The Commission uses Foundational Documents to share its understanding of key facts and events leading up to and during the April 2020 mass casualty in Nova Scotia.
What are Foundational Documents?
Foundational Documents help the Commission share what has been learned to date during our independent investigation in an efficient and succinct way. Phase 1 documents address specific times, locations or topics and include an overview, a detailed narrative and source materials (like witness interviews and audio or visual recordings or transcripts). They will be shared with the public during public hearings and released in sequential order (not all at once).
List of Foundational Documents
The below list of the Commission's Foundational Documents is not exhaustive and there may be additional Foundational Documents developed as the Commission continues to explore the issues in its mandate. This factual record will form the basis for our work on understanding how and why the mass casualty happened, and to develop recommendations to help keep communities safer in the future. Please note that the titles and scope of some of these Foundational Documents may change.
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Phase 1 Foundational Documents
Location-based
- Portapique: April 18-19, 2020
- First Responders Actions in Portapique
- Containment Points In and Around Portapique
- Overnight in Debert
- 2328 Hunter Road
- Highway 4, Wentworth
- Highway 4, Glenholme
- Plains Road, Debert
- Onslow Belmont Fire Brigade Hall
- Shubenacadie
- Highway 224
- Enfield Big Stop
Topic-based
- Truro Police Services
- RCMP Emergency Response Team
- Confirmation of Replica RCMP Cruiser
- Alert Ready in Nova Scotia
- Air Support
- RCMP Public Communications
- RCMP Command Post, Operational Communications Centre and Command Decisions
- Halifax Regional Police and Halifax District RCMP Operations
- Radio Communications Systems in Nova Scotia
- Overview of 911 Call-Taking and Dispatch in Nova Scotia
- Applicable Legislation and Regulations:
- Firearms
- Public Alerting
- Police Paraphernalia
- Structure of Policing in Nova Scotia
Police Paraphernalia
- Firearms
- Public Communications from the RCMP and Governments about the Mass Casualty
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Phase 2 Foundational Documents
- Perpetrator’s Violence towards his Common-law Spouse
- Perpetrator’s Violent Behaviour Towards Others
- Perpetrator’s Financial Misdealings
- Violence in the Perpetrator’s Family of Origin
- Applicable Legislation and Regulations:
- Death Notification
- Victim Support
- Information Seeking from Families and Next of Kin Notifications
- Support Services for Survivors, Families, and Communities
Steps to create Foundational Documents
Below are the steps we are following to create the Commission’s Foundational Documents.
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1. Gather and analyze information and evidence
To date, the Commission has gathered and analyzed more than 40,000 pages of documents and approximately 1,000 video and audio files, in addition to new information collected through the Commission’s own investigation, interviews, analysis of evidence, and site visits. The Commission’s Foundational Documents are created based on this source material, which includes:
- Institutional investigative files, emails and other sources of communication
- Interviews with witnesses or people with specific information relevant to our mandate
- Audio and visual recordings and transcripts
- Insights from site visits
- Policies and procedures
Collection and analysis of information will continue throughout the Commission’s two-year mandate.
- 2. Draft Foundational Documents to organize and share information
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3. Consult with Participants to ensure accuracy
The Commission consults with Participants who are asked to review draft Foundational Documents and identify any gaps or errors to ensure Foundational Documents are as accurate as possible before they are shared publicly.
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4. Make Foundational Documents public on our website
Once the Foundational Documents are as accurate as possible, they will be shared with the public during the Commission’s proceedings and posted to the Commission’s website.
Foundational Documents for Phase 1 are planned for public release in the winter 2022 proceedings. Foundational Documents for Phase 2 are currently being drafted.
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5. Address any issues in the Foundational Documents during public proceedings
The Commission will hold public proceedings, such as hearings or expert roundtables, on outstanding questions or gaps that arise from the Foundational Documents.
During the public proceedings, we will hear from witnesses to supplement the information in the Foundational Documents.