Why does Murder Conviciton not result in Dishonorable Discharge

by Karl Gotthardt - albertacowpoke | October 19, 2010 at 06:40 am

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The defamed Canadian Force Colonel Russell Williams pleaded guilty to two counts of murder, two sexual assaults and 82 home invasions in a court in Belleville, Ontario yesterday.

A conviction carries with it an automatic sentence of 25 years without possiblity of parole for 25 years. Williams will be in jail until at least age 72 until he can apply for parole.

The Canadian Forces is mulling on how to administratively deal with Williams. Releasing him will be without problem. The military is also looking at unprecedented action which would reduce Williams in rank and take away any awards he may have earned during his career. Some of this may be problematic.

Williams, who is being tried by a civilian court, cannot be tried again for disgraceful conduct since that would be judging him twice on the same charges. This is new ground and the Canadian Forces has to conform to the National Defence Act and Canadian law.

Williams will also be entitled to a military pension. That pension is estimated to be around $60,000 annually. Since his arrest, Williams also collected his salary, which is estimated at $12,000 a month. There is consensus that most Canadians would like to have that taken away. This would require the Canadian government to enact legislation.

There is presently a move afoot to stop Old Age Security Pensions for those imprisoned. The issue came to light, when it was revealed that Clifford Olson, who slaughtered two children and nine teenagers, was receiving an Old Age Security pension.

In Williams' case, he contributed to the pension for the 24 years he was in the military. Due to his high profile, the issue has been raised. There have to be other prisoners in the system that have contributed to private pension funds, which can't be touched.

There is no doubt that Williams has brought discredit upon the Canadian Forces and there has to be a way to deal with it administratively. His actions are beyond a pale. Somehow the man slipped through the cracks and made it to the top ranks of the military. He was a VIP pilot that carried Queen Elizabeth II, the Prime Minister and other dignitaries. His military performance landed him in command of the largest Air Base in Canada.

The sad part here is that Captain Robert Semrau was convicted of disgraceful conduct by mercy killing an insurgent on the battlefield and was reduced in rank to Second Lieutenant and kicked out of the Canadian Forces. Based on Colonel Williams' crime, Semrau is a hero.

Whether there is a way to streamline the selection and promotion process is questionable. All that's left now is to watch and see how the military handles this within the confines of the law.

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"thirty-aught-six" (not verified)

at 07:56 on October 19th, 2010

The more relative questions are -was Col. Williams trial a military or civilian matter? And second, how much politics was behind his trial and conviction? A third consideration, when do we stop punishing those we convict and sentence? A friend of mine tells me that pardons in Canada can now be revealed to employers who require criminal conviction reports as part of the job application. How are we to reintroduce those back into society who have committed crimes and completed their sentence if we don't honor the intent of the pardon system. Denying OAS pensions is just one more step in this continual punishment that can only further extend the perpetual outlaw. Forgiveness has to be a consideration inherent in sentencing for punishment to have any validity, unless all crimes are too carry lifetime sentences.

Karl Gotthardt - albertacowpoke

at 08:13 on October 19th, 2010

The trial of Colonel Williams was definitely a civilian matter. The intent of the OAS was to look after lifers I think. The legislation hasn't been introduced yet, so I really can't comment on it. As far as Pardons go, I would have to do a little research, I have not heard of it.

"thirty-aught-six" (not verified)

at 08:57 on October 19th, 2010

I thought Old Age Security went to everyone at 65? Unsure about age. I called my friend. He has a application that he got as part of his own investigation into the claim. The application has two separate requests for police records. One is for a local police report for a two years search and the second is for a request to RCMP for a pardons search. It was brought to his attention by someone who went to apply as a volunteer. He's trying to find a way to the Law Society but, he says no one wants to comment openly on the subject as it is a breach of the Pardons Act and the Canadian Human Rights Act. Look into it. It's certainly worth investigating. Thanks for your post.

Piobar

at 11:29 on November 8th, 2010

OAS is available only to people who meet the residency requirements, and are over 65 years of age. There is no requirement for a criminal record check, because it is to help seniors get a viable level of income, considering that most employers will not hire them, and the ones that will usually only pay minimum wage, places like Walmart or Home Depot. As for the Pardon's act, that is less relevant in this issue than the Privacy act, which does not even let other government departments communicate with each other, for fears of some "big brother" conspiracy. Which is ridiculous, because you know as soon as they go in to a government office, those same people are bitter that they have to provide information that "the government" already has.

Karl Gotthardt - albertacowpoke

at 09:10 on October 19th, 2010

Yes OAS is a non-contributing pension that goes to everyone based on the length you have lived in Canada. As an immigrant you have to have been here for 10 years. Full OAS would be due if you have been in Canada. After 10 years in Canada it is 10/40th of, etc. Canada Pension Plan is similar to Social Security and you contribute to it. You can get a reduced CPP Pension at age 60 and full at age 65. CPP also gives a widows pension, death benefit and disability pension.

I'll check out the pardon stuff. I know that they were saying that pardons were too easy to get. As an example we have a hockey coach that abused several young hockey players that are now pros in the NHL. He was granted a pardon and was nailed again for child molestation that''s when the pardon issue came up.

Piobar

at 12:10 on November 8th, 2010

There is a move, apparantly, to makeit harder to get a pardon, the main reason for it being the high profile cases like the one you mentioned. The coach has apparantly been charged with new counts, though, so that is something, and I ahve heard talk about trying to get that pardon over-turned.

As for Col. Williams, he should have been given a dishonorable discharge. The civilian court does not have the mandate to do that, but he is a disgrace to the country and the uniform, and is lucky that they did away with capitol punishment for the CF back in 1992, or a lot of people, some in uniform, would have been out for blood. I can think of a few people who would volunteer to be on the firing squad.

OAS for serious criminals is definately a sore point for a lot of people. The government has been talking about taking it away for a while, and is probably justified in taking it away, but so far it has all been talk. People like Clifford Olsen, who are already being fed, clothed, and sheltered by the tax-payers, or Willy Picton, probably do not need the extra social support, as they will hopefully never be released. But a private pension is private. Col. Williams does not deserve to have been paid his monthly salary, and should be busted down to a no hook private, and dishonorably discharged. But He paid into the pension, legally, and unless the rules surrounding the pension program are changed, he should be entitled to it.

Changing the rules around the CF pension, or any other private pension, is a risky move, and one that should be avoided. If being charged with a criminal offence is enough to have your private pension stripped from you, Cpt Semrau would lose his pension, and the man is a hero. They crucified him for doing the moral thing. What of people who get charged for too many unpaid parking tickets? There are other ways, of course. Prisoners of a certain level of means could be expected to pay part of their cost of inprisonment. Garnishing the income of those who have commited a serious crime would be punitive, without setting as dangerous a legal precident. $60,000 a year, plus CPP, is an aweful lot of money for a man living for free of tax-payers, with nothing to spend it on but macaroni, prison tattoos, and protection money from all the bigger guys who think he is kinda cute.