On August 6, 2026, the United States Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces (CAAF), the military’s highest court, decided United States v. Hunt, No. 25-0257, 2026 CAAF LEXIS 661 (C.A.A.F. Aug. 6, 2026). The decision is important for any service member appealing a court-martial conviction, and especially for those convicted of sexual assault under…
Continue reading ›When there is no eyewitness to the charged act itself, sexual assault prosecutions under UCMJ art. 120, 10 U.S.C. ¬ß 920, often rise or fall on what the complaining witness told other people shortly afterward. Those statements are hearsay. The government gets them in, if at all, through an exception. The workhorse exception is the…
Continue reading ›United States v. Rice, ARMY 20240586, 2026 CCA LEXIS 353 (A. Ct. Crim. App. 30 Jul. 2026) (summ. disp.): a military judge’s impartiality. The case in brief An enlisted panel sitting as a general court-martial convicted Specialist Rice, contrary to his pleas, of three specifications of making false official statements in violation of UCMJ art.…
Continue reading ›The Army Court of Criminal Appeals (ACCA) decided United States v. Varlaro, ARMY 20240319, 2026 CCA LEXIS 309 (A. Ct. Crim. App. 29 Jun. 2026), on 29 June 2026. The opinion answers a question the Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces (CAAF) left open in United States v. Saul, 86 M.J. 30 (C.A.A.F. 2025):…
Continue reading ›The jurisdiction question The United States Army Court of Criminal Appeals (ACCA) decided United States v. Thomas, ARMY 20240080, 2026 CCA LEXIS 318 (A. Ct. Crim. App. 8 Jul. 2026) (mem. op.), on 8 July 2026. An officer panel convicted Captain Thomas, contrary to his pleas, of sexual assault, two specifications of sexual assault of…
Continue reading ›A partner in an affair asked to speak as a victim at sentencing. The military judge said yes. The United States Army Court of Criminal Appeals (ACCA) said no, and then affirmed the sentence anyway. The Decision On 24 July 2026, ACCA issued its summary disposition in United States v. Ayuso, ARMY 20240332 (Army Ct.…
Continue reading ›CAAF holds that a represented Marine had a statutory right to counsel at a second NCIS interview, then holds that nothing happens when investigators ignore it. On July 23, 2026, the United States Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces (CAAF) decided United States v. Deremer, No. 25-0158/MC, 2026 CAAF LEXIS 616 (C.A.A.F. July 23,…
Continue reading ›The Case in Brief The Navy-Marine Corps Court of Criminal Appeals decided United States v. Sanchez, No. 202500114, on May 28, 2026. A military judge at a general court-martial at MCAS Miramar convicted a 19-year-old Marine, in accordance with his pleas negotiated with the Office of Special Trial Counsel, of two specifications of sexual abuse…
Continue reading ›The Case in Brief The Navy-Marine Corps Court of Criminal Appeals decided United States v. Fulsom, No. 202500166, on May 29, 2026. Officer members at a general court-martial at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam convicted a 19-year-old Lance Corporal, contrary to his pleas, of attempted sexual assault of a child and attempted sexual abuse of a…
Continue reading ›The Case in Brief The Navy-Marine Corps Court of Criminal Appeals decided United States v. Durbin, No. 202400333, on June 2, 2026, over a dissent. A military judge sitting alone at a special court-martial at Camp Lejeune convicted Captain Durbin, contrary to her pleas, of one specification of conduct unbecoming an officer under Article 133,…
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