The ACCA has overturned the conviction of Private Simmons because the judge erroneously failed to dismiss the charges for an Article 10, UCMJ, violation. Here is the link to the unpublished opinion, Judge Ham writing for the court. United States v. Simmons, ARMY 20070486 (A. Ct. Crim. App. 12 August 2009). A military judge sitting…
Continue reading ›“The Army has reached it’s end strength numbers and believes it can easily reach the additional 22,000 SECDEF authorized last month. It is reinstating its Qualitative Management Program (QMP) that screens E-6 to E-9 records for any behavioral or legal problems and then separates those Soldiers.” Keep in mind the new policy that those in…
Continue reading ›Here is an interesting case from FederalEvidence blog on how the 8th Circuit deals with the scratchy issue of a poor audio recording. Factors For Admitting “Partially Inaudible” Recordings Eighth Circuit rules that partially inaudible recordings with a confidential informant may be admitted when the trial court finds that they “provide [the] jury with the…
Continue reading ›New policy keeps heat on deserters in Japan By Travis J. Tritten and Hana Kusumoto, Stars and Stripes Pacific edition, Friday, August 14, 2009 The U.S. military in Japan has been more aggressive in charging and tracking deserters since a fugitive sailor stabbed a taxi driver to death last year, military legal staff and investigators…
Continue reading ›Navy stepping up drug testing program Stars & Stripes reports. Sailors will face increased random drug tests as a result of recent changes to the Navy’s drug prevention program. The changes remove the requirement for an annual unit sweep. However, they mandate a minimum of four tests per month that must include at least 15…
Continue reading ›How many times do we hear it from clients, especially appellate clients — “I got my discharge, it’s an honorable, what do I do?” ACCA has decided that issue for Estrada, in United States v. Estrada. Appellant argues her receipt of an administratively-issued honorable discharge prior to the convening authority’s approval of her adjudged bad-conduct…
Continue reading ›Professor Colin Miller has a comment today on his blog about United States v. Matthews, 68 M.J. 29 (C.A.A.F 2009) He illustrates that Mil. R. Evid. 606 mirrors the federal rule but has the additional exception for “command influence” in the Members deliberation room. Chain Of Command: Military Case Reveals Interesting Exception To Military Rule…
Continue reading ›An American war resister one step away from being extradited to the United States has learned she’ll get to stay in Canada a little longer. A judge has ordered a new pre-removal risk assessment for Kimberly Rivera, a 27-year-old mother of three who deserted the U.S. army in 2007 because of her opposition to the…
Continue reading ›Monday, August 10, 2009: Fourth Circuit affirms CIA contractor detainee abuse conviction, Andrew Morgan [JURIST] The US Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit [official website] on Monday affirmed [opinion, PDF] the conviction of a Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) [official website] contractor on assault charges related to the abuse of an Afghan detainee [JURIST report].…
Continue reading ›Putting the war in Afghanistan on trial Holly Lewis reports from the court-martial of war resister Victor Agosto, who won even before his trial for refusing to deploy to Afghanistan began. (She saw more of the summary court-martial than his lawyer did.) August 10, 2009 Through the looking glass THE MORNING sun beat down on…
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