Court-Martial Trial Practice Blog
In the July Army Lawyer Judge McDonald has some comments based on his first year on the bench. (I have noted over the years that it takes most judges about a year to get their relative bearing.) I think we can all echo his comments and find a myriad of examples from our own and other cases. What I wanted to comment on though was something in the section about keeping track. If this is not what Judge McDonald does in trial or had not meant to convey then I’ll be the first to apologize, but . . .
I have presided over more than a few judge-alone cases where I have asked more questions than the trial counsel, including asking witnesses about elements that were not covered by the Government.
At page 39 (emphasis added).