Court-Martial Trial Practice

Para. 99 (Article 134, Extramarital sexual conduct) is now with us and extends the UCMJ further into morals offenses. b. Elements. (1) That the accused wrongfully engaged in extramarital conduct as described in subparagraph c.(2) with a certain person; (2) That, at the time, the accused knew that the accused or the other person was…

Navy Times tells us that “A Florida-based U.S. Navy command master chief was relieved from his leadership position at Naval Ordnance Test Unit last month, according to officials.” While it appears, the case is proceeding within the state legal system, there’s a possibility it becomes a military justice issue (and certainly an adverse administrative issue).…

Motions to recuse a military judge or sua sponte recusal are becoming more frequent in military justice. We have the “Spath Issue,” the now “Keane Issue,” both from the Commissions. I and several others are litigating appeals based on one military judge in the Army. Each of the cases relate to disclosure of information so…

The oral argument for Briggs and Collins is now scheduled for 13 October.

With the start of the new season the Supremes have issued its first Orders List comprising five pages-worth–mostly denials. An observer poindts to, In Kaur v. Maryland, No. 19–1045, Justice Sotomayor’s 5-page statement begins and ends this way: Although I join the Court’s decision to deny certiorari, I write separately to address a concerning feature…

Online at CAAFlog. This is my attempt to put events of the week in one place rather than have to navigate many sites. Cheers.

A veteran’s group is planning to meet at Austin City Hall Thursday afternoon for what it is calling a public trial of Fort Hood leadership over the recent deaths of U.S. Army Spc. Vanessa Guillen and other soldiers stationed at the military base. The group, Vets for the People, is part of the Working Families…

A federal Judiciary committee has issued a new set of model jury instructions (pdf) that federal judges may use to deter jurors from using social media to research or communicate about cases. The new instructions, which update and expand on a similar version issued in 2012, were sent to federal judges on Sept. 1. The…

In Ford v. Perry, the court set aside a conviction based on improper comments of the prosecutor during closing argument. During closing arguments, Ford’s lawyer offered a classic criminal defense that contradictions of witnesses and doubt over the identity of the shooter meant that the presumption of innocence had not been satisfied. The prosecutor then…

Nathaniel Penn gives us a piece of investigative journalism in his new article on Army 1st LT Clint Lorance. This is the sordid saga of a LT whose actions wreaked havoc on those within his platoon, whom a panel (jury) of Army Soldiers convicted of murder, and whom President Trump later pardoned after Fox News…