Courts-martial and criminal records

An interesting issue has arisen in New Zealand, according to this op-ed. A soldier was convicted of 12 sex offenses by a court-martial years ago, but there was no provision for recording this as a criminal conviction. Excerpt:

When he left the army, he was able to gain role as business development manager at Lexington Law without, the firm says, disclosing his offending.

That, says Colonel Craig Ruane, an officer who handles court martials, is the reality of the matter. Military convictions don't appear on police records. And military offenders aren't required to give DNA samples to police. 

There has been discussion of changing this. Ruane says it's overdue. 

We agree. In our view, the predatory behaviour of Corporal Corey Kennett is an emphatic statement of why this law change must be made, and must be made urgently.