Despite Pentagon officials acknowledging the need to reform military justice, vocal defenders still persist that prosecution authority must remain in the hands of commanders, not prosecutors.
Curry v. Secretary of the Army did not say that commanders must retain the authority to prosecute servicemembers. Instead,
Curry says that Congress has the power under the rules clause of the Constitution to decide who prosecutes courts martial, not the courts. Thus, the
Curry court leaves it to Congress in a well-recognized act of judicial deference. If, as proposed, the Senate bill removes the commander from making prosecution decisions, the federal courts will defer to Congress with challenges to that structural change.
More troubling is the misapplication of the Supreme Court’s
Solorio v. United States decision by suggesting that the court somehow requires commanders to decide to prosecute at court-martial. And, they allude to unspecified difficulties in prosecuting cases something irrelevant to who decides to prosecute. In 1987, the services successfully prosecuted 8,600 general and special courts martial. Did some challenge the service-connection for their prosecutio
Media Credit: Courtesy of Steven Schooner
Fletcher s family and friends said he kept a positive outlook throughout his life.
John Fletcher, an alumnus and visiting professor of government procurement law, died suddenly last month. He was 34.
Fletcher earned his Juris Doctor from GW Law in 2016 and has spent time as a visiting associate professor and graduate fellow in the government procurement law program since last April. He was also a veteran and served in the U.S. Army Special Operations.
Those who knew Fletcher said his sense of humor and positive attitude inspired them, and he is remembered for his perseverance and love of learning.