National Defence committee  Yes. Thank you. Good morning. What I would like to emphasize this morning is that the Canadian Armed Forces members and Canadians can rest assured that the military justice system is indeed meeting its purpose of maintaining discipline, efficiency and morale in the Canadian Armed Forces.

National Defence committee  I would feel a lot more comfortable if you were to have Dr. Preston testify before committee. She explains it so much better than I do.

National Defence committee  What I want to repeat here, as I said yesterday, is that I've given my personal commitment to see through the implementation of the management action plan, because it is extraordinarily important for me that the military justice system remain a system that is not only in fact legitimate, in fact answering the requirements of the Canadian Armed Forces, but is also seen as extremely important.

National Defence committee  It is a system that has been thoughtfully and carefully analyzed in order to ensure that it complies with all of an accused's rights. It would remove the penal and the criminal consequences and ensure that presiding officers continue to receive the appropriate training for determining that there are limits of procedural fairness and that it requires going in with a view that the person in front of you is innocent until proven otherwise on a balance of probability.

National Defence committee  You will be hearing from a lot of expert witnesses throughout the analysis of this bill. I think it is for this committee to arrive at a determination of the legal policies that should be taken into consideration. For sure, a bill like C-77 presents an opportunity to address Parliament's preoccupation and considerations to ensure that the military justice system remains on pace with Canadian laws and values.

National Defence committee  My Deputy Judge Advocate General for military justice may want to add a few things. We have a paucity of information right now as to the past usage of section 98 and whether it affected those who clearly suffered from mental illnesses and prevented them from seeking appropriate treatment.

National Defence committee  To summarize, there is a great deal of collaboration between the Sexual Misconduct Resource Centre and the office of the Judge Advocate General. Regarding services for victims, we also must reflect on the nature of those services and the whole range of services that can be provided to victims.

National Defence committee  I think that the whole military justice system can be very intimidating to a victim, not only because of the legal formalism, but also because of the procedures themselves. People who are not familiar with it will probably not be comfortable. The liaison officer will thus ensure that the victim understands all of the ins and outs of the military justice system, as well as the different steps to be followed; he will ensure that the person receives the necessary support all through this process.

National Defence committee  Bill C-77 is attempting to put in place a summary proceeding system where the units would maintain their responsibility for settling the most minor breaches to the Code of Service Discipline. This means arriving late for work or not wearing an appropriate uniform, for example; the list of these infractions has not yet been drawn up.

National Defence committee  I do know that there are sexual assault cases that are impacted by the situation. The director of military prosecutions takes very seriously ensuring that victims' interests are taken into consideration. He has kept an open line of communication with the victims. The charges are not dropped.

National Defence committee  I'm not sure I understand the question and I apologize for that, but what I want to make clear is that as a result of the decision of the Court Martial Appeal Court of Canada in Beaudry, charges have not been dropped. At this point the matters are still before the court martial but have been adjourned until we have a better understanding of the decision of the Supreme Court of Canada.

National Defence committee  I'm sorry if I don't understand the question, but no charges have been dropped.

National Defence committee  For sure this is something that the director of military prosecutions has in mind. There's an 18-month time period that is afforded for a case to proceed. As we're monitoring the situation, the director of military prosecutions has already started to engage in a dialogue with his colleagues involved in civilian prosecution to see what the alternatives and the options will be moving forward.

National Defence committee  To answer the question, once a charge is laid in front of the military justice system, it needs to proceed within that system. Whether charges are laid in the military justice system or civilian court is a matter that is being discussed with the victims and with the prosecutor on file, because we have the best interests of the victim at heart.

National Defence committee  Bill C-77 does not specifically address the Jordan decision because it is a matter of law in Canada that there is an 18-month time period that is afforded for a matter to proceed.