a previous blog, we discussed when an experienced drug court martial defense lawyer could use Melendez-Diaz as a sword when fighting military urinalysis charges. There are also times when we believe you should not do so. Your military defense lawyer likely should not use the Melendez-Diaz v. Massachusetts sword if it will get you nothing or hurt […]
We have been hearing of numerous cases in which the client took a post-trial Chapter 10 (Discharge in lieu of Court Martial) thinking that the Convening Authority would disapprove the findings of the trial so that you would not have a conviction and went ahead and still approved the findings. Be aware that the Convening […]
On September 30, 1996, the Lautenberg Amendment became law. It is now a felony for any person who has been convicted of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence to ship, transport, possess, or receive firearms or ammunition. Any person who transfers, issues, or sells firearms to a person with a Lautenberg qualifying conviction may also be charged […]
If you are facing a court martial, it is not only important that your military defense lawyer formulate a trial strategy, but also a strategy for the sentencing phase of trial. In doing so, your court martial defense attorney must decide whether to bring the effects of sex offender registration to the attention of the […]
Spice Use and the Law Historical discussion: The account below concerns Spice litigation and regulations in 2009–2010. It is not a statement that the same regulatory wording or alleged loophole controls today. For a current case, the actual substance and its controlled status must be established. Article 112a can apply to covered controlled substances; a […]
In United States v. Collier, 67 M.J. 347 (C.A.A.F. 2009), the issue before the United States Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces was whether the military judge’s decision preventing the defense from cross-examining witnesses or presenting any extrinsic evidence about a homosexual romantic or sexual relationship between the accused and a government witness violated the accused’s […]
United States v. Biagase, 50 M.J. 143 (C.A.A.F. 1999) differentiates standards for determining unlawful command influence at the appellate level and the duty of the military judge during the assessment of motions at trial. Unlawful command influence is generally exerted on members of any of the following populations: Subordinate commanders Potential panel members Potential witnesses […]
Given the substantial amount of new “Spice” cases we are seeing, specifically in the Pacific, we thought it would be appropriate to run a series of blogs on “Spice.” Not surprisingly, commands are attempting to make what is essentially legal in the United States and in most countries – illegal for service members. We were successful in February of this […]
Article 134 Sexual Offenses Historical Adultery Case Discussion This article discusses a case and the adultery rules from 2009. The current listed offense is extramarital sexual conduct under Article 134. Its elements and defenses must be assessed under the law applicable to the alleged conduct. The current maximum is one year of confinement, a dishonorable […]