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(College of Vancouver Island)
A former Saanich-based judge and outstanding Canadian scholar with claims of Indigenous ancestry has now been stripped of two honorary doctorates on Vancouver Island due to public inquiries into his heritage.
Vancouver Island College (VIU) awarded former professor and former judge of the College of British Columbia (UBC) Mary Turpel-Lafond an honorary doctorate in 2013, and Royal Roads awarded her the same doctorate three years later in 2016 Did.
Since a CBC investigation discovered inconsistencies along with his claims about Indigenous heritage, schooling and achievements, he has since retracted them after a overview panel started questioning the former judge.
“The university contacted Terpel-Lafond throughout the review process, which also included consultation with Indigenous and academic colleagues and engagement with the university’s Honors and Awards Advisory Committee,” a Royal Roads spokesperson mentioned in an announcement.
“Turpel-Lafond responded by voluntarily giving up the degree and the Royal Roads Board of Governors has accordingly revoked the degree.”
His VIU doctorate was rescinded on 17 January following the same assertion.
Turpel-Lafond was believed to be the primary individual from a Treaty First Nation in Saskatchewan to be appointed to the Saskatchewan Provincial Court docket. With the scrutiny he has confronted and different false claims coming to mild, his genuine paternity is unsure.
The CBC’s investigation additionally revealed that he was accused of falsely claiming that he had obtained an honorary doctorate from First Nations College of Canada and a world legislation diploma, which he claimed to have earned. He is a grasp from Cambridge.