Maximum Sentence:
- Dishonorable Discharge
- Life in confinement
- Total forfeiture
- Reduction to E-1
- Federal felony conviction
- Sex offender registration
In yet another case involving a purported full confession, an Army Sergeant stationed at Schofield Barracks, Hawaii was charged with abusing his children and raping his wife, the latter of which he confessed to during a high pressure and coercive CID interrogation. Court Martial Lawyer Tim Bilecki was retained as civilian defense counsel.
In order to help ensure a conviction and take on Bilecki, the Army brought in its lead Special Victim Prosecutor to try the case. We utilized our in-house investigator to conduct an independent investigation, including obtaining as much information as possible on the alleged victim to discover her motives for making the allegation and potentially use them against her in trial.
At trial, Mr. Bilecki, a well-known Article 120 UCMJ sexual assault lawyer in Hawaii, conducted a grueling cross-examination of the alleged victim, which we believe showed that she fabricated her allegation in order to gain leverage against our client in an upcoming divorce in which child custody was a hotly contested issue. In order to win the trial, however, we had to directly address the written and audio-recorded “confession.”
Mr. Bilecki cross-examined the law-enforcement officer who took the confession until he admitted that our client had spent the majority of the interrogation proclaiming his innocence before finally breaking down and giving a “confession.” After nearly a week of trial, the panel came back with a verdict of not guilty of all charges and specifications.
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