Friday, October 2, 2020

The Court-Martial of Lieutenant Colonel Daniel Boone

Pioneer Daniel Boone, said to possess the eye of an eagle and the height of a mountain, was made famous during his lifetime with books such as The Adventures of Col. Daniel Boon. That book recounted battles with Native Americans and the settlement of Kentucky. Unfortunately, the book appears to have missed a few things, like Lieutenant Colonel Boone’s correct military rank and his court-martial.

Supplementing the historical record, the court-martial is chronicled in a new novel. The historical novel serves as a reminder that people have dark chapters in their life and that military justice has a long history in the U.S. After all, the first Judge Advocate General in the United States Army, William Tudor, was appointed by the Second Continental Congress on July 29, 1775.

So if you have the time and inclination, it sounds like an entertaining book. It’s always interesting for me when people successfully take up their own defense. And when folk heroes have complicated life stories.  

Comments on Joint Service Committee § 540F Study

The Editor has prepared comments on the study submitted by the Joint Service Committee in response to § 540F of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2020. The comments can be found here. Your thoughts are welcome (real names only, please).

Thursday, October 1, 2020

Today in history

On October 1, 1946, 12 high-ranking Nazis are sentenced to death by the International War Crimes Tribunal in Nuremberg. Among those condemned to death by hanging were Joachim von Ribbentrop, Nazi minister of foreign affairs; Hermann Goering, founder of the Gestapo and chief of the Luftwaffe; and Wilhelm Frick, minister of the interior. Seven others, including Rudolf Hess, Adolf Hitler’s former deputy, were given prison sentences ranging from 10 years to life. Three others were acquitted.

Debategate

The Editor suspects that one or two readers of Global Military Justice Reform watched the presidential debate the other night. If so, they may have wondered about President Donald J. Trump's reference to the military separation of former Vice President Joe Biden's son, Hunter Biden. Consider this explainer by Alexander Trimis on KBIA.

Thank you!

A new month has begun. What better time to thank the Global Military Justice Reform roster of expert contributors from around the world. It's important that the blog have multiple voices on topic selection for posts (okay, pet peeves) and points of view.

While we are at the store, readers are strongly encouraged to do two things: (i) add your thoughts by using the comments feature (real names only), and (ii) visit CAAFlog.org, which gets better by the day. It's an excellent site for news and views about American military justice.