Presto agitato, Maestro

DoD Military Justice maven Dwight H. Sullivan's The Military Justice Decrescendo is must reading for anyone interested in a quick but rigorous summary of the contemporary U.S. system. In addition to charting the precipitous, continuing falloff in cases, the article usefully explains why the system cannot prudently be abandoned. 

USCAAF Annual Report for 2022-23

The annual report of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces for the year ending Sept. 30, 2023 can be found here.

Transparency watch

When [Chief Fire Controlman (AEGIS) Bryce Steven] Pedicini will have his day in court remains unclear. The Navy’s public court docket shows a motions hearing took place on Wednesday of this week, but Naval Surface Forces officials declined to say what that hearing entailed when asked by Navy Times Thursday.

Command spokesman Cmdr. Arlo Abrahamson also declined to say if or when a trial date had been set.

He also declined to say why Pedicini was being tried in the military justice system.

Not much more in this report.

Why was this case tried in military court?

From Russia, with love of unusual court procedures, a sociologist and Marxist theorist had a five-year jail sentence imposed on appeal. The state appealed a military court's decision to fine Boris Kagarlitsky 600,000 rubles ($6,600ish). The military court found Mr. Kagarlitsky guilty of "justifying terrorism" for a video he produced on the 2022 Ukranian attack of the Crimean Bridge. Unhappy with the leniency the trial court showed this civilian, the prosecutors found a more receptive bench at the military court of appeals.   

While this is not the biggest news to come out of Russia recently, it is another entry in a never-ending series at this blog, "Why was this case tried in miltiary court?"

Military justice reform "urgently needed" in Ukraine

In this Kennan Institute blog post, Armenak Ohanesian, Head of Legal Studies at the Institute for Conflict Studies and Analysis of Russia (IKAR), Kyiv, argues that Ukraine's legal structure for the administration of justice in the armed forces needs a great deal of work. Excerpt:

Reforming Ukraine's military justice system can and should address both immediate and long-term needs. Enhancing the draft law to clearly articulate the functions and authority of the MJU, combined with essential Rules of Procedures and establishing credible oversight mechanisms and ethical standards, is crucial for maintaining integrity and public trust in the military justice system.

Ukraine might also seek international guidance in this regard from NATO-aligned countries to better align its military justice practices with international standards, implementing a model akin to the JAG Corps. This would not only ensure that Ukraine's military justice system was equipped to handle the complexities of modern military operations while upholding the highest standards of legal and ethical conduct, it would also reinforce Ukraine’s commitment to the rule of law and democratic values.

Reforming the military justice system in Ukraine is an urgent matter and a strategic imperative that demands immediate attention and action, of a piece with Ukraine's broader goals of democratic reform.