The commanding officer of HMCS Regina has been relieved of his duties after an incident involving “improper conduct”, the Royal Canadian Navy said on Thursday.
The Navy said in a statement that it has lost confidence in the Lt. Cmdr.’s judgment. David Dallin, who had been in command of the Pacific Fleet warship.
The alleged incident took place on another vessel during a naval training exercise, the navy said.
“The RCN expects all its members to exercise institutionally appropriate judgment at all times, especially when they have clear leadership or command roles,” the Navy said in the statement.
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In an interview with Global News, Cmdre. David Mazur, commander of the Pacific Fleet, said he would not classify the incident as sexual misconduct.
“This was a case of an officer in charge behaving inappropriately in a position of authority towards a student,” he said.
“It’s nothing like an assault…there were two parties involved, and it wasn’t against one’s will.”
An investigation into the incident is underway, the Navy said. Mazur said witnesses participating in the training exercise reported the behavior to leaders the next day.
The Navy said Cmdr. Meghan Coates has now assumed command of HMCS Regina, a Halifax-class frigate based at Esquimalt Canadian Forces Base, BC.
Dallin will serve in other roles within the Pacific Maritime Forces at Esquimalt Canadian Forces Base until the conclusion of the investigation.
Mazur said his loss of trust in Dallin was limited to his ability to hold a leadership position, which is why Dallin was not suspended pending the results of the investigation.
This is the second time this month that a ship’s commanding officer has been removed from duty.
The captain of HMCS Halifax, identified as Cmdr. Dale St. Croix, was removed amid an investigation into what the navy said were multiple incidents aboard the ship during a port visit in Swinoujscie, Poland.
However, the June 9 announcement from the Canadian Forces made it clear that those incidents did not involve sexual misconduct.
“I would say our culture is continually evolving,” Mazur said when asked about the latest removals.
“There have been suspicions of a cover-up and of people not being treated properly, so we are now being very proactive. … We are over-communicating to make sure people realize we are aware of things and we deal with them.”
Mazur added that Dillan met with the ship’s company and those involved in the training exercise to apologize and show that he acknowledged his behavior before being removed from command.
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The Canadian Forces are in the midst of a reckoning for sexual misconduct and abuse of power within its ranks, including at the highest levels.
The most recent removals come after a searing report revealed that Canadian Armed Forces senior officers are “failing” to recognize the “deficient” parts of a culture that keep sexual misconduct entrenched.
The report by retired Supreme Court Justice Louise Arbor, released May 30, came more than a year after Global News first reported cases of sexual misconduct between military leaders, including former chief of staff of defense, General Jonathan Vance.
This month, two retired servicemen were charged with sexual assault in connection with alleged incidents at the Royal Military College in Kingston, Ontario.
One of those officers was the recently retired lieutenant general. Trevor Cadieu, who had been selected to lead the army last year before military police began investigating him.
— with files from Amanda Connolly, Irelyne Lavery and Global’s Canadian Press
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