who is the convening authority at a court martial

Full Answer

Who can convene a court-martial?

A number of government officials may convene general courts-martial. These include the President of the United States, the Secretary of Defense, and the secretaries of each branch of the military. However, the vast majority of general courts-martial are convened by some form of commanding officer (CO).

What punishments can be imposed by a court martial?

Special court-martial: A special court-martial is the midlevel court-martial. The maximum punishment that can be imposed is a bad conduct discharge, confinement for up to 12 months, reduction in pay grade to E1 (enlisted members only) and forfeiture of two-thirds of base pay per month for a period of 12 months and/or an equivalent fine.

Which group must have special courts martial?

Who may convene special courts-martial the commanding officer of a district, garrison, fort, camp, station, Air Force or Space Force military installation, auxiliary air field, or other place where members of the Army, the Air Force, or the Space Force are on duty;

What is GCMCA Army?

This superior commissioned officer has the duty to forward the complaint to the general court-martial convening authority (GCMCA), which is normally the installation commanding general. By testing the panel seating system within the framework of Article 25, V Corps sought to modernize military pretrial procedures while preserving the best aspects of the system--the commanding general or general court-martial convening authority (GCMCA) selection of a venire (50) of best qualified members and ...

What is a convening authority in a court-martial?

The convening authority decides on the disposition of cases to investigation and trial, and also selects the members of a court-martial. The appointees serve as the military judge and members of the "panel", which decides the guilt or innocence of a person standing trial before the court-martial or military commission.

Who can convene a courts-martial?

A number of government officials may convene general courts-martial. These include the President of the United States, the Secretary of Defense, and the secretaries of each branch of the military. However, the vast majority of general courts-martial are convened by some form of commanding officer (CO).

Can a commander convene a court-martial?

Officers with the power to convene a special court-martial are known as special court-martial convening authorities. These are 0-6 level commanders, although any officer who can convene a general court-martial may also convene a special court-martial.

Who can convene a GCM?

Information of summary court-martial convening authority: 1302(a), specify those persons who have the power to convene an summary court-martial. Commanding officers authorized to convene a General Court-Martial (GCM) or Special Court-Martial (SPCM) are also empowered to convene summary court-martials.

Which group must have special courts-martial convening authority?

OICs possessing Special courts - martial convening authority will conduct a MAP assessment and make a formal assignment determination.

What is a convening order?

The document by which a court-martial is created. It specifies the type of court and lists the time and place of meeting, the names of the members, counsel, and the authority by which the court-martial is created. Source: Judge Advocate General's Corps. Last reviewed October 2021.

What are the 3 types of court-martial?

There are three types of courts-martial: summary, special, and general.

Can an officer be court martialed?

Officers cannot receive a non-judicial punishment, instead their charges are referred to a court martial.

Are court martials open to the public?

Yes. Court-martial proceedings are criminal proceedings that are open to both the general public and military service members. Like state and federal criminal trials, the public can watch nearly all parts of a court-martial proceeding.

Can you get an honorable discharge with a court-martial?

Commissioned officers cannot be reduced in rank by a court-martial, nor can they be given a bad conduct discharge or a dishonorable discharge. If an officer is convicted by a General Court-Martial, then that officer's sentence can include a "dismissal." This is considered to be the same as a dishonorable discharge.

Can a court-martial be dismissed?

Level of Court-Martial After charges are "preferred" and you obtain a lawyer, the next step is either a: determination of the level of court-martial to "refer" the case to (special or general) reduction of the charge so it can be resolved through an Article 15 punishment, or. dismissal of the charges.

What happens when you get a court-martial?

In General Courts-Martial, service members face a wide range of punishments, including confinement, reprimand, loss of all pay and allowances, reduction to the lowest enlisted pay grade, a punitive discharge (bad-conduct discharge, dishonorable discharge, or dismissal), restrictions, fines, and, in some cases, capital ...

What is the role of the General Court-Martial Convening Authority?

General Court-Martial Convening Authority. As we mentioned above, the general court-martial convening authority's role begins with the convening of the court-martial. Often the disciplinary matter will have been forwarded by a subordinate commander who doesn't have the ability to order a court-martial into being.

Who can convene a court martial?

Only a select group of people are allowed to do this, including the President, the Secretary of Defense, and specific commanding officers.

What happens if the convening authority believes that the accused suffers from a mental disease or defect?

If, following inquiry, the convening authority believes that the accused suffers from a mental disease or defect, rendering him or her mentally incompetent to stand trial, they must commit the accused to the custody of the Attorney General.

How long does it take for a court martial to be reviewed?

The general court-martial convening authority has many responsibilities during the course of the investigation and trial, including all of the following: After the investigation, the resulting charges and report should be forwarded to the general court-martial convening authority for review within 8 days after the accused is arrested or confined.

How to contact military lawyer defense?

For more information, please give us a call at 1- (888) 919-8265 , send an e-mail to [email protected], or click here to contact us online.

Who will personally select the panel members of a court martial?

The convening authority will personally select the panel members (which are equivalent to jurors in a civilian trial) of the court-martial using the criteria in UCMJ Article 25.

Who approves or disapproves a court martial?

The general court-martial convening authority may approve or disapprove any part of the sentence (except for a death sentence), but they may not impose a harsher punishment. The convening authority for a general court-martial is typically a general officer who is the commander of a post, division, or separate brigade.

What is the role of the convening authority in a court martial?

The convening authority decides on the disposition of cases to investigation and trial, and also selects the members of a court-martial. The appointees serve as the military judge and members of the "panel", which decides the guilt or innocence of a person standing trial before the court-martial or military commission.

What is convening authority?

The term convening authority is used in United States military law to refer to an individual with certain legal powers granted under either the Uniform Code of Military Justice ( i.e. the regular military justice system) or the Military Commissions Act of 2009 (for the Guantanamo military commissions ).

Who was the convening authority in Guantanamo?

Altenburg and Bruce MacDonald, were retired military flag officers. Susan J. Crawford, the second convening authority, had been a long-term senior civilian lawyer for the Department of Defense, eventually serving as the Inspector General.

Who were the first three civilian officials?

The first three incumbents were civilian officials, although the first and third incumbents, John D. Altenburg and Bruce MacDonald , were retired military flag officers. Susan J. Crawford, the second convening authority, had been a long-term senior civilian lawyer for the Department of Defense, eventually serving as the Inspector General.

What happens when an enlisted member is on trial?

When an enlisted member is on trial, he or she may demand that enlisted members be included on the panel. The court-martial then reports back to the convening authority their recommended verdict.

What is the convening authority for a court martial?

The convening authority for a general court-martial is known as the General Court-martial Convening Authority , and in most cases is going to be the most senior level officer for the base. Some bases are large enough that they do have more than one general court-mart ial convening authority, but you’re going to be talking about an Admiral, a flag officer, or a general officer with multiple stars. When people talk about the special court-martial convening authority, it’s important that you understand even though the person who is known as the special court-martial convening authority is an 06 level commander at the base, and again, there typically are going to be multiple ones of those on any given base. Understand that a special court-martial that goes to trial, the ones that we actually see in practice, are really known as special courts-martial that are empowered to a judge a bad conduct discharge.

Who can refer a case to a court martial?

That special court-martial convening authorities role generally is going to be appointing an article 32 hearing officer to a case that has an eye toward general court-martial. A summary court-martial convening authority is typically an 05 level commander on a particular base, and once again, there are typically multiple ones of those on a particular base, but often you will see, depending upon the person who’s involved in the allegations that a particular base may have a withhold policy where either the special court-martial convening authority or the general court-martial convening authority retains the right to convene that case to a summary court-martial. So even though each of those people have those titles, it may not be on any given case on any particular base that that person is actually fulfilling that role.

Who is the convening authority in a court martial?

The person who convenes the court-martial becomes the convening authority. Typically this is the commanding officer of the accused, who will review the evidence and refer charges if he or she believes that a court-martial is warranted.

What does "convene" mean in court martial?

Convening: (verb) coming or bringing together for a meeting or activity; assembling. Authority: (noun) the power or right to give orders, make decisions, and enforce obedience. A convening authority plays an important role within a court-martial.

What are the rights of the convening authority?

The convening authority has several important rights within the court- martial process, including the following: Convening the court-martial. Deciding which charges are filed. Selecting the level of court-martial (summary, special, or general) Disposing of the case through other means when appropriate. Selecting the members of a court-martial (i.e., ...

How to contact military lawyer defense?

For more information, please give us a call at 1- (888) 919-8265 , send an e-mail to [email protected], or click here to contact us online.

Can a court martial be set aside?

However, if the accused is determined to be not guilty, the convening authority cannot set aside the verdict.

What is the term for the officer who convenes a court martial?

Officers with the power to convene a general court-martial are known as general court-martial convening authorities . Often, this official will be the most senior-level officer of a military installation. According to the UCMJ, these officers are entitled to act as convening authorities for a general court-martial:

Who Can Convene a Special Courts-Martial?

Officers with the power to convene a special court-martial are known as special court-martial convening authorities. These are 0-6 level commanders, although any officer who can convene a general court-martial may also convene a special court-martial. According to the UCMJ, these officers are entitled to act as convening authorities for a special court-martial:

What is convening authority?

As a convening authority, an officer is empowered to issue “convening orders,” which allow him or her to authorize different designations of court- martial: general courts-martial, special courts-martial, and summary courts-martial. Convening authorities are not all created equal and not all officers can establish every type of court-martial. The higher an officer’s rank, the more authority he or she possesses as a convening authority. Only the highest-ranking officials may establish a general court-martial, whereas convening authorities with officer ranks of 0-6 may be tasked with establishing special or summary courts-martial.

What is a military court?

Military courts, unlike civilian courts, do not have a permanent criminal court system in place to manage the trials and convictions of service members. Rather, military courts are convened for temporary use by ranking officers when the need arises. When a ranking officer convenes a court-martial, he or she becomes a Convening Authority, an individual tasked by Congress under the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) to investigate criminal accusations and rule on whether those allegations are severe enough to warrant a court martial. If the convening authority concludes that the allegations do not warrant a court martial, he or she may still suggest other forms of punishment, such as a Non-Judicial Punishment, or NJP.

What is the commanding officer of a naval station?

The commander in chief of a fleet; the commanding officer of a naval station or larger shore activity of the Navy beyond the United States

Who convenes the court?

If any such commanding officer is an accuser, the court shall be convened by superior competent authority, and may in any case be convened by such authority if considered desirable by him.

What is the purpose of the training for sexual assault initial disposition authorities?

The training for sexual assault initial disposition authorities on the exercise of disposition authority under chapter 47 of title 10, United States Code (the Uniform Code of Military Justice ), shall include comprehensive training on the exercise of disposition authority with respect to cases for which disposition authority is withheld to such authorities pursu ant to the memorandum described in subsection (b) for the purpose of promoting confidence and trust in the military justice process with respect to such cases.

What is the commanding officer of an army group?

the commanding officer of an Army Group, an Army, an Army Corps, a division, a separate brigade, or a corresponding unit of the Army or Marine Corps; (6) the commander of a fleet; the commanding officer of a naval station or larger shore activity of the Navy beyond the United States; (7)

Who convenes the court?

If any such officer is an accuser, the court shall be convened by superior competent authority, and may in any case be convened by such authority if considered advisable by him.

What is the commanding officer of a district, garrison, fort, camp, station, Air Force base?

the commanding officer of a district, garrison, fort, camp, station, Air Force base, auxiliary air field, or other place where members of the Army or the Air Force are on duty; (3) the commanding officer of a brigade, regiment, detached battalion, or corresponding unit of the Army; (4)

Overview

The term convening authority is used in United States military law to refer to an individual with certain legal powers granted under either the Uniform Code of Military Justice (i.e. the regular military justice system) or the Military Commissions Act of 2009 (for the Guantanamo military commissions).

Uniform Code of Military Justice

Military Commissions Act

See also