Monday, November 30, 2015

San Antonio Express-News editorial on military justice reform

Prompted by the Associated Press's recent investigative report on transparency in military justice, the editorial board of Hearst Newspapers' San Antonio Express-News has published this editorial on military justice. Excerpt:
The military touts its justice system as just as effective — if not more — than its civilian counterpart. But when it comes to what is public, that is demonstrably untrue. 
Civilian court records are often just a keyword search and a click away. AP filed 17 separate FOIA requests for documents from more than 200 military sexual assault cases ending with conviction. By the time it published its article, the branches had provided complete trial records for five cases and partial records for 70. 
This is the opposite of public. And it’s not as if the trials themselves are public. While military trials are ostensibly open — like civilian trials — they take place on military bases that restrict public access, the AP said. 
Congress should revisit how the military treats sex crimes altogether — there’s still more work to be done. This includes removing commanders from the decision making in who and when to prosecute.
Emphasis added.

2 comments:

  1. I wish a Canadian newspaper could also be so blunt and truthful about our very own military justice system which is outdated as well as distinct and apart from the Canadian ordinary criminal law. It begs for urgent reform. Therefore, I can only echo the following passages from the San Antonio Express News.

    • “The military touts its justice system as just as effective — if not more — than its civilian counterpart. But when it comes to what is public, that is demonstrably untrue."

    • “While military trials are ostensibly open — like civilian trials — they take place on military bases that restrict public access.” [CANADA. An open system requires more than holding the trial in the open. It applies to the laying of charges, the arrest per se, pre-trial procedures; the selection of the jury (or panel); and, access to court records.]

    • “[We] should revisit how the military treats sex crimes altogether — there’s still [much] more work to be done.” [CANADA. At present the overwhelming majority of sexual assaults victims whose crimes are prosecuted and tried by the military would rather keep quiet than trust either the military police or military tribunals. These victims and their families have also been patently excluded from a Bill enacted on July 23, 2015 [Canadian Victims Bill of Rights, S.C. 2015, c. 13. Ss. 18(3)) providing a number of rights to victims of crimes. {Right to Information; Right to Protection; Right to Participation; Right to seek Restitution as well as access to the Federal Ombudsman for Victims of Crimes.] In a very gauche and most timid attempt to enhance the sense of confidence of victims of sexual assaults to come forward and report the crimes, the Department of National Defence which insist in keeping jurisdiction for investigating and prosecuting these sexual assault crimes has initiated a 1-800 line manner during working hours five days a week. A more lackadaisical, apathetic and slapdash response to the sexual misconduct crisis within the military could not have been devised.

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