The third SEAL accused in the assault of an alleged al-Qaida terrorist pleaded not guilty Tuesday to charges of dereliction of duty and making a false official statement in a military court on Norfolk Naval Base. Trial by court-martial is set for 6 April 2010, Navy Times reports. The other…
Articles Posted in UCMJ
Discipline under new pregnancy rules
Seven U.S. soldiers, including three men, have already been punished under six-week-old rules making pregnancy a violation of military law in northern Iraq. Stars & Stripes reports. The four soldiers who became pregnant were given letters of reprimand that will not remain a part of the permanent military file, Cucolo…
Litigation by Media and Congress
For some years now, primarily relating to Iraq/Afghanistan cases there has been lots of litigation by media and congress. The current move to save the SEALs by congress is just the most recent example of seeking to influence a court-martial case. The “litigation” has been both for and against the…
Second trial counsel
At this point, the military judge interjected and asked 11 foundational questions of the witness. The questions were limited to Major D’s past service as an enlisted Marine in the same MOS as the appellant, his supervisory responsibilities as a Marine Corps gunnery sergeant within that MOS, the total number…
Recruiter misconduct
With a core part of my business relating to recruiter misconduct issues within the services, I found this item interesting. Inland rape, other cases spur new ethics training for Marine recruiters. About 20 military court-martial trials involving recruiters are under way at any given time, Richardson said. He said statistics…
Major Hasan representation
I blogged a bit of gossip the other day that there may now be up to 12 trial counsel working on Major Nidal Malik Hasan’s court-martial. I had blogged that Major Hasan had two military counsel, that appears wrong, and so too might be the rumor of 12 TC. Maj.…
Major Hasan’s pretrial confinement hearing
The man accused of the Fort Hood shooting rampage is facing tighter restrictions on his communication with the world outside the hospital room, where he lies paralyzed from the chest down, his lawyer said Monday. The lawyer, John P. Galligan, said Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan fell asleep during an hour-long…
Pregnancy and court-martial
You’ll have seen the blogging and news reports about the potential consequences of a pregnancy while serving in the AOR – which could include court-martial. A US Army general in northern Iraq has defended his decision to add pregnancy to the list of reasons a soldier under his command could…
Up periscope
A former Navy master chief petty officer was sentenced Dec. 11 to four years in prison for stealing nearly $40 million in fuel from the U.S. Army in Iraq, according to the Department of Justice. Stars & Stripes reports. One suspects he might of received a higher sentence if prosecuted…
Not surprised
Why am I not surprised by Issue III. See one of my earlier blogs — The Prosecutor’s Gamble. I’ve blogged several times about trial counsel “suppression” of evidence or information favorable to the defense, despite frequent public relations statements and appellate cases lauding the more open discovery to which a…