CIVILIAN COURT-MARTIAL DEFENSE LAWYER: MILITARY DEFENSE LAW OFFICES OF RICHARD V. STEVENS

Friday, March 29, 2019

CIVILIAN COURT-MARTIAL DEFENSE LAWYER: BACKGROUND CLEARED FOR FORMER MILITARY OFFICER REPRESENTED BY ATTORNEY RICHARD V.

Military Defense Lawyer (Former JAG Attorney) News:

Recently, a former military officer defended by attorney Richard V. Stevens (Military Defense Law Offices of Richard V. Stevens, P.C.) had his background cleared and professional license granted.

The officer client was represented by attorney Richard V. Stevens years ago in a Discharge Review Board hearing in which the client was successful. However, earlier this year the client was denied a professional license based on information in his military background about that case that was inaccurate and misunderstood by civilian authorities.

If the situation was not corrected, the former officer client would have not only lost his job, but he would not have been able to continue with his (post-military) civilian professional career. In coordination with a civilian law firm in the location where the client worked and lived, attorney Stevens prepared a submission that explained not only the history of the client's military case, but military law and the military disciplinary system as it applied to the client's situation. Based on that submission, the professional license denial decision was reversed, the client was granted his professional license, and he can now continue in that job and in that career field.

This case highlights the jeopardy military members face when civilians do not understand the military or the military disciplinary system, and they base decisions on incorrect assumptions.

While this military case was successfully defended, it is important to understand that every case has different facts, and success in previous cases does not guarantee success in any particular future case. No military lawyer or civilian defense lawyer, including those who specialize in military law, can guarantee the outcome of any military trial or case.

We offer free consultations for a case you may be involved in. Just call us.

Thank you.

By: Attorney Richard V. Stevens

Civilian criminal defense lawyer and military defense lawyer

Military Defense Law Offices of Richard V. Stevens, P.C.

https://militaryadvocate.com/

Blog postscript: I (attorney Richard V. Stevens) am a former active duty military lawyer (JAG). My perspectives and advice, therefore, are based upon my experience as military defense lawyer and as a civilian criminal defense lawyer 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 for a free consultation. These military defense law offices are located in the Washington DC, Northern Virginia, Maryland, National Capital Region (NCR), but the military defense representation is worldwide – when necessary, the attorneys travel to wherever the client is stationed around the world.

Friday, February 15, 2019

CIVILIAN COURT-MARTIAL DEFENSE LAWYER: SENIOR NON-COMMISSIONED OFFICER (NCO) REPRESENTED BY ATTORNEY RICHARD V. STEVENS RETIRES HONORABLY AFTER SEXUAL ASSAULT ALLEGATIONS DROPPED (UCMJ ARTICLE 120)

Military Defense Lawyer (Former JAG Attorney) News:

Recently, a senior non-commissioned officer (NCO) defended by attorney Richard V. Stevens (Military Defense Law Offices of Richard V. Stevens, P.C.) retired honorable from the military after nearly three decades of service after having the sexual assault allegations he faced (UCMJ Article 120) dropped.

The NCO client was accused of sexual assault by a fellow service member who claimed she was too drunk to have consented and that she did not, in fact, consent to the sexual activity she alleged had occurred on the night in question. The case was headed toward court-martial. As the investigation progressed, however, and the defense provided evidence in the case, it became apparent that the complainant's story was contradicted by witnesses and evidence, to include electronic evidence. Ultimately, despite the complainant's continued claim that she was victimized and did not consent, a court-martial was not pursued.

The case did not end, however. The military opted to attempt to administratively punish and administratively discharge the senior NCO based on these claims. This is the latest trend in the military - when they recognize they will likely lose a case at trial, they take flawed, weak cases to administrative forums, where the burden of proof is much lower (preponderance of the evidence) and the rights of the accused are much more limited.

Despite the military's effort to administratively discharge the client, the board members saw the case for what it was, disagreed with the command, and retained the senior NCO. He then finished out his career and has now retired honorably.

Had there been a court-martial trial and sex crime conviction in the case, the client could have been sentenced to a dishonorable discharge, decades in prison and, in addition, he would have been required to register as a sex offender. Thankfully, the truth prevailed and he was spared this devastation to his future. He can now move on from this case without the stigma of a sexual assault conviction which would have affected his life for the remainder of his days. He also survived the government's attempt to kick him out and deny him a retirement through administrative discharge. He is now an honorable military retiree, as the evidence showed he showed be, despite all the political and public relations pressure to sacrifice military members in the name of "believe the victim" and presumption of guilt.

While this military court-martial and discharge case was successfully defended, it is important to understand that every case has different facts, and success in previous cases does not guarantee success in any particular future case. No military lawyer or civilian defense lawyer, including those who specialize in military law, can guarantee the outcome of any military trial or case.

For more information about the military justice system, particularly cases alleging rape and/or sexual assault in violation of UCMJ Article 120, type "rape" or "sexual assault" into the search bar above the blog posts and see:

http://militaryadvocate.com/military-offenses/rape-sexual-assault-sodomy/

We offer free consultations for a case you may be involved in. Just call us.

Thank you.

By: Attorney Richard V. Stevens

Civilian criminal defense lawyer and military defense lawyer

Military Defense Law Offices of Richard V. Stevens, P.C.

https://militaryadvocate.com/

Sunday, January 06, 2019

CIVILIAN COURT-MARTIAL DEFENSE LAWYER: LARCENY AND FRAUDULENT TRAVEL VOUCHER ALLEGATIONS IN ARTICLE 15 (NONJUDICIAL PUNISHMENT) DROPPED FOR NON-COMMISSIONED OFFICER (NCO) REPRESENTED BY ATTORNEY RICHARD V. STEVENS (UCMJ ARTICLES 107, 121, 132)

Military Defense Lawyer (Former JAG Attorney) News:

Recently, a non-commissioned officer (NCO) defended by attorney Richard V. Stevens (Military Defense Law Offices of Richard V. Stevens, P.C.) had the Article 15 (nonjudicial punishment) he received that alleged larceny (UCMJ Article 121), fraudulent travel vouchers (UCMJ Article 132), and false official statements (UCMJ Article 107) dropped and he was cleared to continue his military career.

The NCO client was accused of these offenses through an Article 15 (nonjudicial punishment) that he accepted, but he pled not guilty and disputed the allegations and the action itself. Based on the defense submission on the client's behalf, the allegations and the Article 15 were dropped, and the client's record was cleared.

For more information about the military justice system, particularly cases alleging larceny, wrongful appropriation, and fraudulent travel vouchers in violation of UCMJ Articles 121, 107, and 132, please see:

https://militaryadvocate.com/military-larceny-wrongful-appropriation-and-fraud-defense-including-military-travel-voucher-and-entitlement-fraud-defense-ucmj-articles-121-123a/

We offer free consultations for a case you may be involved in. Just call us.

Thank you.

By: Attorney Richard V. Stevens

Civilian criminal defense lawyer and military defense lawyer

Military Defense Law Offices of Richard V. Stevens, P.C.

https://militaryadvocate.com/

Tuesday, January 01, 2019

Civilian Court-Martial Defense Lawyer: End of Year Wrap-Up and Welcome to 2019

Military 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 active duty 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 2018, 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).

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

- Peterson AFB (Colorado Springs, CO)

- U.S. Air Force Academy (Colorado Springs, CO)

- Lakenheath AB (England)

- Joint Base Andrews (Washington DC, National Capital Region)

- Offutt AFB (Omaha, Nebraska)

- Tyndall AFB (Panama City, Florida)

- Ramstein AB (Germany)

- Maxwell AFB, Gunter Annex (Montgomery, Alabama)

- Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson (Anchorage, Alaska)

- Travis AFB (California)

- Joint Base San Antonio, Lackland AFB (San Antonio, Texas)

- Holloman AFB (Alamogordo, New Mexico)

- Kirtland AFB (Albuquerque, New Mexico)

- Little Rock AFB (Little Rock, Arkansas)

- Joint Base San Antonio, Randolph AFB (San Antonio, Texas)

- Robins AFB (Warner Robins, Georgia)

- Naval Base San Diego (San Diego, California)

- Lamoore Naval Air Station (Lamoore, California)

- MCAS Iwakuni (Japan)

- Naval Air Station Pensacola (Florida)

- Fort Knox (Kentucky)

- Fort Irwin (California)

- US Military Academy, West Point (New York)

- FT Hood (Killeen, Texas)

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, BAH Fraud, PCS Fraud, Travel Voucher 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)

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

- Child Abuse

- 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

- Fraternization

- Sexual Harassment

- Receipt, possession and/or distribution of child pornography

- Obstruction of Justice

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

- Court-martial trials and court-martial clemency (general court-martial and special court-martial)

- Administrative discharge boards, administrative separation boards

- Officer Elimination Actions, Board of Inquiry (BOI)

- Senior Officer Investigations and Discipline

- Officer Grade Determination (OGD)

- Article 15, Nonjudicial Punishment (NJP)

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

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

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

- Medical Evaluation Board (MEB) and Physical Evaluation Board (PEB) cases in different military branches

- Medical De-Credentialing, Privileging Actions

- 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 2018 cases:

http://militaryadvocate.blogspot.com/2018/10/civilian-court-martial-defense-lawyer_71.html

http://militaryadvocate.blogspot.com/2018/10/civilian-court-martial-defense-lawyer_23.html

http://militaryadvocate.blogspot.com/2018/10/civilian-court-martial-defense-lawyer_22.html

http://militaryadvocate.blogspot.com/2018/10/civilian-court-martial-defense-lawyer.html

http://militaryadvocate.blogspot.com/2018/10/air-force-colonel-john-howard-false.html

http://militaryadvocate.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2018-10-22T11:05:00-04:00&max-results=4

https://militaryadvocate.blogspot.com/2018/04/statement-of-attorney-richard-v-stevens.html

https://www.expressnews.com/news/local/article/Air-Force-drops-rape-charge-against-former-12838641.php

https://militaryadvocate.blogspot.com/2018/04/civilian-court-martial-defense-lawyer_15.html

https://militaryadvocate.blogspot.com/2018/04/civilian-court-martial-defense-lawyers_53.html

https://militaryadvocate.blogspot.com/2018/04/civilian-court-martial-defense-lawyers_3.html

https://militaryadvocate.blogspot.com/2018/04/civilian-court-martial-defense-lawyers.html

We are very thankful for the successful outcomes we have been able to secure for our clients this past year. For ease of researching, here are links to my year-end blog posts, and case outcomes, from recent previous years:

2017 Year-End Case Summaries:

https://militaryadvocate.blogspot.com/2018/01/civilian-court-martial-defense-lawyers.html

2016 Year-End Case Summaries:

http://militaryadvocate.blogspot.com/2016/12/civilian-court-martial-defense-lawyers_31.html

2015 Year-End Case Summaries:

http://militaryadvocate.blogspot.com/2016/01/civilian-court-martial-defense-lawyers.html

2014 Year-End Case Summaries:

http://militaryadvocate.blogspot.com/2014/12/civilian-court-martial-defense-lawyers.html

2013 Year-End Case Summaries:

http://www.militaryadvocate.blogspot.com/2014/01/civilian-court-martial-defense-lawyers.html

2012 Year-End Case Summaries:

http://militaryadvocate.blogspot.com/2013/01/civilian-court-martial-defense-lawyers.html

2011 Year-End Case Summaries:

http://militaryadvocate.blogspot.com/2012/01/civilian-court-martial-defense-lawyers_01.html

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, evidence, and participants, 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: (888) 399-0693

E-mail: militarylawfirm@gmail.com

Website: www.militaryadvocate.com

Attorneys:

http://militaryadvocate.com/about-us/

In the News:

http://militaryadvocate.com/Appearances/

Recent Reviews:

http://www.avvo.com/attorneys/32566-fl-richard-stevens-693212/reviews.html

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