The Crown appealed a military judge's decision terminating court martial proceedings against the respondent for sexual assault.
The alleged offences occurred in 1998, prior to the coming into force of Bill C-25, which amended s. 70 of the National Defence Act to give military courts concurrent jurisdiction over sexual assaults committed in Canada.
The issue on appeal was whether the amendment applied retrospectively.
The Court Martial Appeal Court held that Parliament did not express a clear intent for the amendment to apply retrospectively.
Furthermore, the amendment affected substantive rights, including the right to a jury trial and the right not to be subjected to more severe punishment, as the military system only prosecutes sexual assault by indictment and does not offer conditional discharges.
Therefore, the presumption against retrospective application applied.
The appeal was dismissed, confirming that service tribunals lack jurisdiction to try sexual assaults alleged to have occurred in Canada prior to September 1, 1999.
