Sexual Offence Response Team

September 27, 2016 – Ottawa – National Defence / Canadian Armed Forces

On September 27, 2016, the Canadian Forces Provost Marshal officially announced the establishment of a new 18-member team dedicated to supporting the investigation of criminal sexual offences throughout the Canadian Armed Forces and Department of National Defence.

The Sexual Offence Response Team, an Operation HONOUR initiative, increases the ability of the Canadian Forces National Investigation Service to protect and support victims of sexually based offences by identifying, investigating and helping prosecute persons responsible for criminal sexual offences. The announcement officially recognized the establishment of the specially trained team already in place and conducting operations in six locations across Canada.

Role of the Sexual Offence Response Team

The Canadian Forces National Investigation Service is a unit within the independent Canadian Forces Military Police Group whose mandate is to investigate serious and sensitive matters in relation to Department of National Defence property, Department of National Defence employees and Canadian Armed Forces personnel serving in Canada and around the world.

The Sexual Offence Response Team is an investigative team within the Canadian Forces National Investigation Service that is focussed on illegal sexual activities affecting the Canadian Armed Forces community and ensuring support to victims.

The mission of the Sexual Offence Response Team is to contribute to the ethical principles, values and operational effectiveness of the Canadian Armed Forces by:

• investigating criminal sexual activities throughout the Canadian Armed Forces and Department of National Defence and prosecuting persons engaged in harmful, inappropriate and criminal sexual behaviour;
• ensuring victim services are provided by coordinating investigative activity with key enablers and stakeholders such as the Canadian Armed Forces Strategic Response Team on Sexual Misconduct and the Sexual Misconduct Response Centre; and
• supporting Canadian Armed Forces administrative processes related to sexual offences.

A majority of Canadian Forces National Investigation Service investigations revolve around sexual related matters. The Sexual Offence Response Team provides investigators with a nucleus of expertise regarding:

• historical investigative techniques;
• new trends in law enforcement concerning sexually based offences: and
• best practices for future sexual related investigations.

The intent of building this base of knowledge and experience is to help ensure procedural correctness, improve support to victims, and lead to better file management and fewer investigative delays.

Composition and location

The 18 investigators of the Sexual Offence Response Team are dispersed in three-member teams at the six Canadian Forces National Investigation Service’s regional offices across Canada. Each team consists of one sergeant and two master corporals. Investigative teams of three ensures a consistent footprint of two members working on investigative activities, while a third at times can be conducting training or conducting program development.

The geographic areas of responsibility of each team are as follows:

• Pacific Region (based in Victoria, with responsibility for the Province of British Columbia);
• Western Region (based in Edmonton, with responsibility for Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, the Northwest Territories and the Yukon);
• Borden Region (based at CFB Borden, with responsibility for the Western portion of Ontario);
• Central Region (based in Ottawa, with responsibility for the Eastern portion of Ontario);
• Eastern Region (based at CFB Valcartier, with responsibility for the province of Quebec and Nunavut); and
• Atlantic Region (based in Halifax, with responsibility for the four Atlantic provinces).

Note: While the Canadian Forces National Investigation Service regional offices are co-located with other military bases, the Canadian Forces National Investigation Service personnel, including members of the Sexual Offence Response Team, work independently from the normal military chain of command. They receive direction and report directly to the commanding Officer of the Canadian Forces National Investigation Service.

Selection and training

Members of the Sexual Offence Response Team are carefully selected based on their training and experience in sexual related investigations. Each member must display an aptitude for this area of investigations as well as character traits including empathy, understanding, and victim-oriented focus.

In addition to standard training received by all investigators in the Canadian Forces National Investigation Service, members of the Sexual Offence Response Team also receive specialized training in:

• investigating sexual assault;
• physical abuse and child death;
• investigating offences against children;
• investigative and forensic interviewing techniques; and
• trauma informed care training.

The training is specifically aimed at ensuring investigators listen to every victim with a compassionate ear, to accurately gather facts, to avoid preconceived judgements and to respond to complaints and conduct every investigation in a thorough, professional and impartial manner.

The ongoing training of the team will be revised as required to ensure it reflects progressive law enforcement trends, opportunities and lessons learned.

Conclusion

The Sexual Offence Response Team adds to the strength of the Canadian Forces National Investigation Service and optimizes opportunities to successfully identify, investigate, and bring to prosecution those persons responsible for criminal sexual offences in the Department of National Defence and the Canadian Armed Forces.

Any member who has experienced or witnessed harmful and inappropriate sexual behaviour of any kind in the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) has a range of options available to him or her.For more information regarding available services, please visit the Harmful and Inappropriate Sexual Behaviour webpage.  

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Related Product

News release – Military Police launch Sexual Offence Response Team

Associated Links

• Harmful and Inappropriate Sexual Behaviour
• Sexual Misconduct Response Centre

Contacts

Canadian Forces National Investigation Service

Requests for Canadian Force National Investigation Service involvement usually come through regular Military Police organizations, but Canadian Armed Forces members and department of National Defence employees can lay complaints or communicate directly with regional offices or individual Canadian Forces National Investigation Service members.

The following contact information is provided for anyone wishing to contact the Canadian Forces National Investigation Service Sexual Offence Response Team in locations across Canada:

• Pacific Region - 1-844-489-0569
• Western Region - 1-877-290-1019
• Central Region - 1-888-812-3647
• Borden Region - 1-866-698-1119
• Eastern Region - 1-877-763-3272
• Atlantic Region - 1-888-253-5335

Media

Media Relations
Department of National Defence
Phone: 613-996-2353
Toll-Free: 1-866-377-0811
Email: mlo-blm@forces.gc.ca