On October 14th of this year 2008 M/Cpl Fraser will stand before a Court Martial in Shilo Manitoba. I would like to remind people of the headlines this sad story has generated over the past couple of years. The DND in particular the office of the Judge Advocate General, should have dealt with this injustice years ago.
M/Cpl Robbie Fraser
Military charge unjust: father Last updated at 1:17 PM on 16/03/07 JIM DAY The Guardian The P.E.I. father of a Canadian soldier charged with manslaughter in the apparent accidental shooting death of a comrade in Afghanistan says the military is making an unfair example of his son. Kevin Fraser of South Rustico told The Guardian Thursday that the manslaughter charge against his son, Master Cpl. Robbie Fraser, is reactionary and excessive.
Last updated at 12:35 AM on 30/05/08
Island soldier should be cleared, says his lawyer JIM DAY The Guardian Evidence does not support the serious charges facing an Island soldier bracing for a military trial in October, says his lawyer. Were confident that he will be cleared of these charges, said Moncton, N.B., lawyer Lt.-Col. Troy Sweet. I have seen the evidence that the prosecution says they have. Sweet, who will be representing Master Cpl. Robbie Fraser in a court martial set to begin Oct. 14, said he is not able to discuss the evidence. Lt. Col. Bruce MacGregor said prosecution plans to proceed with charges of manslaughter and negligent performance of duty against Fraser in connection with the shooting death of a fellow soldier in Afghanistan. Frasers gun reportedly discharged while the soldier was travelling in the cramped confines of a military vehicle along a bumpy road during a routine patrol somewhere outside Kandahar. Master Cpl. Jeffrey Walsh, a close friend of Frasers, died of a gunshot wound in the incident. Cdn. Soldier Charged In Death Of Comrade In Afghanistan
CityNews.ca
Staff
Monday March 12, 2007
It's an unusual charge in an unusual war.
One Canadian soldier is accused of manslaughter in the death of another while both were on duty in Afghanistan.
The incident happened August 9th as Master Cpl. Jeffrey Scott Walsh (top left) was in a Jeep on a relatively routine patrol near Kandahar.
The allegations are that a gun belonging to another solider, Master Cpl. Robbie Fraser, somehow went off in the vehicle, and the single shot hit Walsh. He died from his injuries.
Fraser is based in Shilo with the 2nd Battalion, Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry regiment. He's facing one count of manslaughter and one count of negligent performance of duty.
Soldier charged with manslaughter gets court-martialed
Barb Pacholik , CanWest News Service Published: Friday, October 12, 2007
REGINA - The father of a Regina soldier killed in Afghanistan remains anxious for answers in his son's death, as news broke Friday that a fellow soldier charged with manslaughter is headed for a military trial.
Charges of manslaughter and negligently performing a military duty laid against Master Cpl. Robbie Fraser will proceed to a court martial at the first available date, said the Canadian Forces Director of Military Prosecutions.
The charges stem from the death of 33-year-old Master Cpl. Jeffrey Scott Walsh, who was shot while on routine patrol near Kandahar on Aug. 9 last year. The shot came from inside the armoured military vehicle in which Walsh and Fraser were travelling. Some media reports have suggested they were on a bumpy road at the time.
It is a very emotional time for both families, this dragged out time awaiting a Court Martial keeps reminding families of this accident of War. As a former soldier I do pray that the prosecutor has a heart and is intelligent enough to read all the media reports on this incident. No one feels worse than M/Cpl Fraser and he will carry this the remainder of his life. However the incident did occur in a crowded Vehicle, on a non existent road, in a volatile Combat area. Yes he should have been charged with failure to secure his weapon but that should have happened two years ago and the healing process could have been started.
All the best M/Cpl may the Gods of Justice be with you.
Soldier's widow angry over charges against friend Last Updated: Tuesday, March 13, 2007 | 2:44 PM ET CBC News
The widow of a Canadian soldier, who died when a weapon discharged during a routine patrol in Afghanistan last year, is upset that her husband's friend and fellow comrade has been charged in his death.
I've been irate at the fact that they've even considered manslaughter as one of the charges, Julie Mason told CBC News on Tuesday.
Mason's husband, Master Cpl. Jeffrey Scott Walsh, died in Kandahar on Aug. 9.
It has been reported that he was seated beside the driver of a G-wagon when another soldier's gun discharged from inside the jeep, killing Walsh with a single bullet.
On Monday, the Canadian Forces National Investigation Service charged Walsh's friend and comrade Master Cpl. Robbie Fraser, based in Shilo with 2nd Battalion, Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry regiment, with one count of manslaughter and one count of negligent performance of duty.
Mason said she doesn't agree with the charges.
I hope we can change this, she said.
It's painful enough when a soldier loses a brother, she said. It's even harder when you lose a friend and it's your weapon that went off.
Mason said she met with Fraser on Monday. She said she let him know it's not his fault and she told him she's there to help him as much as she can.
Earlier this month, another Canadian soldier died in a shooting in his tent on the base in Kandahar. The military has said little about Cpl. Kevin Megeney's death, other than that it did not involve enemy fire.
Master Cpl. Jeffrey Scott Walsh may he rest in Peace.
Please mark your Calendar for the RED RALLY being held at the cenotaph in Charlottetown 7 Nov 08.
Nil Sine Labore
Robby
