Both the ancient Greeks and the Romans had military justice codes, although no written versions of them survive. The modern court-martial is deeply rooted in systems that predated written military codes and were designed to bring order and discipline to armed, and sometimes barbarous, fighting forces. Tribunals for the trial of military offenders have coexisted with the early history of armies. While military justice in the United States has evolved considerably over the years, the convening authority has remained the instrument of selecting a panel for courts-martial. The American military justice system, derived from its British predecessor, predates the Articles of Confederation and the Constitution. States that have militaries ( State Guards) outside the Federally regulated National Guard convene courts-martial by authority of state laws.įrom the earliest beginnings of the United States, military commanders have played a central role in the administration of military justice. The authority for State National Guards to convene courts martial is under Title 32 of the US Code. State National Guards (air and army), can convene summary and special courts martial for state-level, peacetime military offenses committed by non-federalized Guard Airmen and Soldiers, in the same manner as federal courts martial proceed. That is, lawyers representing the government and the accused present the facts, legal aspects, and arguments most favorable to each side a military judge determines questions of law, and the members of the panel (the military equivalent of a jury) (or military judge in a judge-alone case) determine questions of fact. The American Bar Association has issued a Model State Code of Military Justice, which has influenced the relevant laws and procedures in some states.Ĭourts-martial are adversarial proceedings, as are all United States criminal courts. State courts-martial are governed according to the laws of the state concerned. Federal courts-martial are governed by the rules of procedure and evidence laid out in the Manual for Courts-Martial, which contains the Rules for Courts-Martial, Military Rules of Evidence, and other guidance. However, they can also be convened for other purposes, including military tribunals and the enforcement of martial law in an occupied territory. military for criminal violations of the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ), which is the U.S. Most commonly, courts-martial are convened to try members of the U.S. Courts-martial of the United States are trials conducted by the U.S.
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