Court-Martial Trial Practice

Here is a link to United States v. Brasington., decided 13 September 2010. It is not unusual for an appellant to be issued a DD214, Honorable Discharge, sometime after a court-martial at which the appellant was adjudged a punitive discharge. In this case, we are asked, following remand, whether an honorable discharge, effective after this…

Here is a training video and handouts from NACDL. This may be helpful with your junior enlisted court-martial clients who are foreign nationals. In Padilla v. Kentucky, the Supreme Court held that defense lawyers must affirmatively and correctly advise their clients about the immigration consequences of entering a plea and failure to do so constitutes…

This is the 12th day that APF (safeguardourconstitution), LTC Lakin’s support site, has failed to post the military judge’s findings and conclusions, and advertises as “Breaking News,” “Judge to Rules (sic) . . ..” The Post & Email reports today, submitted by Maj. Gen. Vallely: The current Lakin defense strategy is limited to an ongoing…

In two days CAAF has granted two urinalysis cases citing to Melendez-Diaz. Note Blazier is still undecided. In the Air Force case the defense did not object, in the Navy case the defense did object. No. 10-0668/AF. U.S. v. Jerrod D. NUTT. CCA S31600. Review granted on the following issues: WHETHER, UNDER MELENDEZ-DIAZ v. MASACHUSETTS,…

New York Times has this good short piece about false confessions. New research shows how people who were apparently uninvolved in a crime could provide such a detailed account of what occurred, allowing prosecutors to claim that only the defendant could have committed the crime. An article by Professor Garrett draws on trial transcripts, recorded…

This is the 12th day that APF, LTC Lakin’s support site, has failed to post the military judge’s findings and conclusions, and advertises as “Breaking News,” “Judge to Rules (sic) . . ..” SFExaminer.com reports: A Fort Stewart soldier charged with killing two members of his Army unit in 2008 is due back in court…

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports: A major Iraqi war crimes case that has dragged on for five years hit another snag Monday when a military judge excused one of the attorneys for a Marine sergeant whose squad was charged with killing 24 Iraqis. The move by military judge Lt. Col. David M. Jones came only weeks…

Thanks the CAAFLog here is a link to the new Naval Law Review and an article about . I had just such a case last week. Here is a link to the JER provisions that are applicable. Here is a link to the current form that all naval service users are supposed to sign before…

Swinging a Sledge: The Right to Effective Assistance of Counsel, the Law of Deportations, and Padilla v. Kentucky, August 31, 2010, Joseph Ditkoff In Padilla v. Kentucky, the Supreme Court decided that the Sixth Amendment’s guarantee of the effective assistance of legal counsel requires that counsel inform his client whether his guilty plea in a…

I noticed these two cases on FourthAmendment.com today. Defendant was stopped for overtinting, and the officer could smell marijuana, the defendant was really nervous, and the car had 18 air fresheners hanging inside. The subsequent search produced 574 grams of cocaine. The search was valid. Richardson v. State, 2010 Ga. App. LEXIS 827 (September 8,…