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Friday, January 01, 2016

Civilian Court-Martial Defense Lawyers: End of Year Wrap-Up and Welcome to 2016

Military Criminal Defense Lawyer (Former JAG Attorney) News:

Another year has come to an end, and it was another gratifying year of defending those who defend us! We want to sincerely thank our clients for allowing us the privilege of representing them and their families.  Thank you all so much for your service and your sacrifice!

As former military defense JAG lawyers, and now as civilian court-martial defense attorneys, we strive to help military members and their families during very difficult times.  Therefore, we measure the term “success” by how well we were able to help our clients and their families with outcomes that positively resolved the military cases, allegations, adverse actions and investigations they faced – not by our financial bottom lines.    

Looking back on 2015, it was marked by positive outcomes and grateful clients – from court-martial trials dropped and won to successful appeals and responses to other military adverse actions and discipline.  These outcomes are extremely gratifying for us.  Some of the successes from this past year have been documented in our blog (when we have time to post updates).  For the third straight year, I received the Avvo client’s choice award for military law in 2015.

This year I was also honored to have Attorney Michael J. Coco associate with my firm in an of counsel capacity.  He is a retired military trial judge and former active duty military defense counsel who retains his own civilian practice while also joining with mine to provide even more military justice experience for the benefit of our clients (http://militaryadvocate.blogspot.com/2015/08/the-military-defense-law-offices-of.html).   

This past year, we defended, represented, advised, counseled or otherwise assisted clients and/or handled cases out of:

- Fort Meade, Maryland

- Joint Base Andrews (Andrews Air Force Base), Maryland

- The National Capital Region (NCR) and the Pentagon

- Joint Base San Antonio, Lackland AFB, Texas

- Eglin AFB, Florida

- Hurlburt Field, Florida

- Dyess AFB, Texas

- MacDill AFB, Florida

- Tyndall AFB, Florida

- The Air Force Academy, Colorado

- Laughlin AFB, Texas

- CENTCOM, Florida

- Tinker AFB, Oklahoma

- Altus AFB, Oklahoma

- Shaw AFB, South Carolina

- Barksdale AFB, Louisiana

- Hill AFB, Utah

- Air Force Reserve Command, Robins AFB, Georgia

- Arkansas National Guard

- Oklahoma National Guard

- FT Carson, Colorado

- FT Leonard Wood, Missouri

- FT Hood, Texas

- FT Drum, New York

- Camp Arifjan, Kuwait

- US Coast Guard Station, Miami, Florida

- US Coast Guard Station, Ketchikan, Alaska

Some of the cases, allegations and military law issues I handled this past year included:

- Rape, Sexual Assault, Sexual Misconduct (UCMJ Article 120)

- Forcible Sodomy (UCMJ Article 125)

- Larceny, Wrongful Appropriation, Fraud (UCMJ Article 121)

- Insubordination, Failure to Obey Lawful Orders, & Dereliction of Duty (UCMJ Articles 91 & 92)

- Drug Offenses: Wrongful Use, Possession, Introduction, Distribution of Controlled Substances (UCMJ Article 112a)

- Assault and Assault Consummated by Battery (UCMJ Article 128)

- False Official Statement (UCMJ Article 107)

- Conduct Unbecoming an Officer and Gentleman (UCMJ Article 133)

- Joint Federal Travel Regulation (JFTR) fraud

- UCMJ Article 134 offenses including:

  - Adultery

  - Sexual Harassment

  - Accessing adult and child pornography on the internet

  - Dishonorable Failure to Pay Debt

  - Obstruction of Justice

Some of the adverse actions we have defended against this past year have included:

- Court-martial trials and court-martial clemency

- Administrative discharge, administrative separation boards

- Article 15, Nonjudicial Punishment (NJP)

- Performance report appeals (OER, NCOER, OPR, EPR)

- Board of Corrections for Military Records (BCMR) appeals in different military branches

- Discharge Review Board (DRB) appeals in different military branches

- MEB/PEB cases in different military branches

- Flying Evaluation Boards (FEB)

- Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests

- Military Academy discipline, disenrollment, boards, and appeals

Here are some links to blog posts describing the outcomes of some of my 2015 cases:
















We are very thankful for the successful outcomes we have been able to secure for our clients this past year.  But, as we always warn, while the military court-martial trials and other military cases described in our blog posts were successfully defended against, it is important to understand that every case has different facts, and success in previous military courts-martial and military cases does not guarantee success in any particular future court-martial or military case.  No military lawyer or civilian defense lawyer, including those who specialize in military law, can guarantee the outcome of any military case or military trial. 

Given the potential consequences to military careers, families and personal freedom when facing military discipline, adverse action and/or court-martial trial, it is critical to be defended by a lawyer with experience in military law.  For those seeking assistance, we offer free initial case consultations. 

Please contact us by:
Toll Free Phone:  (800) 988-0602

By: Attorney Richard V. Stevens
Civilian criminal defense lawyer and military defense lawyer
Military Defense Law Offices of Richard V. Stevens, P.C.
http://www.militaryadvocate.com

Blog postscript: Attorney Frank J. Spinner and I (attorney Richard V. Stevens) are former active duty military lawyers (JAG). Our perspectives and advice, therefore, are based upon our experience as military defense lawyers and as civilian criminal defense lawyers practicing exclusively in the area of military law and military justice. This blog addresses issues in military law, military justice, military discipline, military defense, court-martial practice, the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) and other military and/or legal topics. Nothing posted in this blog should be substituted for legal advice in any particular case. If you seek legal advice for a particular case, please contact The Law Offices of Richard V. Stevens and The Law Office of Frank J. Spinner for a free consultation. These military defense law offices are located in Northern Florida (Pensacola, Ft Walton, Destin, Eglin AFB, Hurlburt Field, Duke Field, Panama City, Tyndall AFB areas) and Colorado Springs, Colorado (FT Carson, Peterson AFB, Air Force Academy, Schriever AFB, Cheyenne Mountain Air Force Station, Buckley AFB areas), but our military defense law practices are worldwide – we travel to wherever our clients are stationed or serving and need us.


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