tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4070126256373578912.post1574356357612786060..comments2024-03-20T17:53:33.153-04:00Comments on Global Military Justice Reform: Prof. Joyner and Lt. Col. Weirick on unlawful command influenceEugene R. Fidellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14694139458443207131noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4070126256373578912.post-16739615581196098192015-10-10T21:18:08.503-04:002015-10-10T21:18:08.503-04:00[Disclaimer, none of the opinions expressed by Wei...[Disclaimer, none of the opinions expressed by Weirick are individual, and don’t reflect official policy of DoD, DoN, USMC, or any USG entity, but they should.] That is a valid point by Sullivan the Great. Nonetheless, this does not alter my central thesis, it only changes the number of supporting cases. Maintaining the status quo of having commanding officers - aka Convening Authorities - in control of the military-justice system has a price, which is represented by the number of cases infected with occasionally fatal UCI. While it is conceivable that the authority of the commanding officer has an impact on purely military crimes - UA, insubordination – the same does not hold true for the malum in se crimes. While an E-3 may think “I better not be late to formation because my CO will have my butt,” it is inconceivable that a service member contemplating rape, murder, or child abuse reflects on the crime and thinks, “what would my CO think of my conduct?” The felony, general court-martial, crimes are best handled by authorities outside of the chain of command, where UCI is a nonissue, and the commander is unable to alter conduct by setting a command climate. So saith Weirick.James W. Weirick https://www.blogger.com/profile/15641530493786287305noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4070126256373578912.post-77732300004579469582015-10-08T12:02:14.545-04:002015-10-08T12:02:14.545-04:00[Standard Disclaimer: This comment is offered sol...[Standard Disclaimer: This comment is offered solely in my personal capacity and should not be imputed to anyone or anything else] The article mentions "a Navy judge’s finding that President Obama’s comments about sexual assault unduly influenced any potential sentencing," but didn't note the aftermath of what were rulings in two specific cases. The government sought appellate review and the Navy-Marine Corps Court of Criminal Appeals directed the military judge to reconsider the rulings in light of subsequent events, including the Secretary of Defense's August 2013 memo on the integrity of the military justice system. When the cases returned to the military judge, he reversed his previous rulings. Dwight SullivanDwight Sullivannoreply@blogger.com