Court-Martial Trial Practice Blog

False confessions

September 14, 2010 | The Law Office of Philip D. Cave

New York Times has this good short piece about false confessions.

New research shows how people who were apparently uninvolved in a crime could provide such a detailed account of what occurred, allowing prosecutors to claim that only the defendant could have committed the crime.

An article by Professor Garrett draws on trial transcripts, recorded confessions and other background materials to show how incriminating facts got into those confessions — by police introducing important facts about the case, whether intentionally or unintentionally, during the interrogation.

Up periscope

September 14, 2010 | The Law Office of Philip D. Cave

This is the 12th day that APF, LTC Lakin’s support site, has failed to post the military judge’s findings and conclusions, and advertises as “Breaking News,” “Judge to Rules (sic) . . ..”

SFExaminer.com reports:

A Fort Stewart soldier charged with killing two members of his Army unit in 2008 is due back in court for a hearing on whether the military should pay for his defense team to travel to Iraq. . . . to interview Iraqi witnesses and investigated the crime scene.

Wuterich sitrep

September 13, 2010 | The Law Office of Philip D. Cave

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports:

A major Iraqi war crimes case that has dragged on for five years hit another snag Monday when a military judge excused one of the attorneys for a Marine sergeant whose squad was charged with killing 24 Iraqis. The move by military judge Lt. Col. David M. Jones came only weeks before the trial is set to begin on Nov. 2. Jones granted the request by the civilian attorney, retired Marine Lt. Col. Colby Vokey, who asked to be withdrawn because of an undisclosed ethical conflict. . . .

Wuterich’s attorneys have filed a motion that seeks to have the case dismissed, arguing the defense has been compromised by the withdrawal of Vokey, the only defense attorney to go to Iraq to see the scene of the 2005 killings in the Iraqi village of Haditha.

Shipboard privacy a la computers

September 13, 2010 | The Law Office of Philip D. Cave

Thanks the CAAFLog here is a link to the new Naval Law Review and an article about .

I had just such a case last week.

Here is a link to the JER provisions that are applicable.

Something to read

September 13, 2010 | The Law Office of Philip D. Cave

Swinging a Sledge: The Right to Effective Assistance of Counsel, the Law of Deportations, and Padilla v. Kentucky, August 31, 2010, Joseph Ditkoff

In Padilla v. Kentucky, the Supreme Court decided that the Sixth Amendment’s guarantee of the effective assistance of legal counsel requires that counsel inform his client whether his guilty plea in a criminal case carries a risk of deportation. The Court’s decision significantly expands the reach of the traditional Sixth Amendment constitutional protection afforded criminal defendants via the long-established rule of Strickland v. Washington, and, concomitantly, significantly alters the landscape of what courts will consider to be adequate representation in criminal proceedings. The precise contours of the right, thus expanded, will be left to the vagaries of the common law in both state and federal court to map out. This short article will discuss Padilla and some of its forebears and foreshadowings. As will be seen, the Supreme Court has again left prosecutors, defense counsel, and judges with a somewhat muddy decision that leaves the hard work for later, and for others…

In light of the discussion ongoing about Denedo’s end, I thought this might be an interesting read.

Don’t keep your car smelling nice

September 13, 2010 | The Law Office of Philip D. Cave

I noticed these two cases on FourthAmendment.com today.

Defendant was stopped for overtinting, and the officer could smell marijuana, the defendant was really nervous, and the car had 18 air fresheners hanging inside. The subsequent search produced 574 grams of cocaine. The search was valid. Richardson v. State, 2010 Ga. App. LEXIS 827 (September 8, 2010).

Defendant was stopped for a traffic offense, and the car had the overwhelming odor of air freshener, defendant could not say where he was going, and he was getting increasingly nervous as the stop continued. That was reasonable suspicion. Wilson v. State, 2010 Ga. App. LEXIS 853 (September 10, 2010).

Up periscope

September 13, 2010 | The Law Office of Philip D. Cave

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette has a book review of Richard North Patterson’s new book which is about a court-martial. Yes, it’s about a Army officer who returns from Iraq, kills his former commander, and

As the case unfolds, Mr. Patterson gives the reader a tutorial in military justice as well as the complexities of PTSD. He also makes clear his stand against the war through testimonies from personnel involved with McCarran in Iraq.

The tension rises throughout the court-martial: Will the judge allow PTSD as a defense? Will the jury believe how the war changed not just McCarran, but the man he killed?

LTC Lakin sitrep

September 13, 2010 | The Law Office of Philip D. Cave

This is the 10th day that APF (safeguardourconstitution), LTC Lakin’s support site, has failed to post the military judge’s findings and conclusions, and advertises as “Breaking News,” “Judge to Rules (sic) . . ..”

The APF website does not list or encourage attendance as the previously scheduled Article 39(a), UCMJ, session for tomorrow.

The 10 September 2010 docket for the First Judicial Circuit (Judge Lind’s circuit) does not show a hearing scheduled in LTC Lakin’s case for tomorrow.

More thoughts on LtCol Eidsmoe’s thinking

September 12, 2010 | The Law Office of Philip D. Cave

This is the 9th day that APF (safeguardourconstitution), LTC Lakin’s support site, has failed to post the military judge’s findings and conclusions, and advertises as “Breaking News,” “Judge to Rules (sic) . . ..”

The Greeley Gazette, hometown newspaper for LTC Lakin has the piece, “Retired JAG Officer Says Judge’s Ruling Against Discovery for Lakin Could Derail Case Based on Legal Precedent.” I posted earlier two quick disagreements with the piece, or what was said in the piece.

First this item:

LTC Lakin sitrep

September 11, 2010 | The Law Office of Philip D. Cave

The Greeley Gazette reports that:

A retired JAG officer with over 23 years of experience, says the military judge who ruled against discovery for a Greeley Army officer may have derailed the government’s case based on precedent from another high profile case involving a military officer.

Lt. Col John Eidsmoe, a retired Air Force officer who works for former Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore at the Foundation for Moral Law, said Lakin is “raising legitimate constitutional questions” regarding President Obama’s eligibility to be commander-in-chief.