The revelation at the Military Police Complaints Commission inquiry was one of several indications that the independence of the National Investigation Service (NIS), the military’s detective agency, was compromised after Langridge’s parents went public with their grievances.
The military interfered with the report “while preparing it for publication” in a pre-emptive effort to avoid a “sensational fact” getting to the media, said Commission lawyer Mark Freiman.
Throughout the months-long inquiry, a succession of NIS officers have repeated that their agency is fiercely independent and investigates regardless of rank.
The NIS was investigating complaints by Langridge’s mother and stepfather Sheila and Shaun Fynes that the original investigation into their son’s death had been a whitewash to protect the military.
Two of their complaints related to the length of time their son’s body was left hanging in a room at CFB Edmonton — “like a piece of meat” said his mother — and another about the withholding of Stuart’s suicide note for 14 months.
Sheila Fynes came to Ottawa in late 2010 and held a news conference to air her complaints. The subsequent blast of publicity brought statements about the case from Defence Minister Peter MacKay a partial apology from Chief of the Defence Staff Gen. Walter Natynczyk.
The first case report written in early 2011 by the NIS and sent to DND brass in Ottawa contained the length of time (four and a half hours) their son had been left hanging during the NIS investigation and references to the suicide note.
DND officers cut the “four and a half” hour reference and one reference to the suicide note before sending it to the Fynes’ and apparently preparing it for public release.
Freiman asked former NIS western region commander Daniel Dandurand if there had been any reason for the regular Canadian Forces to edit an NIS document.
“Is it of any concern to you?” he asked.
“That would cause me some concern,” replied Dandurand. “That the answers we were providing — whatever those may be — are being edited or changed while being transmitted to the family. Yes.”
“From the point of view of the NIS is there any reason why the reference to the body hanging for four an a half hours would be removed?” Freiman asked.
“I can’t think of anything,” said Dandurand. “The Fynes’ knew that.”
“Does it suggest to you that it was a sensational fact that might find it’s way into the media?” asked Freiman.
“I don’t know,” said Dandurand. “I wouldn’t be able to speak to what was going on in the person’s mind doing that.”
Freiman then produced NIS “media lines” about the case that Dandurand helped prepare with the police force’s own public relations officer, and disseminated to other public relations officers in the CF and ultimately to the media.
The media lines related to the end of the investigation and an announcement that the NIS had found no grounds to lay criminal or service charges.
Freiman read one of the “key messages” in the NIS media lines and asked Dandurand what it had to do with the NIS.
“The Department of National Defence and the Canadian Forces cares deeply about its personnel and their families and aspires to treat all members of the CF family with respect.”
“What part of the NIS mandate, and what part of the NIS investigation is reflected in this message?” asked Freiman
“I can’t help but avoid being a member of the Canadian Forces and I’m quite proud at being so,” said Dandurand. “And that definitely reflects my Canadian Forces hat as opposed to my military police hat and whether you (say) Canadian Forces or National Investigation Service the message is the same: We do care deeply.”
“Should there be a mixing of your Canadian forces NIS hat and your Canadian Forces hat? asked Freiman.
Dandurand said the media lines were likely shared with other public affairs officers in the regular military and did not, as Freiman suggested, mean that the regular military public relations arm would be taking over NIS media messages.
“I think it was to maintain situational awareness as to what each of them were dealing with,” he said.
Earlier in his testimony, Dandurand said that some facts in media lines fed to journalists about the Langridge case were inaccurate — a point raised Friday by Fynes lawyer Joshua Juneau.
“If the Department of National Defence, with roughly 150 public affairs advisors are spending all this energy creating media lines that contain falsehoods how can we ever trust or believe the content of the media lines put out by the Department of National Defence?”
“I don’t think it‘s my place to comment on that,’ said Dandurand. “I’m not here to speak for DND.”
The inquiry continues Tuesday and is due to end Wednesday.
Original Article
Source: ottawa citizen
Author: Chris Cobb
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