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Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) officials have yet to confirm the cause of death for any of the men, but suicide is suspected. If so these premature and preventable deaths would bring the CAF suicide rate to an unprecedented level.

CAF is set to conduct its own internal ‘in camera’ inquiry. The Commandant of the RMC, Brigadier-General Sean Friday, has announced that the CAF will be conducting a ‘single’ official board of inquiry into the deaths of these cadets outside the academic year per se. Such a board of inquiry is convened pursuant to section 45 of the National Defence Act.

The Board is composed of military officers appointed by the CAF. Hearings are not open to the public and the public plays no part in the inquiry process. There is also no ‘right to standing’ for relatives of a deceased.

The Final Report of the Inquiry is not revealed to the public nor is a copy given to families of the deceased although a redacted copy of that report may be obtained through freedom of information legislation which is protracted process. However access to the BOI report can only be made after it has been thoroughly reviewed by the chain of command and approved by the Chief of the Defence Staff. This has been known to take many years. [That issue was raised in the House of Commons during Question Period on January 30, 2014.]

For the benefit of the deceased families and society as a whole, a Coroner’s Inquest should be conducted into these contentious deaths. [This is precisely what happens in Europe because the European Convention of Human Rights obliges States to carry out a full investigation on the contentious death of a soldier. See: Jordan and others v. The United Kingdom (2000), 31 EHRR 6.]