In 1983, a woman was attacked near the Quantico Marine Base in Virginia. The victim’s description of her assailant prompted the military officers to convict and court-martial Corporal Lindsey Scott, the only black MP in the Quantico Criminal Investigation Division, despite his pleas of innocence. He was initially convicted and sentenced to 30 years in...

Expert witnesses can be a critical part of any court-martial. Service members have a right to confidential experts. See United States v. Turner, 28 M.J. 487, 489 (C.M.A. 1989); United States v. King, 32 M.J. 709 (A.C.M.R. 1991). Under R.C.M. 701 (f), their confidential assistance is subject to the attorney-client privilege and the work product privilege.As a matter of military...

On 19 June 2018, in US v. Dinger, the Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces set aside some previous precedent suggesting that retired members could not receive a punitive discharge at a court-martial.10 U.S.C § 6332 states that when a member in the Naval Service is placed in a retired status, that “transfer is conclusive...

On November 17, 2016, Mr. Pristera argued the case of United States v. Cook on appeal at the United States Air Force Court of Criminal Appeals. The unique appeal presented diametrically opposing positions where Mr. Pristera had to concurrently argue for a new trial based on newly discovered evidence under R.C.M. 1210, and also ineffective assistance...

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,...

We recently had a successful result when a judge dismissed Article 133 – Conduct Unbecoming charges in an officer general court-martial. As a matter of philosophy, Mr. Conway is aggressive in Article 133 cases about challenging the allegations based on failure to state an offense and the concept of void for vagueness. The officer had been accused...

In an interesting case – United States v. Stevens, __ M.J. __, No. 201400330 (N-M. Ct. Crim. App. Nov. 10, 2105) The Navy-Marine Corps Court of Criminal Appeals ruled that electronic media without a tangible form do not fall within the definition of Article 121. Basically, the accused pleaded guilty to using a stolen credit card to...