First, the negligence concept under section 129 of the National Defence Act must be addressed as a penal concept as I already stated in my decisions in R v Gardiner, 2008 CM 3021 and R v. Nauss, 2013 CM 3008. Generally speaking, conduct which constitutes a departure from the norm expected of a reasonably prudent person forms the basis of both civil and penal negligence. However, unlike civil negligence, which is concerned with the apportionment of loss, penal negligence is aimed at punishing blameworthy conduct. Fundamental principles of military law justice require that the law on penal negligence concern itself not only with conduct that deviates from the norm, but also with the offender's mental state. As established in R v Beatty, 2008 SCC 5, at paragraph 7, the modify objective test established in R v Hundal, 1993 CanLII 120 (SCC), [1993] 1 S.C.R. 867 remains the appropriate test to determine the requisite mens rea for negligence-based military service offences under the Code of Service Discipline.
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