An officer in the Royal Canadian Navy who pleaded guilty to desertion testified Monday that he left his post on a ship after he was subjected to deplorable behaviour that included a colleague urinating on his cabin floor.
Lt. Derek De Jong, 43, told a court martial that while he was wrong to leave his post aboard HMCS Preserver, he was harassed and his commanding officer failed to properly investigate his concerns.
De Jong left the supply vessel on Sept. 17, 2012, while it was docked in Key West, Fla., and he returned to Halifax, where he turned himself in to military police.
He said there were a series of incidents leading up to his desertion that began in late August that year.
On Aug. 20, De Jong had a conflict with another crew member over the handling of alleged misbehaviour by a female subordinate, he told his sentencing hearing.
The next day, a female officer came into his cabin while he was still asleep, pulled down her pants, squatted and urinated on the floor, he said.
De Jong said he reported the incident to the supply officer and the ship's commanding officer but no formal inquiry resulted.
He said a senior officer later joked, "Some men have to pay for a service like that," and a sign was briefly attached to his cabin door that said, "Women's head," a reference to a nautical term for a woman's bathroom.
"I don't think people should have to tolerate this kind of behaviour," De Jong said Monday.
(....)
Capt. Angus Topshee, the commander of Canadian Forces Base Halifax, testified earlier in the day that many officers face difficult work environments but don't desert their posts.
Topshee said he had approved a promotion for De Jong, but had some misgivings.
"I was concerned he takes some things very seriously, perhaps more seriously than he needs to take them," he said.
The court martial also heard testimony from Cmdr. Edward Forward, a senior logistics officer in Halifax, who said that since being reassigned to a land-based training role De Jong has excelled in his work.
Forward said De Jong should remain in the military.
"He is outstanding," he said, referring to De Jong's work training hundreds of people in inventory management software.
The prosecution is scheduled to cross-examine De Jong on Tuesday ....
