The Edmund M. Morgan Papers on the Drafting of the UCMJ (1948
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
J l - Report of the Army and Air Force Courts-Martial Committee I 94 ~lTI&R INre""'iT1 ~ :_,' ~u ..a•••., OF TNt ~ .•iTI'i1 ... ~L: u·, ."NIlIIT"1 UlRAIU P"~(llltJ by tnt ~ectd<lry oJ S/IlU! jor lVur uud the St( I'etlll'jl of SI(lU jor A ir to Pa,litmulIll b,. COllmu/fld of His /I1(1j<'sty jWIfIl(lry, 1949 LONDON HIS MI'JESTY'S STATIONERY OFFICE Price IS. 3d. net Cmd. 7608 " PREFATORY NOTE BY THE SECRETARIES OF STATE FOR WAR AND AIR REPORT This Report rcvif>ws the existing Court-Martial system of the Armv and the INTROD\JCTION Royal Air F(Jrc(' and the recmnmendalions of the previous Army and Air Foret' Courts-Martial Committet'. 1938 (Cmd. 6200).· which were left in abeyance owing 1. We were constituted as a Committee by War Office Jetter dated 4th to the outbreak of war. The present Committee has madt' a large number (Jf November. :1946. with the foUowing terms of reference: recommendations, which are summarised in Chapter \'1 r on pages 53 to 60 of ., To bring under revi~w in the light of the experience gained in the the Report. u·nain of these. viz.. those relating to the appointment and late war and of the compo,;.ition of the Army and the Royal Alr Force. functions of the Judge Advocate Gt-ne-ral in paragraphs 10'] and log and thT'se the recommendations of the Army and Air Force Courts-:\Iartial Com affecting Court·Martial procedure in paragraphs u5 to :120, have already been mittee, 1938 (Cmd. 6200) \\ ith special reference to the question whether accepted and put into effect. and certain others designl.'d to reduce delays it is desirable to provide any, and if so \\hat. form of appeal from tht· ""fnre trial and dealing with pre-trial procedure. which dQ not require kgisla. hndings or sentences of court3-martial; to in\"C5tigate the powers of courts 'Ion. are in process of adoption. Other recommendai ions. in panicular thos.. martial and of commanding"'officers to award punishment and the natun, dealing with the creation of a Courts-Martial Appt:al Olurt to hear appeals on and scale of such puni::.hmcnt; and to make rcwmmendations upon these points of law and the rttonSlitution flf Comts-Martial ....-ith civilian Judge and kindred matters ". Presidents. are of a very far-reaching charac'er and His ~Iajesty's GO\'emmenl have not yet reached a decision "pm them. The membt:rs of the Committee were: • H.M.S.O. Pnct' +4 The Hon. Me. Ju~ti{;e Le ..... is. O.8.E. (Chairman). Air :'>Iarshal Sir Philip Babington. K.C.B.• ~l.C., A.F.e. • Me. A. R. B1ackbum. M.P. Major-General the \'iSt:ount Bridgeman, C.B.. D.S.O.. M.C. TABLE OF CONTENTS Me. Terence Dono\'an. K.C., M.P. P"'tlfr<l.pll. P"". Sir Theobald Mathe...... K B.E.• M.e. 1_ 10 IntroduetlUu Me. J. C. Maude. K.C .• M.P. , Brigadier R. A. F. Thorp. O.B.E.• M.P. 0- 19 Chapter I Short H,wx)" ,,( thl: Cuurt-:"Iart,al S)"~telU , ::zo- p and of the Office oCthe Judge Advocate Geno:r..l 7 ]]- 7] Cllapler II The Present Trpe~ of Co\lrts-:"lartiil1 and their J oint Secretaries: Procedure Colonel W. R. F. Osmond. O.B.E. (War Office). 7-4 (;haptt"r III Al1egeJ DeJects in the Pr~nt ~) ~tem the Com Group Captain E. H. Hooper, C.B.E. (Air Mini;;try). m,Uee'$ Obsen-ation~ an,1 Hec(>mmendat,on~ Lieutenant-Colonel R. J. H. de Brett (War Office). 7S- liS l""la}"~ lx-fore Trial. '"'; ll6-fO,. In~ufticiencr of I.egal Ald. both befort' an,1 durin,! trial 2. We sat on 37 occasions, examined 57 \\ itne~, and studied upwards of l>elect!:< III Procedure _ 200 memoranda submittt.-d to us. The names of witnesses, and persons and '05-1'4 (I) The Judge _,"dvOCiltl! (;"nera\ organisations \\ ho su,bmitted memoranda. will (\\ ith the exceptions indicated 115-116 (2) The Judge '''dv'ocate " below) be found in Appendices A and B respectively to this Report. We ,17-UO (]) Finding and Sentence" -Announcement ", arranged that all ranks in the Army and Royal Air Force should be made 121-1lI!) (4) Finding by a Majority "'7 aware that the Commitle~ was sitting. and should be invited to send direct '::Z7-1.12 (5) Lack of Shorthand Write,." to us any suggestions they had to make. It was made clear that the names (6) Other Points " of those responding to such invitation, and subsequently giving evidence '"1]1 164 Chapter IV Appeals " before us in support of their suggestions, would be treated in confidence; ,6.5' 190 Ctmpt"r .. P',nishmcnts ,6 and for this reason only their names are not given in Appendices A and B. 11)1-251 Ch..... pter VI ("ourts-)lartml lor the I'"wre TI,I;' (nmnlltlN."s '. 46 officers and 17 other ranks of the Army and the Royal Air Force sent Observations and nt'C'lmm.. ndatJOn~ Chapter \' II Summary of Hecomnwndations ano1 ("onclusion in memoranda in response to such invitation. and of these, 2 officers and "d<lcntlurn by 'lr. \ It. Blackh"rn 6,.'" 4 other ranks attended the Committee and gave oral evidence. 3. For the great help afforded by all those who submitted memoranda. ......KND'X \ L,st of Pet$Ol1$ and Orgamsatlons "Ill> l(a\e (,ral and all those who gave evidence before us, whether they had pn viously c\'idenCt' before th" Cornm,Uet:, 6, submItted a memorandum or not, the Committee desires to express its \prKN')TX B l.,~t of Persu'h and Orgamsati"uli \\ho submltlect grateful thanks. memoranda, etc., to the Committee A ....IINDtx C Proposed New Departmcnts----Outline 01 E,tab 4. In addition to the meetings of the full Committee. 12 meetings were li$hment held of a Drahing Sub-Committee consisting of the Chairman, the Viscount Bridgeman. Mr. Terence Dono\'an and Sir Thecbald Mathew. .The cost of the Committee's enquiry is e;timaled to be £292 17s. ad., of wh.<:h (Ill lOS. .ad. represents the CiOtimated was>. cost of the printing and 3 publication of thiS Report. II " PREFATORY NOTE BY THE SECRETARIES OF STATE FOR WAR AND AIR REPORT This Report rcvif>ws the existing Court-Martial system of the Armv and the INTROD\JCTION Royal Air F(Jrc(' and the recmnmendalions of the previous Army and Air Foret' Courts-Martial Committet'. 1938 (Cmd. 6200).· which were left in abeyance owing 1. We were constituted as a Committee by War Office Jetter dated 4th to the outbreak of war. The present Committee has madt' a large number (Jf November. :1946. with the foUowing terms of reference: recommendations, which are summarised in Chapter \'1 r on pages 53 to 60 of ., To bring under revi~w in the light of the experience gained in the the Report. u·nain of these. viz.. those relating to the appointment and late war and of the compo,;.ition of the Army and the Royal Alr Force. functions of the Judge Advocate Gt-ne-ral in paragraphs 10'] and log and thT'se the recommendations of the Army and Air Force Courts-:\Iartial Com affecting Court·Martial procedure in paragraphs u5 to :120, have already been mittee, 1938 (Cmd. 6200) \\ ith special reference to the question whether accepted and put into effect. and certain others designl.'d to reduce delays it is desirable to provide any, and if so \\hat. form of appeal from tht· ""fnre trial and dealing with pre-trial procedure. which dQ not require kgisla. hndings or sentences of court3-martial; to in\"C5tigate the powers of courts 'Ion. are in process of adoption. Other recommendai ions. in panicular thos.. martial and of commanding"'officers to award punishment and the natun, dealing with the creation of a Courts-Martial Appt:al Olurt to hear appeals on and scale of such puni::.hmcnt; and to make rcwmmendations upon these points of law and the rttonSlitution flf Comts-Martial ....-ith civilian Judge and kindred matters ". Presidents. are of a very far-reaching charac'er and His ~Iajesty's GO\'emmenl have not yet reached a decision "pm them. The membt:rs of the Committee were: • H.M.S.O. Pnct' +4 The Hon. Me. Ju~ti{;e Le ..... is. O.8.E. (Chairman). Air :'>Iarshal Sir Philip Babington. K.C.B.• ~l.C., A.F.e. • Me. A. R. B1ackbum. M.P. Major-General the \'iSt:ount Bridgeman, C.B.. D.S.O.. M.C. TABLE OF CONTENTS Me. Terence Dono\'an. K.C., M.P. P"'tlfr<l.pll. P"". Sir Theobald Mathe...... K B.E.• M.e. 1_ 10 IntroduetlUu Me. J. C. Maude. K.C .• M.P. , Brigadier R. A. F. Thorp. O.B.E.• M.P. 0- 19 Chapter I Short H,wx)" ,,( thl: Cuurt-:"Iart,al S)"~telU , ::zo- p and of the Office oCthe Judge Advocate Geno:r..l 7 ]]- 7] Cllapler II The Present Trpe~ of Co\lrts-:"lartiil1 and their J oint Secretaries: Procedure Colonel W. R. F. Osmond. O.B.E. (War Office). 7-4 (;haptt"r III Al1egeJ DeJects in the Pr~nt ~) ~tem the Com Group Captain E. H. Hooper, C.B.E. (Air Mini;;try). m,Uee'$ Obsen-ation~ an,1 Hec(>mmendat,on~ Lieutenant-Colonel R. J. H. de Brett (War Office). 7S- liS l""la}"~ lx-fore Trial. '"'; ll6-fO,.