A lot of our court-martial cases have alcohol as a factor. So, while a little off topic, I thought this curiosity might be of interest.
A woman had a blood-alcohol level of .708 percent, possibly a state record, when she was found earlier this month behind the wheel of a stolen vehicle parked on Interstate 90.
A state chemist recalled a sample that tested .53, but nothing higher, in his more than 30 years on the job.
An airman shot during a disagreement with a fellow airman appeared indecisive about what actually happened in a Rapid City apartment last September.
Piland recalled fighting with Santana and holding him in a choke hold, but did not remember statements he made to civilian investigators. He also had no recollection of portions of his testimony before a Pennington County grand jury.
Santana initially faced charges in Pennington County for shooting Piland three times. Those charges were dropped and he was turned over to military authorities for prosecution in October.
The U.S. military has begun investigating allegations that two Afghan teenagers were beaten and humiliated by guards while in American custody last year at a secret detention center at Bagram Air Base, according to U.S. and Afghan officials.
The Washington Post reports. It appears an AR15-6 investigation is ongoing. Too early to tell what will come of this and whether there will be a court-martial or other disciplinary action.
A retired Coast Guard chief warrant officer 2 who claimed to be a decorated and combat-hardened SEAL — and managed to get a disability rating from the government — has pleaded guilty to wearing combat awards he did not earn.
He also claimed to have earned the Silver Star, Bronze Star with “V” for valor, Purple Heart with four stars, a Combat Action Ribbon and Vietnam War-era awards. The Coast Guard clerk bought the story and added the awards to Barnhart’s DD 214. Later DD 214 alterations would add a Navy Commendation with “V” device, Presidential Unit Citation with three stars, and Vietnamese Medal of Honor First and Second Class.
reports Navy Times.
An unarmed man tried to visit the army psychiatrist charged in a deadly shooting spree at Fort Hood, Texas on Wednesday by posing as his lawyer, officials said.
When that ruse didn’t work, the man told hospital security that he was Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan’s doctor.
Reports Military.com.
Clemency & Parole after a lengthy court-martial sentence can be hard to get. For Navy and Marine Corps cases parole requires a parole plan and a place to live.
The Camp Pendleton-based squad leader is serving an 11-year sentence for killing an unarmed Iraqi civilian. But the sheriff in his hometown in Massachusetts wants to hire him. Reporting from San Diego – A Marine from Camp Pendleton, convicted of murdering an unarmed Iraqi civilian, has a job waiting with the sheriff’s department in his hometown in Massachusetts once he is released, a Navy parole board was told Wednesday.
LA Times reports.
An Army specialist is in jail, accused of making threats against fellow soldiers, including in a vulgar, violent rap song that describes shooting those responsible for his stop-loss orders.
Spc. Marc Hall, an Iraq veteran based at Fort Stewart, Ga., has been in custody since early December. He’s been charged with “conduct prejudicial to the good order and discipline of the armed forces,” allegedly threatening violence on multiple occasions, according to Army charge sheets.
Stars & Stripes reports.
Navy prosecutors have asked a judge to delay the trials of two SEALs accused in connection with the alleged assault of a reported al-Qaida terrorist — apparently because of evidence issues.
Navy Times reports.
If as is indicated there are classified document issues, then it is clear this trial will take time to complete. Having participated in many classified trials, with one ongoing, over the years I would say that it will take several months to resolve the issues. Each of the counsel may well have to get security clearances established. The time to get clearances will be a function of the classification levels involved. And then there may be Mil. R. Evid. 505 issues.
When a judge decides a motion at court-martial they will present the facts they have found, discuss the law, and make their conclusion. On appeal, when the military judge makes proper findings of fact, the court will accept those facts for the purpose of review unless there is an abuse of discretion and the facts found are “clearly erroneous.”
C.A.A.F. seems to have this definition, among several, of what clearly erroneous means.
At least one court has defined the clearly-erroneous standard by stating that it must be "more than just maybe or probably wrong; it must … strike us as wrong with the force of a five-week-old, unrefrigerated dead fish." Parts and Electric Motors Inc. v. Sterling Electric, Inc., 866 F.2d 228, 233 (7th Cir. 1988).
CAAFLog has this case among the Top-10 for 2009.
Vicki Behenna has 10 minutes to plead her son’s case.
Where does she begin?
Court-Martial Trial Practice Blog