Global Militry Justice Reform contributor Butch Bracknell has this timely piece over at Lawfire on some features of the new edition of Army Regulation 15-6. Excerpts:
The hubbub is all about changes to three paragraphs in Army Regulation (AR) 15-6 – edits to paragraphs 1-8, 1-9, and 1-10. These edits were driven by the Secretary of Defense’s Memorandum of April 23, 2025 entitled “Restoring Good Order and Discipline Through Balanced Accountability.” The memo directed reviews and revisions to all the military departments Equal Opportunity (EO) (military) and Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO)(civilian) programs and processes.
The Army expanded the guidance in the memo to all administrative investigations, the processes of which are governed by AR 15-6, including mishap and misconduct investigations not rising to a level that investigative jurisdiction is assumed by the Army’s Criminal Investigations Division.
These three paragraphs, collectively, reinforce the requirement for a gatekeeping function for initiation of investigations, and remind commanders of the option to hold soldiers accountable for making “knowingly” making false allegations or repeatedly submit frivolous complaints.
Revised investigatory guidance has not yet been made public for the other services. It is a safe bet it is coming, given the origin of the change was Secretarial authority.
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[T]hese changes to AR 15-6 (and doubtless forthcoming changes to other service investigative guidance) may simply be a tempest in a teapot. The revised language could have a knock-on effect of discouraging complaints with merit, as the language may set a tone for potential complainants in which they hear suppression and discouragement of surfacing meritorious complaints.
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