# 2012-081 Careers, Accommodation, Administrative Action

Case Summary

F&R Date: 2012–09–28

The grievor was evicted from single quarters following a barracks inspection during which drugs and drug paraphernalia were found in the room he shared with another occupant.

The grievor stated he did not see drug paraphernalia during his time in quarters and there was no evidence that the drugs found belonged to him. He argued the drug paraphernalia was not located on his side of the room or in his closet, which was unlocked and searched. He requested a review of the eviction decision. In a subsequent submission, he requested reimbursement for rent-related costs as a result of the eviction, as well as a letter of apology from the Commanding Officer (CO) and the Regimental Sergeant Major.

The Board noted the stated reason for the grievor's eviction was that an interim military police (MP) report confirmed the presence of drugs in the grievor's room, a breach of the conditions of occupancy pursuant to Base Administration Instruction (BAI) 5.003 - Allocation and Control of Transient and Single Quarters. In the Board's view, there is very little information in BAI 5.003 regarding the applicable principles and procedures where drug-related issues arise in quarters; nonetheless, the Board accepted that a properly-executed eviction may be appropriate in some situations involving drugs.

The Board was of the view, however, that a very significant fact was missing from the various pieces of correspondence the CO issued around the time of the eviction: the grievor had a roommate. Based on the evidence available to the CO at the time, it was simply not clear to the Board how the CO could have concluded that the drugs and paraphernalia could be said to have been in the grievor's possession; all the evidence showed was a "belief" on the part of the MP member that the grievor was involved in using and possessing "illicit drugs".

The Board acknowledged the CO's explanations that in an administrative context, the burden of proof is based "on a balance of probabilities"; however, the Board pointed out that the evidence used must still be evaluated and given the proper weight, which in this case was not done. After carefully considering the file material, the Board could not conclude, on a balance of probabilities, that the "drugs" found in the grievor's room were possessed by him; consequently, the Board found the decision to evict the grievor was not reasonable.

The Board observed that it had, in previous files, spoken of the unwise and unfair practice in the Canadian Forces (CF) to take administrative action solely on the basis of police reports and again emphasized that the use of MP reports as evidence to make findings of misconduct without any further investigation of fact should be discontinued.

In the matter of reimbursement requested by the grievor, the Board noted there is no provision in CF or Treasury Board policies to permit such reimbursement, nor is there any authority within the grievance process to address claims of this nature. Should the grievor wish to pursue this, the option available to him is to make a claim against the Crown through the Director Claims and Civil Litigation. As for letters of apology, the Board stated it had previously dealt with this issue and found that the ordering of an apology could be equated to violating a person's freedom of expression; consequently, the Board would not recommend that third parties be required to issue apologies to the grievor.

The Board recommended the Chief of the Defence Staff partially uphold the grievance.

The Board recommended that Base authorities be directed to allow the grievor to occupy single quarters if he so desired and that all correspondence relating to the eviction be removed from his personnel file.

CDS Decision Summary

CDS Decision Date: 2013–06–13

The FA agreed with the Board's findings and recommendation that the grievance be partially upheld. The chain of command will remove all reference to the grievor's eviction from his personal records, and should he be entitled, an invitation to retum to single quarters will be extended to the grievor by the base commander.