Retired colonel charged with forgery, falsifying document

[Good2Golf]

If charges have been laid, then it is Government policy that charge information on upcoming courts martial proceedings be published on the Canadian Military Justice court martial website here.  Col(Ret'd) Lewis' charges have not been published on the CMJ site yet (21 Oct), likely an issue of timing, since only Court Martials that have been scheduled are posted to the site.

Regards
G2G

 

[Scoobs]

All I can say is wow.  This was a shocker, especially since he was in my trade.  I never personally worked for the man, but all of my interactions with him were very positive.  He was known as a straight talker and perhaps this rubbed someone the wrong way as it is interesting that this info "became available" last April.  However, the question (which should come out in the court martial, if any) is how this info became available.

We should give due process its course.  I disagree with the way that this all came to light as yes, we will hold all ranks accountable, but do we announce to the media everytime a Cpl, etc. is charged with something?  Nope.

All of this should make some interesting conversation at work on Monday.

 

[Good2Golf]

We should give due process its course.  I disagree with the way that this all came to light as yes, we will hold all ranks accountable, but do we announce to the media everytime a Cpl, etc. is charged with something?  Nope.

If you are being semantically specific when you use the occurrence descriptor  "everytime", then the answer would be no....however....

If the charge results in a COURT MARTIAL then the announcement (via the CMJ web site) IS made public.  See my earlier post.  ALL Courts Martial are made public, first when charges are laid, and secondly, the results after the trial.


Regards
G2G

 

[The Bread Guy]

.... I disagree with the way that this all came to light as yes, we will hold all ranks accountable, but do we announce to the media everytime a Cpl, etc. is charged with something?  Nope ....

To further reinforce G2G's comments, yup.  Here's a listing for a Sapper/Private facing a Court Martial, there for all the world to see on the interwebs ....
http://www.jmc-cmj.forces.gc.ca/ccm-cmc/fca-cs/perras-eng.asp
.... as well as a Leading Seaman/Corporal
http://www.jmc-cmj.forces.gc.ca/ccm-cmc/fca-cs/zinck-eng.asp
... and even a retired Corporal
http://www.jmc-cmj.forces.gc.ca/ccm-cmc/fca-cs/wilcox-eng.asp

 

[dapaterson]

To close the thread: http://www.jmc-cmj.forces.gc.ca/en/2012-lewis.page

On the date alleged in the charge Colonel (now retired) W.J. Lewis was the head of the applied military science department of the Royal Military College of Canada (RMC) in Kingston. In this position he was the commanding officer for all military post-graduate students attending the college. As well, he was responsible for the administration of his department. On 16 March 2011, a month prior to the offence date, Commodore Truelove, the commandant of the Royal Military College and Colonel Lewis's military superior, was preparing annual personnel evaluation reports (PERs) for his subordinates, including Colonel Lewis. A box on the PER form entitled “fitness test” has 5 options – pass, exempt, medically excused, fail, and not tested. Commodore Truelove emailed Colonel Lewis asking him to confirm that his EXPRES test was not expired. Colonel Lewis replied by email the same day falsely stating that he had received an exemption on his CF EXPRES test, and in April Commodore Truelove completed the PER form with this incorrect information. As part of the normal review process before final signature by the commander of the Canadian Defence Academy, Major Myers noticed a discrepancy between the information recorded on the PER as to Colonel Lewis's fitness status and information recorded on the member’s personnel record résumé. This document showed that Colonel Lewis last completed the EXPRES test in April of 2008, and therefore his last fitness test result had expired. Major Myers inquired of Colonel Lewis's unit and later Colonel Lewis sent an email to Major Myers falsely stating that a clerk had told him that he had passed his physical fitness test on 14 April 2010. Major Myers then requested a copy of Major Lewis's CF EXPRES test form, the DND 279. Colonel Lewis then went into the shadow file of one of his subordinates, Lieutenant-Colonel Beausejour, copied Lieutenant-Colonel Beausejour’s CF EXPRES test form, altered it to make it appear as his own and that he had received an exemption on the CF EXPRES test on 14 April 2011, scanned the document and sent it by email to Major Myers. Major Myers thought the document supplied to her by Colonel Lewis had been tampered with. An investigation was conducted in the course of which Colonel Lewis admitted to the investigators that he falsified the CF EXPRES test form intending to deceive his military superior, his chain of command, and the administrative support staff. He stated that he felt trapped when asked to supply a copy of the form after falsely stating that he had completed the test.

 

[GAP]

Ah....the "A horse! A horse! My kingdom for a horse!" defense.....

attrition:

William Shakespeare (1564–1616), British dramatist, poet. Richard, in Richard III, act 5, sc. 7, l. 7 and 13 (1597).

Richard's last words at the Battle of Bosworth.


edit: correction

 

[fraserdw]

How he ever made Light Colonel with such an amateurish ability to do a cover up, we will never know.

 

[Journeyman]

To close the thread: http://www.jmc-cmj.forces.gc.ca/en/2012-lewis.page

You think that mere facts will close the thread?  Some threads never end    op:

 

[George Wallace]

How he ever made Light Colonel with such an amateurish ability to do a cover up, we will never know.

Silly thing is, at his age all he basically need to pass a CF Expres was to have a pulse.  All he would have needed would have been to reach Level 6 in the Beep Test ( or perhaps he was eligible to do the Step Test ), an extremely low number of push ups and sit ups and then the grip test.  He would have to have been is an extremely unhealthy and weak state to fail.

 

[Snakedoc]

It's too bad, it sounds like he was a good CO and leader overall too but its a stark reminder that good leaders can make bad choices as well just like anyone else.

 

[jeffb]

It's too bad, it sounds like he was a good CO and leader overall too but its a stark reminder that good leaders can make bad choices as well just like anyone else.

Bad choices yes, unethical decisions no. A good CO and leader are ethical leaders. Anyone who falsifies documents, as this officer has been convicted of doing, is de facto a bad leader.

 

[tomahawk6]

Too bad.US BG Sinclair will have an Art 32 hearing tomorrow for a variety of sins. He was an Assistant Division CG of the 82d Abn.

Brigadier General Jeffrey A. Sinclair, charged with forcible sodomy, multiple counts of adultery and having inappropriate relationships with female subordinates, begins an Article 32 Hearing on November 5, 2012 at Fort Bragg. The Army has not released the official charges against Sinclair but it is reported additional charges could include violating an order, possessing pornography and alcohol in a war zone, misusing a government travel charge card and filing fraudulent claims.

The military services usually provide the charge sheets to the public for information prior to every major Article 32 or court-martial.  In this case, they have limited that information and not revealed it publicly.  In an Article 32 hearing, the government and military criminal defense lawyers present their case to an investigating officer (IO) to prove or disprove the military member’s misconduct.  The IO then recommends a course of action to the convening authority (CA) that is either dismissal of some or all of the charges, non-judicial punishment such as Article 15, or the IO can recommend a court-martial.  The CA then may choose to follow the recommendation or make a different decision.

In this case, the reported charges against Sinclair appear to be very serious and if substantiated by the evidence, most likely will proceed to a general court-martial.

 

[brihard]

Silly thing is, at his age all he basically need to pass a CF Expres was to have a pulse.  All he would have needed would have been to reach Level 6 in the Beep Test ( or perhaps he was eligible to do the Step Test ), an extremely low number of push ups and sit ups and then the grip test.  He would have to have been is an extremely unhealthy and weak state to fail.

Hell, even had he pooched it it would have been so long til the CF got around to declaring him unfit for service he would have hit his 35 anyway.

 

[tomahawk6]

Whats the minimum time in service to receive a pension ?

 

[Popurhedoff]

Bad choices yes, unethical decisions no. A good CO and leader are ethical leaders. Anyone who falsifies documents, as this officer has been convicted of doing, is de facto a bad leader.

I led by example, no excuses, that is the best form of leadership... After I broke my neck in an automoble accident I gained a lot of weight, but then I dropped 60lbs, made the time for PT and ran 5kms almost every morning with a 45lb rucksack before work.  I never failed a PT test and retired after 32 years with the same medical catagory as when I joined and in excellent physical condition and no DVA claims.

Cheers
Pop

 

[dapaterson]

Whats the minimum time in service to receive a pension ?

It's a bit complex:

For the Regular Force:

* Two years to vest in the plan

* Once vested, if you are medically released you will receive an immediate, indexed pension based on 2% of the average of your best five years.  (There are other benefits, outside the pension plan as well)

* For an immediate annuity, you must have a minimum of 25 years (Unless you enrolled under the old plan, in which case the minimum is 20 years)

* With 35 years you reach the maximum of 35x2% = 70% of the average of your best 5 years

There are a variety of penalties that can apply for early retirements, plus issues of when indexing begins.  However, 35 years of service generally means an immediate unreduced pension with immediate indexing.




(Note the 2% per year is not the actual amount of the pension; it's really made up of two amounts, one that pays up to age 65, and a second one that is for life.  The bridge benefit to age 65 is because the pension plan is combined with the Canada Pension Plan; once you are 65 the bridge benefit ceases and you presumably begin drawing CPP.  You can begin drawing CPP at any time between 60 and 70, with penalties for starting early and bonuses for starting late.  Talk to a financial planner.)

 

[tomahawk6]

Interesting.Thanks

 

[fraserdw]

I wonder if he knew he would limit the punishments available be retiring before the CM?  It is shame our system allows honourable retirement under a cloud of suspicion.

 

[tomahawk6]

He can retire under a cloud but the cloud never goes away. If you are innocent having your day in court clears away that cloud.

 

[GAP]

Clouds get thinner the older you are.....sometimes people just don't care about them.....