For those friends who are active duty Military.
Our active duty military, while protecting our country and freedom actually have very little rights when it comes to be accused and/or criminally charged with a crime. They are charged under the Uniform Code of Military Justice, (UCMJ), a federal law enacted by Congress. It defines the military justice system and list criminal offenses under military law.
When a service member is criminally charged in the military they will usually face a court martial (Military court) Military court-martials are the most severe sanctions under military law. A court-martial conviction is the same as a federal conviction and can (depending on the offense) result in jail time (at hard labor) or a punitive discharge, (such as dishonorable discharge), as well as fines and reduction in rank.
Military court-martials come in three levels:
- Summary
- Special
- General
The level chosen usually depends on the severity of the offense and the rank of the accused.
What most of our servicemen don·t know is that their rights are not the same in the military as they are in the civilian court. For example in civilian court the defendant has the right to have witnesses subpoenaed so they can come and testify for the him/her. Their attorneys can send out the subpoenas and have them deposed and/or have them appear in court. In Military court, the prosecutor has to be asked to do this for the defendant by the attorney defending him/her possibly giving away defense tactics. This is just one of many rights a service member doesn’t have. If you’ve been wrongly accused of a crime such as sexual assault, (these types of false accusations happen all the time), Indecent liberties, murder, breaking and entering, etc .. don’t just sit back and think it’s going to be “ok because I just didn’t do it”.
We’ve assisted military attorneys with cases such as these and once you’re charged they aren’t going to listen to you say 111 didn’t do it” One case comes to mind where a high ranking gentleman just brushed by a woman and she filed a sexual assault charge against him. “Insane”? Yes, but it happens all the time. If you’re being accused and/or charged don’t wait! Call us for a free consultation on how we can help you with your case. If you don’t have an attorney we will direct you to a great one!
Reference: Military.com