Jurisdiction over retirees

Prof. Rachel E. VanLandingham
Southwestern School of Law

Global Military Justice Reform contributor (and NIMJ vice president) Prof. Rachel E. VanLandingham has written an insightful opinion piece for The Hill about the exercise of court-martial jurisdiction over military retirees. Her conclusion:

If and when a military retiree engages in criminal conduct, the state or U.S. attorney should appropriately prosecute him or her, not the military through a court-martial primarily designed for swift imposition of punishment for offenses harmful to the services. Hopefully the U.S. Supreme Court will take advantage of the case before it to end this unfair overreach. If not, Congress must act to end this unconstitutional military criminal jurisdiction over military retirees who are civilians receiving a monthly check for proud service rendered to their country.

Full disclosure: the editor is co-counsel for a certiorari petitioner who is currently challenging military justice jurisdiction over retirees.