I recently read the first opinion issued by the then Court of Military Appeals (CMA). But first, I believe it is prudent to sound a note of caution to the field about the applicability of this decision to future cases with different facts. United States v. Norwood, 80 M.J. ___ (C.A.A.F. 2021) (Ohlson, J., concurring…
Continue reading ›I believe it is prudent to sound a note of caution to the field about the applicability of this decision to future cases with different facts. United States v. Norwood, 80 M.J. ___ (C.A.A.F. 2021) (Ohlson, J., concurring in the result). This is comment appropriately applied to most appellate decisions. I tend to look at…
Continue reading ›We all have been in the position of filing motions in-limine to admit or object to the admission of evidence. I do this frequently for its efficiency and help in forming my case as we advance. There are times when counsel, usually trial counsel, wants to preadmit evidence. There are times I do not object…
Continue reading ›Equal Supreme Court Access for Military Personnel: An Overdue Reform, 131 Yale L.J. Forum ___ (2021) (forthcoming), by Prof. Eugene R Fidell, Prof. Brenner M. Fissell, Cdr. (Ret). Philip D. Cave, is available here on SSRN. Abstract: While one might think that every criminal defendant in the United States has the opportunity to eventually appeal…
Continue reading ›“Racism has long corrupted American military justice – famously exemplified by the 1917 Houston riots, which resulted in the Army’s summary execution of 19 African American soldiers after sham trials. In 2019, the Government Accountability Office found that in the Army, Navy, and Marine Corps, black service members “were about twice as likely as white…
Continue reading ›Prof. Colin Miller tells us that, Similar to its federal counterpart, Pennsylvania Rule of Evidence 806 states that When a hearsay statement has been admitted in evidence, the declarant’s credibility may be attacked, and then supported, by any evidence that would be admissible for those purposes if the declarant had testified as a witness. The…
Continue reading ›A Reid reminder. Military.com reports U.S. Charges Son in Civilian Navy Staffer’s Killing in Bahrain. Bahrain declined prosecution; federal marshalls will bring him to the U.S. for prosecution in federal district court. Were this the early 1950’s it is possible he would be facing court-martial—that is until Reid v. Covert. In Reid v. Covert, 354…
Continue reading ›Similar to its federal counterpart, section 90.404(2)(a) of the Florida Statutes states that Similar fact evidence of other crimes, wrongs, or acts is admissible when relevant to prove a material fact in issue, including, but not limited to, proof of motive, opportunity, intent, preparation, plan, knowledge, identity, or absence of mistake or accident, but it…
Continue reading ›An implicit bias is “‘an association or preference that is not consciously generated and is experienced without awareness.’” Michele Benedetto Neitz, Pulling Back the Curtain: Implicit Bias in the Law School Dean Search Process, 49 SETON HALL L. REV. 629, 656 (2019) (quoting J. Bernice B. Donald & Sarah E. Redfield, Framing the Discussion, in…
Continue reading ›The Pentagon Inspector General has announced plans to evaluate how well U.S. Central Command and Special Operations Command are following rules aimed at preventing war crimes. In a memo issued Monday, the IG said that the investigation will focus on the commands’ efforts to carry out Defense Department directives aimed at reducing “potential law of…
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