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.
United States v. Stanley.
The appellant raised eight errors through counsel and an additional six in accordance with United States v. Grostefon.
One assignment of error warrants discussion, but no relief. Specifically, appellant alleges that the military judge erred by failing to properly instruct the panel regarding appellant’s right during mutual combat to exercise self-defense when the force used against him escalated. Today we find that any error by the military judge was harmless beyond a reasonable doubt and affirm the findings and sentence.
Kate Wiltrout at Virginia Pilot reports:
The XO of USS SAN ANTONIO
has chosen to go to a court-martial on charges he was negligent on the day a sailor was lost at sea last year.
The Army Court of Criminal Appeals rules are here. As previously indicated there is no “deadline” for the filing of a writ petition in this situation, but once a petition is filed several deadlines and requirements kick in. Like DMLHS I have a request in for a copy of the petition. Note that in Cheney v. United States District Court, 542 U.S. 367 (2004), the equitable doctrine of laches arose and was discussed in regard to a late filing of a petition for mandamus.
Based on the maxim that equity aids the vigilant and not those who procrastinate regarding their rights[.]
The following Rules are relevant to a writ.
Here’s a reminder about authenticating emails based on a posting from Prof. Colin Miller at EvidenceProfBlog. To paraphrase Prof. Miller:
And, like its federal counterpart, [Mil. R. Evid.] 901(b)(4) provides that
By way of illustration only, and not by way of limitation, the following are examples of authentication or identification conforming with the requirements of this rule:
is the title of a pretty good song.
Huffington Post uses this theme as part of a commentary on tensions created by having a lot of civilian contractors deployed. There are some interesting (unattributed) quotes from some JA’s who have been there, done that.
It is never a good idea to be knowingly looking at and receiving child pornography.
The FBI announced today some results of Operation Predator.
Caught up was a Brandon Hronich, who it appears may have a prior court-martial conviction for being involved in CP.
Guenal Mettraux, A Little Known Case from the American Civil War: The War Crimes Trial of Major General John H. Gee, 8 J. Int. Crim. Justice, 1059.
Major John Henry Gee was the commandant of the Confederate prison at Salisbury, North Carolina from 1864 until 1865. During his tenure, thousands of Union prisoners of war died of starvation and diseases or were shot when attempting to escape. Shortly after the end of hostilities, Major Gee was arrested, charged with two counts of violations of the laws of war and brought before a military commission to be tried. The trial of Major Gee is one of the first recorded trials for war crimes and a rare early example of domestic prosecution of an enemy fellow-national for what was effectively an international crime, in a war in which his side had been vanquished. Unlike the war crimes trial of Henry Wirz, commandant of Andersonville prison during the American Civil War, little attention has been paid to this important precedent.
Msr. Mettraux is described as:
Court-Martial Trial Practice Blog
