Blog

On 25 September, the Army released data on the 42 courts-martial held in the month of August. https://www.armytimes.com/articles/army-releases-results-of-august-courts-martial​There are a number of lessons to be learned. -32 out of 42 cases in August were guilty pleas; -In 10 contested cases, only four Soldiers were found guilty. A 60% acquittal rate in contested trials is pretty good odds; -21 out...

Over the last few years, the Manual for Courts-Martial has undergone a series of seemingly never-ending changes. This year’s installment of changes has been approved.​For the non-lawyers, changes to the Uniform Code of Military Justice occur through Congressional action. The UCMJ is a statute. The President, however, can enact changes to the Manual for Courts-Martial...

Over the last few years, Article 120 and the law of sexual assault in the military has undergone seemingly never-ending revisions.​One of the biggest challenges has been defining the concept of “incapacitation.”Articles 120 (b)(3)(A) and 120 (d) prohibit sexual activity with a person incapable of consenting because of impairment from drugs or alcohol.Several years ago,...

I’ve spent the last week trying a major sexual assault case at Fort Bragg. An army master sergeant was accused of raping his adult biological daughter. It’s a rare type of accusation. Our expert psychiatrist searched over 12 million records in a medical database and could not find any literature on the topic. Nonetheless, the persistence...

On 8 June, our firm reported that the Secretary of the Navy was issuing new guidelines for processing cases involving medical evaluation boards and misconduct.CONTACT US! ​We wrote:”Previously a service member’s misconduct took precedence over diagnosed mental health conditions when considering separation, which impacted the veteran’s ability to receive benefits. Now, if it contributed to...

If you’re going to shoot at the king, you’d better make sure you kill him. This week, attorneys for Sgt Bowe Berghdal will argue a motion to disqualify General Robert Abrams as the General Court-Martial Convening Authority. If they’re successful, the case will be referred to trial by a new general equally as hostile to the...

Contrary to popular belief, drug testing labs are not always perfect. Every now and again we receive phone calls from military members who simply have no idea how their urinalysis sample tested positive for drugs. One of the problems with the drug labs is that their mistakes do not get caught unless they make a mistake on...

A recent article in the Navy Times provides an important reminder of how important it is to seek counsel before accepting or refusing nonjudicial punishment. The Navy Times reports that in San Diego 31 corpsman were taken to Captain’s Mast for allegedly cheating at the Surface Warfare Medical Unit. As noted in the article, they weren’t...

As a litigator, I can say that I have memorized the definition of reasonable doubt in each of the branches. Many times I have stood in front of a jury and discussed that definition.Each of the branches has slightly different definitions of reasonable doubt. The definition of reasonable doubt can often mean the difference between...

The Secretary of the Navy has announced a new administrative separation policy for Sailors and Marines with PTSD and TBI. In the past, misconduct often took precedence over mental health conditions. Previously a service member’s misconduct took precedence over diagnosed mental health conditions when considering separation, which impacted the veteran’s ability to receive benefits. Now, if...