Courts Martial
James Culp offers aggressive, experienced, worldwide representation of service members of all the armed services in defense of the charges brought against them by the Government at all levels of courts-martial.
Mr. Culp has successfully tried courts-martial cases in Korea, Japan, Guam, Germany, England, Iraq and throughout the United States, defending against a full range of criminal charges to include (but not limited to): premeditated murder, manslaughter, negligent homicide, rape, indecent assault, aggravated assault, AWOL, desertion, drug offenses, BAH and OHA fraud, conduct unbecoming an officer, and aiding the enemy. If you are facing any level of court-martial (see below for details), do not hesitate to contact Mr. Culp for a free consultation.
TYPES OF COURTS-MARTIAL
There are three types of courts-martial under the Uniform Code of Military Justice
1. Summary Courts-Martial: Trial by summary court-martial provides a simplified resolution of charges involving minor incidents of misconduct. The summary court-martial consists of one officer who, depending upon service policies and practice, is a judge advocate (a military attorney). The maximum punishment a summary court-martial may impose is considerably less than a special or general court-martial. For instance, enlisted personnel in the grade of E-5 or above cannot be sentenced to confinement at a summary court-martial. Perhaps most importantly, a conviction at a summary court-martial is not considered a conviction in civilian society, and an accused must consent to be tried by a summary court-martial.
2. Special Courts-Martial: A special court-martial is the intermediate court level. It consists of a military judge, trial counsel (prosecutor), defense counsel, and a minimum of three officers sitting as a panel of court members or jury. An enlisted accused may request a court composed of at least one-third enlisted personnel. An accused, officer or enlisted, may also request trial by judge alone. Regardless of the offenses involved, a special court-martial sentence is limited to no more than twelve months confinement (or a lesser amount if the offenses have a lower maximum), forfeiture of two-third’s basic pay per month for twelve months, a bad-conduct discharge (for enlisted personnel), and certain lesser punishments. An officer cannot be tried at a special court-martial.
3. General Courts-Martial: A general court-martial is the most serious level of military court. It consists of a military judge, trial counsel (prosecutor), defense counsel, and at least five court members (jury). Again, an enlisted accused may request a court composed of at least one-third enlisted personnel. Unless the case is one in which the death sentence could be adjudged, an officer or enlisted accused may also request trial by judge alone. In a general court-martial, the maximum punishment is that established for each offense under the Manual for Courts-Martial, and may include death (for certain offenses), confinement, a dishonorable or bad-conduct discharge for enlisted personnel, a dismissal for officers, or a number of other lesser forms of punishment. A
Pretrial Hearing under Article 32, UCMJ, must be conducted before a case may be referred to a general court-martial, unless waived by the accused.
Click Here Read About The Court-Martial Process