Dany Fortin says 'career appears to be over' after leak of misconduct investigation
The military officer who previously oversaw Canada's vaccine rollout campaign says his reputation has been "irreparably tarnished" by the government's decision to abruptly replace him in May and publicly reveal he was being investigated for sexual misconduct.
Maj.-Gen. Dany Fortin's assertion is contained in an affidavit sworn last week but only publicly revealed on Thursday as part of his legal battle to reverse his dismissal from the Public Health Agency of Canada, which he alleges was improper and politically motivated.
Fortin was removed from the vaccine rollout on May 14, just five days before the Canadian Forces National Investigation Service referred a sexual misconduct investigation to the Quebec prosecution service to determine whether criminal charges should be laid.
Through his lawyers, Fortin has denied any wrongdoing.
Fortin's lawyers filed an application last month with the Federal Court seeking an expedited judicial review of the decision to fire him from his posting at PHAC, and asking for the decision be quashed and for his reinstatement at the agency or another position.
In the affidavit sworn on July 13, Fortin says the impact of the decision to remove him and reveal the misconduct investigation "on my reputation and career has been devastating."
Fortin says he received an exemplary performance review only three days before he was removed from the vaccine campaign, and was "at the peak of my career," with expectations of a promotion or other opportunity upon finishing his job with PHAC.
Due to the decision to remove him, however, "I have no assignment, although I remain a member of the CAF. As far as I know, I am not being considered for any positions and I appear to have been bypassed for promotion. Currently, my career appears to be over."
Fortin also took issue with the government's decision to reveal the investigation into his conduct.
"The reputation I have built up over the course of three decades of service to my country has been irreparably tarnished by the decision to announce publicly an investigation into my alleged conduct," the affidavit reads, "exacerbated by the fact that the announcement lacked the context that the investigation relates to a single allegation of misconduct dating back over 30 years."
Fortin's lawyer Natalia Rodriguez said the affidavit has been sworn and served to Attorney General David Lametti, but will not be filed in court until September.
"We are providing it to you ahead of schedule in the interests of openness and transparency," she said in an email. "We understand there is significant public interest in this case and we want to provide the public with as much information as we can with respect to the issues raised in this application."
Asked to comment Thursday, Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan's spokesman Daniel Minden said: "As this is an ongoing legal matter, it would be inappropriate for us to comment at this time."
Fortin's lawyers have argued the decision to remove their client was unreasonable, lacked procedural fairness and involved improper political interference in the military chain of command by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Health Minister Patty Hajdu and Sajjan.
None of the allegations has been tested in court.
They have also argued the announcement of his termination breached his right to keep his personal information private and fuelled public speculation without the appropriate context, causing irreparable harm to his reputation.
Fortin in his affidavit repeats many of the assertions made by his lawyers in last month's application for judicial review.
He says he first heard about an unspecified allegation of sexual misconduct against him on March 17, when acting chief of the defence staff Lt.-Gen. Wayne Eyre informed him that military police had launched an investigation.
Later the same day, after informing the Privy Council Office about the investigation, Eyre told Fortin he would "advocate for due process, the presumption of innocence" and for allowing Fortin to continue working on the vaccine rollout.
PHAC president Iain Stewart said much the same, according to the affidavit. But while Fortin's posting was "OK for now," Stewart also warned him Hajdu and Trudeau "may change their minds later" and that he should prepare himself "for the moment when they determine that you need to be let go."
"Keep your bags packed," the affidavit cites Stewart as telling Fortin.
On April 19, Fortin says he received a call from a military police investigator who told him he was being investigated for one instance of sexual misconduct, alleged to have occurred more than 30 years ago.
On May 13, Fortin says Eyre told him that Hajdu and Sajjan "wanted to remove me" from the vaccine rollout. Eyre did not say what had prompted the decision other than to tell Fortin that "the `political calculus' had changed and that the PCO had said I would have to be removed," the affidavit says.
The following day, Fortin says Eyre presented him with a written statement regarding his departure "pending the results of a military investigation." The statement was "not negotiable" other than giving Fortin the option of saying he had chosen to leave his assignment with PHAC.
The statement was released later that day while Sajjan released a separate statement which he prefaced by reiterating the government's commitment to building a "culture of inclusion" in the military that "sheds toxic and outdated values, practices and policies."
"I was not aware that the minister of national defence would be making additional public statements regarding the investigation," Fortin says in the affidavit, adding Sajjan's statements "hinted at the nature of the investigation."
"I was not asked whether I consented to these public statements being made," he added.
Five days after Fortin departed, the military police issued a statement saying an allegation of sexual misconduct was being referred to Quebec's director of criminal prosecutions. Fortin says he only learned about that development through the media.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 22, 2021.
IN DEPTH
Budget 2024 prioritizes housing while taxing highest earners, deficit projected at $39.8B
In an effort to level the playing field for young people, in the 2024 federal budget, the government is targeting Canada's highest earners with new taxes in order to help offset billions in new spending to enhance the country's housing supply and social supports.
'One of the greatest': Former prime minister Brian Mulroney commemorated at state funeral
Prominent Canadians, political leaders, and family members remembered former prime minister and Progressive Conservative titan Brian Mulroney as an ambitious and compassionate nation-builder at his state funeral on Saturday.
'Democracy requires constant vigilance' Trudeau testifies at inquiry into foreign election interference in Canada
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau testified Wednesday before the national public inquiry into foreign interference in Canada's electoral processes, following a day of testimony from top cabinet ministers about allegations of meddling in the 2019 and 2021 federal elections. Recap all the prime minister had to say.
As Poilievre sides with Smith on trans restrictions, former Conservative candidate says he's 'playing with fire'
Siding with Alberta Premier Danielle Smith on her proposed restrictions on transgender youth, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre confirmed Wednesday that he is against trans and non-binary minors using puberty blockers.
Supports for passengers, farmers, artists: 7 bills from MPs and Senators to watch in 2024
When parliamentarians return to Ottawa in a few weeks to kick off the 2024 sitting, there are a few bills from MPs and senators that will be worth keeping an eye on, from a 'gutted' proposal to offer a carbon tax break to farmers, to an initiative aimed at improving Canada's DNA data bank.
Opinion
opinion Don Martin: Gusher of Liberal spending won't put out the fire in this dumpster
A Hail Mary rehash of the greatest hits from the Trudeau government’s three-week travelling pony-show, the 2024 federal budget takes aim at reversing the party’s popularity plunge in the under-40 set, writes political columnist Don Martin. But will it work before the next election?
opinion Don Martin: The doctor Trudeau dumped has a prescription for better health care
Political columnist Don Martin sat down with former federal health minister Jane Philpott, who's on a crusade to help fix Canada's broken health care system, and who declined to take any shots at the prime minister who dumped her from caucus.
opinion Don Martin: Trudeau's seeking shelter from the housing storm he helped create
While Justin Trudeau's recent housing announcements are generally drawing praise from experts, political columnist Don Martin argues there shouldn’t be any standing ovations for a prime minister who helped caused the problem in the first place.
opinion Don Martin: Poilievre has the field to himself as he races across the country to big crowds
It came to pass on Thursday evening that the confidentially predictable failure of the Official Opposition non-confidence motion went down with 204 Liberal, BQ and NDP nays to 116 Conservative yeas. But forcing Canada into a federal election campaign was never the point.
opinion Don Martin: How a beer break may have doomed the carbon tax hike
When the Liberal government chopped a planned beer excise tax hike to two per cent from 4.5 per cent and froze future increases until after the next election, says political columnist Don Martin, it almost guaranteed a similar carbon tax move in the offing.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Most of Canada to receive emergency alert test today
The federal government will test its capacity to issue emergency alerts today, with the exception of Ontario, where the test will take place on May 15.
NEW For their protection, immigrants critical of China and India call for speedy passage of Canada's foreign interference legislation
Canadian immigrants threatened by hostile regimes are urging parliamentarians to quickly pass the 'Countering Foreign Interference Act' so they can feel safe living in their adopted home.
OPINION No reunion between Prince Harry and the King signifies a setback for royal unity
Prince Harry, the Duke of Sussex, has made headlines with his recent arrival in the U.K., this time to celebrate all things Invictus. But upon the prince landing in the U.K., we have already had confirmation that King Charles III won't have time to see his youngest son during his brief visit.
How Drake and Kendrick Lamar's rap beef escalated within weeks
A long-simmering feud between hip-hop superstars Drake and Kendrick Lamar reached a boiling point in recent days as the pair traded increasingly personal insults on a succession of diss tracks. Here’s a quick overview of what’s behind the ongoing beef.
Israel says it reopened a key Gaza crossing after a rocket attack but the UN says no aid has entered
The Israeli military said Wednesday that it has reopened the Kerem Shalom crossing into Gaza, a key terminal for the entry of humanitarian aid that was closed over the weekend after a Hamas rocket attack killed four Israeli soldiers nearby.
'A huge difference': These adults born in the '90s partnered with their parents to buy homes in Ontario
An Ontario woman said it would have been impossible to buy a house without her mother – an anecdote that animates the fact that over 17 per cent of Canadian homeowners born in the ‘90s own their property with their parents, according to a new report.
Stormy Daniels describes meeting Trump during occasionally graphic testimony in hush money trial
With Donald Trump sitting just feet away, Stormy Daniels testified Tuesday at the former president's hush money trial about a sexual encounter the porn actor says they had in 2006 that resulted in her being paid to keep silent during the presidential race 10 years later.
Susan Buckner, who played spirited cheerleader Patty Simcox in 'Grease,' dead at 72
Susan Buckner, best known for playing peppy Rydell High School cheerleader Patty Simcox in the 1978 classic movie musical 'Grease,' has died. She was 72.
Northern Ont. woman makes 'eggstraordinary' find
A chicken farmer near Mattawa made an 'eggstraordinary' find Friday morning when she discovered one of her hens laid an egg close to three times the size of an average large chicken egg.
Local Spotlight
'It looked so legit': Ontario man pays $7,700 for luxury villa found on Booking.com, but the listing was fake
An Ontario man says he paid more than $7,700 for a luxury villa he found on a popular travel website -- but the listing was fake.
Investigating the tale of Winnipeg's long-running mystery bookstore
Whether passionate about Poirot or hungry for Holmes, Winnipeg mystery obsessives have had a local haunt for over 30 years in which to search out their latest page-turners.
'Love has no boundaries': Sask. couple in their 90s and 80s get married
Eighty-two-year-old Susan Neufeldt and 90-year-old Ulrich Richter are no spring chickens, but their love blossomed over the weekend with their wedding at Pine View Manor just outside of Rosthern.
Twin Alberta Ballet dancers retire after 15 years with company
Alberta Ballet's double-bill production of 'Der Wolf' and 'The Rite of Spring' marks not only its final show of the season, but the last production for twin sisters Alexandra and Jennifer Gibson.
Video shows gaggle of geese stopping traffic on Highway 1 near Vancouver
A mother goose and her goslings caused a bit of a traffic jam on a busy stretch of the Trans-Canada Highway near Vancouver Saturday.
B.C. mayor stripped of budget, barred from committees over Indigenous residential schools book
A British Columbia mayor has been censured by city council – stripping him of his travel and lobbying budgets and removing him from city committees – for allegedly distributing a book that questions the history of Indigenous residential schools in Canada.
Three Quebec men from same family father hundreds of children
Three men in Quebec from the same family have fathered more than 600 children.
Here's how one of Sask.'s largest power plants was knocked out for 73 days, and what it took to fix it
A group of SaskPower workers recently received special recognition at the legislature – for their efforts in repairing one of Saskatchewan's largest power plants after it was knocked offline for months following a serious flood last summer.
Quebec police officer anonymously donates kidney, changes schoolteacher's life
A police officer on Montreal's South Shore anonymously donated a kidney that wound up drastically changing the life of a schoolteacher living on dialysis.