Philip Smith relieved of military reserve duties in wake of past convictions related to Cortney Lake
'Administrative review’ will now take place to determine his future, Canadian Armed Forces says
Philip Steven Smith has been relieved of his duties in the military reserves following a series of criminal convictions involving actions against his ex-girlfriend Cortney Lake.
Those include assault, breaching court orders, and distributing intimate images.
"Sexual misconduct and harmful and inappropriate sexual behaviour of any kind is abhorrent and has no place in our Canadian Armed Forces," Capt. Karina Holder, public affairs officer with 5th Canadian Division Headquarters, told CBC News in an emailed statement.
Sexual misconduct and harmful and inappropriate sexual behaviour of any kind is abhorrent and has no place in our Canadian Armed Forces- Capt. Karina Holder, public affairs officer
"Our institution's culture of personal and professional respect is non-negotiable."
Military officials said they took swift action in this case.
"The commander of 5th Canadian Division became aware of the situation on the 27th of September and immediately ordered Cpl. Smith to be relieved of his military duty," Holder noted.
Smith could ultimately be kicked out of the military altogether.
An "administrative review" process will now take place, to determine what happens next.
Those proceedings are protected by the Privacy Act, "to ensure the integrity of the process."
Lake missing since June 7
Lake has been missing since June 7. Police have since classified her disappearance as a homicide. They have not identified any suspects, or made any arrests.
Hours before Cortney Lake was last seen, Smith was at provincial court in St. John's, where he pleaded guilty to assaulting Lake, distributing intimate images of her, and breaching prior orders to stay away from her and her mom Lisa Lake.
He was sentenced to time served, and released.
Smith was again arrested later that month, and charged with breaching court orders — including one to stay away from Cortney Lake. He admitted to picking up Lake in Mount Pearl the day she was last seen.
- Former boyfriend of Cortney Lake admits he picked her up the day she disappeared
- Cortney Lake's ex-boyfriend Philip Smith released from jail
He pleaded guilty to those offences, and was released from Her Majesty's Penitentiary in late August.
Smith in reserves since 2009
Smith enrolled in the Army Primary Reserves in 2009, and is a corporal and primary reservist with 37 Combat Engineer Regiment in St. John's.
He has not served on any overseas missions.
Military officials cited a directive issued by the chief of defence staff in explaining the decision to relieve Smith of his duties.
Under that directive, anyone found guilty of sexual misconduct under criminal, military, or civil court proceedings "shall be issued with a notice of intent to recommend release" from the Armed Forces. It applies to incidents that occurred from 2016 onwards.
An "administrative review" then follows. It can recommend actions up to and including release from the military.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
