Mediaboss Marketing

OTTAWA Defence department censoring of crucial internal documents is impeding the search for the truth of why a young Canadian veteran killed himself, the chairman of a federal military inquiry said Tuesday.

In his first, albeit brief, public criticism of DNDs repeated blocking of documents related to the 2008 suicide of Afghan veteran Cpl. Stuart Langridge, Glenn Stannard said the censorship flies in the face of seeking the truth.

Defence Minister Peter MacKay has refused to allow the release of documents though has not publicly stated why.

Military Police Complaints Commission lawyer Mark Freiman echoed Stannards comment as the thorny issue of solicitor-client privilege and redacted documents sparked another round of testy sniping between inquiry lawyers.

I want to note how awkward and artificial ... extraordinarily artificial ... what we are doing is, said Freiman toward the end of his questioning of military police Sgt. David Mitchell, an investigator with the National Investigation Service (NIS).

Freiman, who has clashed several times over the redaction issue with federal lawyer Elizabeth Richards, said advice Mitchell sought from military lawyers during his investigation was key.

We are looking to see whether a reasonable investigation was conducted, said Freiman. A key element in that investigation has to do with legal conclusions that were formed in the course of the investigation, and we are not able to look at anything to do with that key element.

Richards has repeatedly told Stannard that Parliament has given his commission limited power and says he has no right to see documents that fall under solicitor-client privilege.

MacKay is legally the client of DND lawyers and the only person who can waive the privilege.

Parliament in its wisdom has seen to exclude from the oversight of this commission the ability to look at the legal advice that was sought and received by military police.

More here:
Censorship impedes military inquiry, official says