About | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline
LOG IN
LOG IN

48 Nw. U. L. Rev. 714 (1953-1954)
Evaluation of the United States Court of Military Appeals

handle is hein.journals/illlr48 and id is 726 raw text is: An Evaluation of the United States Court of Military Appeals Daniel Walker* S OME two and one-half years ago, a new experiment in the field of military criminal justice was launched. For the first time in the sometimes tempestuous history of this field of law, a system of civilian review was established in the form of the United States Court of Military Appeals.1 There were those who argued at the time of its inception that such a court was unnecessary, that it would be unable to cope with purely military problems, that it would be either over-burdened with work or uselessly idle, and that it would have a harmful effect on military disciplinary theories and functions.2 Since its creation, an ever-increasing number of lawyers, members of the military, and others newly aware of the existence of this Court, have been asking questions about its over- all operation. Congress itself when it passed the Uniform Code of Military Justice which created the Court was apprehensive about the manner in which this new device would function. It is submitted that enough time has elapsed to permit at least a tentative evaluation of the Court's work. This task will be at- tempted here, not in the form of a legal analysis of the Court's decisions, but by endeavoring to answer the most challenging ques- tions that have been asked about the Court. In making this evalua- tion, the circumstances surrounding the birth of the Code and the Court must be kept in mind. The Code represented the culmination of a long history of civilian and congressional dissatisfaction with the administration of criminal justice by the Armed Forces.3 Through the Code, Congress endeavored to make military proce- dures and practices more nearly like those existing in civilian courts. The military in general, with notable exceptions, made no effort to conceal its opposition to most of the reforms wrought by the Code.4 For those unfamiliar with the Court, its jurisdiction may be * Member, Illinois Bar; formerly Commissioner, United States Court of Military Appeals. 1. Uniform Code of Military justice, Art. 67, 64 STAT. 129 (1950), (50 U.S.C. §654 Supp. 1952). For a description of the historical development of appellate review of court-martial convictions, see Walker, United States Court of Military Appeals: A Long Overdue Addition to the Judiciary, 38 A.B.A.J. 567 (1952). 2. See Walker and Niebank, The Court of Military Appeals-Its History, Organ- ization and Operation, 6 VAND. L. Rav. 228 (1953) ; INDEX AND LEGISLATrVE HISTORY, UNIFORM CODE OF MILITARY JUSTICE (1950); H.R. PEP. No. 491, 81st Cong., 1st Sess. (1949) ; SEN. REP. No. 486, 81st Cong., 1st Sess. (1949). 3. See sources cited in notes 1 and 2 supra. 4. Most of the testimony against the Code during Congressional Committee hear- ings was presented by present and former military officers. See H.R. REP. No. 491, 81st Cong., 1st Sess. (1949); and SEN. REP. No. 486, 81st Cong., 1st Sess. (1949).

What Is HeinOnline?

HeinOnline is a subscription-based resource containing thousands of academic and legal journals from inception; complete coverage of government documents such as U.S. Statutes at Large, U.S. Code, Federal Register, Code of Federal Regulations, U.S. Reports, and much more. Documents are image-based, fully searchable PDFs with the authority of print combined with the accessibility of a user-friendly and powerful database. For more information, request a quote or trial for your organization below.



Short-term subscription options include 24 hours, 48 hours, or 1 week to HeinOnline.

Purchase Access

Contact us for annual subscription options:

Contact Us

Already a HeinOnline Subscriber?

Log In

profiles profiles most