Here is a quote from an item on DMLHS’s Facebook wall.
Guess which of your favorite law firms just became "replacement counsel" on the Lakin case? Going to see what we can salvage.
Looks like LTC Lakin may have reached out to Neal Puckett, a real military law knowledgeable person. Either that or Neal is playing a birthday joke on Dwight.
Air Force Times reports:
A religion watchdog group is asking the Defense Department to investigate whether the Air Force Academy has given a Christian group improper access to the campus to proselytize cadets.
This would not be the first time the AFA has had an issue with support to or enforced support of a specific religion.
Army Times reports:
The Army has launched a crackdown on the drug spice at least nine commands in response to a spike in usage among soldiers.
A designer drug that mimics marijuana, spice is legal in most states, and is available for sale in smoke shops and online for around $50 for three ounces.
Navy Times reports:
Nearly four years after Navy officials nixed a mandatory degree requirement for advancement to senior chief, a rating has made an associate degree mandatory for all its sailors.
In September, some of the 487 sailors in the legalman rating started their studies. This move is expected to transform the Navy’s legal community, according to the service’s top lawyer.
I posted yesterday on a new Army case dealing with instructions on an affirmative defense in a court-martial under the UCMJ.
Today I’m posting on United States v. Ramon, an unpublished opinion from the NMCCA dated 28 September 2010.
In his sole assignment of error, the appellant alleges that the military judges erred in failing to instruct the members as to mistake of fact as to consent.
On 23 September 2010 USA Today published a front page piece about federal prosecutors.
Federal prosecutors are supposed to seek justice, not merely score convictions. But a USA TODAY investigation found that prosecutors repeatedly have violated that duty in courtrooms across the nation. The abuses have put innocent people in prison, set guilty people free and cost taxpayers millions of dollars in legal fees and sanctions.
USA Today has an opinion piece in today’s paper which is a rebuttal.
DOD reports General Amos to be the new Commandant of the Marine Corps:
In the biggest headline-making comments during the hearing, Amos told questioning lawmakers he personally opposes repeal of the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” law that prohibits gays and lesbians from openly serving in the military. He vowed, however, to ensure that whatever is decided regarding the law, he would ensure that it is enforced.
Huffington Post talks about private contractors in the AOR.
The Boston Globe has a piece and copy of a letter from Senator John Kerry to the Secretary of Defense. In that letter Senator Kerry says:
Secretary Robert M. Gates
1400 Defense Pentagon
Missye Brickell, Filling the Criminal Liability Gap for Private Military Contractors Abroad: U.S. v. Slough and the Civilian Extraterritorial Jurisdiction Act of 2010, 2 Leg. & Policy Brief.
Abstract
To ensure that all contractors who commit crimes in Iraq and Afghanistan can be prosecuted effectively in the United States, Congress must pass legislation to update Federal criminal law and fill the gaps that may leave certain types of contractors free from any criminal liability. The Civilian Extraterritorial Jurisdiction Act of 2010 (CEJA) attempts to do just that, and while it may deter some PMCs from participating in the U.S. military and security contracting market, the benefits of having a fully accountable U.S. legal system outweigh the drawbacks for individual contracting companies.
There are lots of reports out there on the Stryker Brigade cases now in the Article 32, UCMJ, process. One of the highlighted issues has been the reports that SPC Winfield’s father made numerous attempts to tell the Army what was going on. Here is an interesting CNN piece:
Charles Keyes, “Father: Frustrated in trying to raise alarm about soldiers (sic)”
Winfield described to CNN’s Chris Lawrence his repeated attempts to warn the military about what was going on in the unit in which his son, Spc. Adam Winfield, was serving.
Court-Martial Trial Practice Blog
