5 Things You Should Know About Court-Martial

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A court-martial is the military equivalent of a civilian criminal case. Service members who commit civilian crimes like larceny, manslaughter, and arson and military-specific crimes like mutiny and desertion are subjected to court-martial.

The punishments alone make court-martial lawyers a necessity. They help to avoid or lower the severity of the punishments mentioned below.

• Punitive discharge
• Confinement
• Reduction in grade
• Hard labor without confinement
• Forfeitures
• Death
• Fines
• Reprimands

Seeking the services of a court-martial lawyer will greatly benefit a service member who’s facing a court-martial. The experience a lawyer brings to a case is second to none.

Additionally, even if the service member hires a private lawyer, the free lawyer assigned by the military court stays on the case. This means that the service member will have two lawyers handling their case.

The services of a lawyer aside, it is important for service members to learn about court-martial. This article contributes to that. It focuses on five crucial aspects of court-martial that every service member must know.

1. Service Members to Whom Court-Martial is Applicable

Court-martial is applicable to just about any service member who breaks the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ). The rule extends across all branches of the military. This includes

• Service members of the active component (AC)
• Service members of the reserve component (RC) (during drill weekends or annual training)
• The National Guard (only when in Federal Service)
• Cadets
• Aviation Cadets
• Midshipmen
• Retired members of the regular component who are entitled to receive pay
• Retired members of the reserve component who are undergoing treatment from an armed force
• Service members who’re currently serving a sentence awarded by a court-martial
• Service members from the Fleet Reserve
• Service members from the Fleet Marine Corps Reserve
• Members of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
• Members of the Public Health Service
• Members of all organizations serving with the armed forces

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2. The Types of Court-Martial

There are three types of court-martials. Each type is based on the severity of the crime committed by the service member.

1. Summary Court-Martial: This type of court-martial is quick and is reserved only for minor offenses. A commissioned officer reviews the case and makes a decision.
2. Special Court-Martial: This type of court-martial is for severe offenses. It is similar to a civilian criminal trial and includes stages like discovery, pretrial motion, trial, and sentencing. A military judge looks over the proceedings, and the decisions are made based on input from a jury panel of three service members.
3. General Court-Martial: This is reserved for the most severe offenses. It is similar to a special court-martial, with the only exception being the jury size. Non-capital offenses are attended by a jury panel of five service members, and capital offenses are looked over by a 10-member jury.

3. The Rights of the Service Member Facing a Court-Martial

All US citizens have constitutional rights, regardless of their role in a crime. This applies to military law as well. Service members who’re facing court-martial have the following rights:

• The right to know about the charges against them
• The right to remain silent
• The right to defense counsel
• Protection against double jeopardy

4. The Parties that Constitute the Jury in a Court-Martial

A court-martial trial by jury is only used for severe crimes. As a result, there are certain regulations involved in the juror selection process.

The service member’s commander gets to select the jury panel. The commander is expected to interview potential candidates and finalize them as a jury member. In some cases, the judge’s advocate also picks the jury members. The members who’re chosen for jury duty are usually in the same rank as the defendant or above.

Before they attend a case, the shortlisted jurors will be questioned by the defendant’s lawyer and the trial counsel. This process is called voir dire, and it is done to analyze whether the potential juror will be fair and unbiased during the trial.

5. Appealing a Court-Martial

There are chances that the outcome of a court-martial may not be what the defendant expected. The defendant, in such cases, can file an appeal challenging the decision.

Cases where the death penalty is awarded are automatically subjected to an appeal.