Court-Martial Trial Practice

“Washington’s Supreme Court has thrown out the convictions of three men in what police called a gang-related shooting, finding among other things that music on one defendant’s phone was not evidence of gang ties.” That’s the headline from the Seattle Times. The slip opinion in State (Washington) v. Deleon is here. Interesting as I have…

The Army legal websites are back en clair, having been unavailable to the public for about five to six weeks. Of course, they came back up just as the AFCCA and CAAF were going dark. Anyway. United States v. Commisso, No. 20140205 (A. Ct. Crim. App. 29 April 2016), has an interesting discussion and resolution…

· Police can tell when a suspect is lying · People confess only when they have actually committed the crime they are being charged with · Most judges and jurors fully understand court instructions · Eye-witnesses are always the most reliable source of case-related information · Most mentally ill individuals are violent · All psychopaths…

Working with expert witnesses can be difficult for even the most seasoned attorneys and trial consultants. Oftentimes, egos and expertise can get in the way of an expert’s ability to deliver persuasive testimony, requiring attorneys and trial consultants to be creative when developing solutions that fit both the problem and the expert witness. As trial…

DoD has published the Department of Defense Annual Report on Sexual Assault in the Military for 2015. Of the 6,083 initial complaints filed last year, about 1,500 were “restricted,” meaning the victim was a service member who reported the assault but refused to participate in any criminal investigation and only sought healthcare and victims’ support…

Adam M. Gershowitz, The Post-Riley Search Warrant: Search Protocols and Particularity in Cell Phone Searches, 69 Vand. L. Rev. 585 (2016) Margaret Dodson, Bruton on Balance: Standardizing Redacted Codefendant Confessions Through Federal Rule of Evidence 403, 69 Vand. L. Rev. 803 (2016)

This week, the Combat Clemency Project at the University of Chicago Law School petitioned for a Presidential Pardon on behalf of Corey R. Clagett, a former Army PFC released on March 31, 2016 from the US military prison at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas after a decade of incarceration. https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/petition/review-combat-clemency-petitions-and-pursue-military-mental-health-reform

In United States v. Mercier, __ M.J. __, No. 20160318 (C.G. Ct. Crim. App. Mar. 18, 2016) the court denied a Government interlocutory appeal of a military judge’s ruling that found that a specification was improperly referred and dismissed the specification without prejudice. This would seem to be a perfect opportunity to take up, again,…

It should go without saying that a court-martial is a most serious matter, and the requirement for proof beyond a reasonable doubt plays a vital role in the legitimacy of the military justice system. A “society that values the good name and freedom of every individual should not condemn a man for commission of a…

CAAF’s Daily Journal for 25 March 2016 has this entry. No. 16-0413/AR. In re Christopher E. Strunk, Christopher B. Garvey, and Harold W. Van Allen, Petitioners. Notice is hereby given that a petition under 28 USC §1651 for writ of mandamus and injunction equity relief in the matter of the New York Republican Party POTUS…