Kwajalein Hourglass THE KWAJALEIN HOURGLASS Volume 40, Number 48 Friday, June 16, 2000 U.S. Army Kwajalein Atoll, Republic of the Marshall Islands JAG reviews criminal and admin policies From the Command Judge Advocate Office The USAKA/KMR Legal Office re- cently received some queries about how the justice system works here. We thought this would be a good opportunity to explain the criminal and administrative processes that occur when an individual violates rules, regulations, and statutes at USAKA/KMR. Just the facts The process starts with the Kwa- jalein Police Department. When a crime or violation is reported, police (Photo by Peter Rejcek) investigators initiate a full investi- Aviation Services manager Skip MacQueen, left, speaks with Lt. Col. Dave Stoddard, gation they gather the facts. They USAKA/KMR deputy commander, about the Raytheon D1900, which is being consid- explore all avenues to obtain the evi- ered as a replacement for the Dash-7. dence relevant to the case. They talk to witnesses, examine evidence, and Up in the air visit the scene of the incid-ent. When they have gathered the relevant evi- 1900D being considered as dence, they prepare a report of their findings. The report is then forwarded to the replacement for Dash-7 fleet USAKA/KMR Legal Office, where it By Peter Rejcek Aviation Services manager. Its a is evaluated to determine what fo- The Dash-7 may be in the final very comfortable airplane. We rum, if any, is appropriate. The fo- years of its service at USAKA/KMR if wouldnt miss a beat as far as com- rums available include the United a proposal to replace it with a newer, fort and performance. States Federal Magistrates Court on faster airplane is approved. Mean- Saying the Dash-7 is entering its Kwajalein for misdemeanor criminal while, the end of the UH-1 helicopter twilight years, MacQueen said three cases, United States District Court era may also be on the horizon. 1900Ds would be used by the Avia- in Honolulu for felonies, the Juve- One possible candidate to succeed tion Department to cover all existing nile Review Board for juvenile mat- the trio of Dash-7s, an aviation staple USAKA/KMR missions with more ters, and the USAKA/KMR com- here since the early 1990s, was on reliability. mand for adverse administrative display this weekend. The Raytheon [The Dash-7s are] safe, good, flyable actions. The decision as to which 1900D is a two-engine, 19-passen- aircraft, but our support base for them forum is appropriate depends on the ger commuter airplane that is still is diminishing, MacQueen explained, seriousness of the offense, the evi- rolling off the production line. adding that it is increasingly harder to dence, and the status of the indi- Its an eminently supportable air- find parts and qualified repair depots viduals involved. If an individual plane because there are a lot of them for the airplanes. In some instances, he leaves the island before the investi- operating, there is a large supply noted, spare parts are sometimes so gation is completed or the decision infrastructure, and there are a lot of scarce that it takes up to nine months is made as to forum, the case still qualified pilots and mechanics that to get them on island. continues on to completion. If ap- have worked and flown on the air- In contrast, a broad base of sup- propriate in a criminal case, the file plane, observed Skip MacQueen, (See DASH-7, page 5) (See CASES, page 2) www.smdc.army.mil/KWAJ/Hourglass/hourglass.html Friday Page 2 Kwajalein Hourglass June 16, 2000 Cases serve as examples of Kwajalein judicial system ... (From page 1) those instances in which the indi- ing letter, impose a suspended bar, can be forwarded to the local U.S. vidual admits guilt. The philosophy or impose an actual bar. The differ- attorney in the area to where the of the board is to encourage youths ence between a suspended bar and individual has moved. In addition, to take responsibility for their an actual bar is that a person may the USAKA/KMR commander can actions. It allows them to remain on enter USAKA/KMR when a sus- impose an administrative bar on top Kwajalein and avoid the stigma of a pended bar is in place, whereas an of any criminal punishments that criminal record. The most recent imposed bar prohibits the individual have been imposed. JRB cases included the offenses of from entering any areas controlled Case in point damage to government property by by USAKA/KMR. If a person com- To see how this works, I will ex- burning government-owned items, mits another violation while under amine a few recent cases. In one in- breaking and entering a residence, a suspended bar, however, an actual stance, an adult on Kwajalein pur- assault against another individual, bar will be imposed. After the com- chased liquor for minors. The indi- and damage to a traffic sign. The mander has made his decision, he vidual was tried in front of the U.S. sanctions recommended by the sends a letter notifying the indi- magistrate at Kwajalein. The indi- Board included restitution, curfews, vidual of it. vidual pleaded guilty and was sen- community service, and one essay A person receiving an imposed or tenced to pay a fine of $200. about the dangers of throwing rocks. suspended bar has the right to request Three recent incidents involving Bar actions the commander to reconsider the deci- juveniles were handled using the The USAKA/KMR commander also sion in light of any additional evidence Juvenile Review Board process. has the authority to impose an ad- the individual provides. The individual Rather than barring the individuals ministrative bar against an indi- also has the right to appeal the from USAKA/KMR, the USAKA/ vidual who commits an offense. commanders decision to the SMDC KMR commander offered the youths When an administrative bar action deputy commander in Huntsville. the opportunity to resolve the mat- is appropriate, the violator is given Administrative bars are also effec- ters at a JRB. This board consists notice of the commanders intent to tive after a person leaves Kwaj- of three local site managers who con- bar him through a letter. That per- alein. That is, if a person leaves Kwa- sider the evidence to recommend son is provided time to respond to jalein after committing an offense, the appropriate sanctions against the this notice in writing. The report with commander may still administra- juvenile to the com-mander. The the response is then processed for tively bar him from returning to commander may accept or modify recommendation by appropriate USAKA/KMR for a period of time. the recommend-ations. The JRB USAKA/KMR staff sections. As you can see, there is a well-de- does not decide guilt or For example, if a Marshallese per- veloped process for responding to innocence. Rather, it is used only in son is involved, the Host Nation sec- incidents of misconduct on Kwaja- tion will review and comment on the lein and a wide range of options for The Kwajalein Hourglass report and make a recommen- handling the individuals involved. Commanding Officer.......Col. Gary K. McMillen dation. After all of the pertinent staff This process and these options give Public Affairs Officer..............Preston Lockridge Managing Editor.............................Pat Cataldo sections have made their recommen- the commander the tools he needs Editor..........................................Jim Bennett dations, the file is sent to the to ensure the mission and quality- Associate Editor...............................Peter Rejcek commander. The commander can of-life remain unaffected by the mis- Feature Writers.........................Barbara Johnson Bob Fore choose to do nothing, send a warn- conduct of a few. KW Hillis Graphics Designer ...........................Dan Adler Residents can attend the virtual Kwaj Reunion Circulation Manager.................Bobby Lamug Sr. The Hourglass is named for the insignia If youre mourning a missed op- crystalskies.homestead.com/ of the U.S. Army 7th Infantry Division, which portunity to attend Kwaj Reunion Reunion.html, where Joe Castelli, liberated the island from the forces of Impe- 2000 in Kona June 23-25, or if you chairman of the reunion committee, rial Japan on Feb 4, 1944. want to know what youre in for at has posted events, descriptions, and The Kwajalein Hourglass is an authorized the gathering, head for the Internet. schedules. publication for military personnel, federal em- See whats happening on the color- Attendees will enjoy, for example, ployees, contractor workers and their families assigned to USAKA/KMR. Contents of the ful reunion web page: http:// the Hawaiiana Art Fair, a traditional Hourglass are not necessarily official views luau, and Drums of Polynesia per- of, or endorsed by, the U.S. Government, De- DidDid YouYou Know?Know? formance, along with lots of free time partment of Defense, Department of the Army to meet with friends. or USAKA/KMR. It is published Tuesdays Born to ride, ride to live ... and Fridays using a network printer by Raytheon Range Systems Engineering edito- Macy’s West sells about 1,000 bi- Missed Paper? rial staff, P.O. Box 23, APO AP 96555. cycles each year, and you can regis- If you don’t receive your paper by 5:45 Phone: Autovon 254-3539; local 53539. ter your new bike directly at Macy’s p.m., call 52114 before 6 p.m., and one Printed circulation: 2,300 West. will be delivered to you. Friday June 16, 2000 Kwajalein Hourglass Page 3 Play brings historical meeting to Kwajalein MP room By Jim Bennett A historical hypothetical came to life last weekend as members of the Washington D.C.-based Pin Points Theatre presented The Meeting.