee.

Chairperson's Recommendation #3: The Canadian Forces Provost Marshal should review the standard distribution of police investigation reports with a view to limiting their release to those with an absolute demonstrated need to know so as not to negatively impact reputations and careers.

Chairperson's Recommendation #4: The Canadian Forces Provost Marshal should re-consider the terms and conditions imposed on the return of Lieutenant-Colonel Battista and Major Wight's Military Police credentials, given the decisions of the Military Police Credentials Review Boards, the Court Martial Appeal Court and now the results of the investigation by the Military Police Complaints Commission.

Chairperson's Recommendation #5: The Canadian Forces Provost Marshal must reconsider the application of the "zero tolerance" approach. Military Police members, like their civilian counterparts, need to use discretion to perform their duties fairly. Given the alleged culture within, any change in policy on the use of discretion must be accompanied by relevant training to assist in the appropriate exercise of discretion..

Chairperson's Recommendation #6: The Canadian Forces Provost Marshal must seek out ways to ensure the development and promotion of a culture of fair, focused, accurate, objective and unbiased investigations by the Military Police.

Chairperson's Recommendation #7: To uphold the independence of the Military Police, the Canadian Forces Provost Marshal must possess authority over legal opinions and advice requested by, and provided to, the Military Police. The decision to waive solicitor-client privilege must rest with the Canadian Forces Provost Marshal.

Chairperson's Recommendation #8: Given the small size of the Military Police organization, consideration should be given to conducting serious offence investigations of military police members jointly with a civilian police agency or exclusively by an outside police agency.

Chairperson's Recommendation #9: The ability of the Chain of Command to communicate their views, knowledge and perspectives while respecting the independence of the investigative process, and not interfering in that process, should form part of the analysis of issues leading up to the five year review of the amendments to the National Defence Act.

Chairperson's Recommendation #10: The Canadian Forces Provost Marshal must recognize the need to provide assistance to witnesses during investigations and implement measures to ensure that they, too, do not become victims.

Ottawa, December 12, 2002

-ORIGINAL SIGNED BY-

Louise Cobetto

Chairperson