Court-Martial Trial Practice

I have discussed before how very difficult it is for an appellant to get a federal court to review and overturn a court-martial conviction. Here is Randolph v. United States, a federal circuit case reviewing an attempt to get relief via the Court of Federal Claims. The United States Department of the Navy (Navy) dishonorably…

The CAAF daily journal for 15 June 2017 has this entry: No. 17-0003/AR. U.S. v. Christopher B. Hukill. CCA 20140939. On consideration of Appellee’s petition for reconsideration of this Court’s decision, United States v. Hukill, 76 M.J. 219 (C.A.A.F. 2017), it is ordered that said petition for reconsideration be, and the same is, hereby denied.…

Collateral Consequences of Criminal Conviction and Restoration of Rights: News, Commentary, and Tools I am a fan of this website as a resource to find ways to argue on behalf of a client, just as I am a fan of restorative justice. The CCRC is pleased to announce the launch of its Compilation of Federal…

Reposting. https://globalmjreform.blogspot.com/2017/06/and-now-for-something-completely.html

Black sailors more likely than white sailors to be referred to court-martial, report says Brock Vergakis, The Virginian-Pilot, 7 June 2017. The VP summarizes: Black sailors were 40 percent more likely than white sailors to be referred to a court-martial over a two-year period examined by an advocacy group that focuses on military justice. .…

LtCol CT called the possibility that defense counsel might be asking potential witnesses about evidence governed by MIL. R. EVID. 412 and 513 “gross and cruel.” All this caused Capt X (the defense counsel) to audibly sob at counsel table, and she was unable to continue. Unfortunately, it appears that the words and actions of…

It is essential that this parallel military justice system be seen as fair, just, [Constitution] compliant, and operating effectively, both at home and abroad. I note in passing that the civilian justice system also provides for extraterritorial jurisdiction in several contexts. However, unlike the civilian justice system, the extra-territorial reach of the parallel military justice…

https://globalmjreform.blogspot.com/2017/06/targeting-and-law-of-war.html Reposting a new publication for judge advocates supporting investigations into law of war violations. In particular, it relates to targeting decisions and the aftermath. There are specific points to assist in evaluating criminal responsibility under the UCMJ.

Reposting. A British Army court-martial

As an investigative tool, DNA has been a powerful weapon in identifying or confirming who committed a crime. But the value of DNA evidence is overshadowed by regular stories of corruption, incompetence, and flawed interpretation. It’s, for this reason, I never accept the DNA results as golden for the prosecution in a contested case. Here’s…