Military Police Complaints Commission of Canada

The Military Police Complaints Commission (the “Commission”) was established by the Government of Canada on December 1, 1999 to provide independent, civilian oversight of Canadian Forces military police. It reports to Parliament through the Minister of National Defence.

Independent oversight of police services is common across Canada, and is an international benchmark of police accountability to citizens and to democracy. Where independent oversight exists, improvements occur in the community’s confidence in the professional standards of its police service.

The Commission’s mandate is to monitor the investigation and disposition of complaints about military police conduct by the Canadian Forces Provost Marshal, to independently investigate such complaints, as appropriate, and to investigate allegations of interference in military police investigations.

The recommendations that result from the Commission’s reviews and investigations build on the professionalism demonstrated by Canada’s military police service and serve to guarantee the integrity and independence of the military police. This, in turn, serves both the Canadian Forces and Canadians by helping to inspire and maintain confidence in Canada’s military police, an integral and important part of the military justice system.

COMPLAINTS ABOUT POLICE CONDUCT

Anyone may file a complaint about the conduct of military police with the Complaints Commission, the Canadian Forces Provost Marshal (CFPM), the Judge Advocate General, or any member of the military police. Regardless of where they are filed, the CFPM is responsible for the investigation and resolution of conduct complaints in the first instance, and the Commission monitors this process.

At the conclusion of a complaint process, if the complainant is not satisfied with the way it was handled by the CFPM, he or she may ask the Commission to review the complaint investigation and resolution.

At any stage, if the Chair decides it is in the public interest, the Commission may assume responsibility for the investigation of a particular complaint. In exceptional cases, the Chair may call a public hearing into a complaint. Once the Commission has completed its work, the Chair prepares an Interim Report of findings and recommendations for resolving the complaint and making changes to military police procedures or policies to prevent a recurrence of the situation that led to the complaint.

Depending on the nature of the complaint, the Interim Report is forwarded, as appropriate, to the Minister of National Defence, the Chief of the Defence Staff, the Deputy Minister of National Defence, the Judge Advocate General and the Canadian Forces Provost Marshal. One of these officials, depending on the nature of the complaint, is required to respond to the Chair of the Commission and the Minister with a Notice of Action, which must describe any action that has been taken or will be taken with respect to the complaint. While the Chair’s recommendations are not binding, the decision not to act on any of them must be explained in the Notice of Action to the Chair and the Minister.

After considering the Notice of Action, the Chair prepares a Final Report of findings and recommendations. The complainant and the person who was the subject of the complaint receive copies of the Final Report, as do senior officials of the Canadian Forces and the Department of National Defence, including the Minister.

INTERFERENCE COMPLAINTS

To safeguard the integrity and independence of the military police, the Commission also investigates when a member of the Canadian Forces (CF) or a senior official in the Department of National Defence (DND) is alleged to have interfered with a military police investigation. Only members of the military police may file an interference complaint, and the Commission has exclusive jurisdiction over the investigation of this type of complaint.

A full description of the complaints process may be found on the Commission's website, at www.mpcc-cppm.ca or by contacting the commission direcly.