United States v. ALLISON-III

CourtNavy-Marine Corps Court of Criminal Appeals
DecidedNovember 16, 2021
Docket201800251
StatusPublished

This text of United States v. ALLISON-III (United States v. ALLISON-III) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Navy-Marine Corps Court of Criminal Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
United States v. ALLISON-III, (N.M. 2021).

Opinion

This opinion is subject to administrative correction before final disposition.

Before GASTON, ATTANASIO, and STEWART Appellate Military Judges

_________________________

UNITED STATES Appellee

v.

Trenton J. ALLISON Corporal (E-4), U.S. Marine Corps Appellant

No. 201800251

Decided: 16 November 2021

Appeal from the United States Navy-Marine Corps Trial Judiciary

Military Judge: Eugene H. Robinson, Jr.

Sentence adjudged 23 April 2018 by a special court-martial convened at Marine Corps Base Camp Foster, Okinawa, Japan, consisting of a military judge sitting alone. Sentence approved by the convening au- thority: reduction to E-1, confinement for eight months, forfeiture of $1,092 pay per month for eight months, and a bad-conduct discharge.

For Appellant: Lieutenant Commander Jacqueline M. Leonard, JAGC, USN

For Appellee: Major Clayton L. Wiggins, USMC Lieutenant Commander Jeffrey S. Marden, JAGC, USN

Judge ATTANASIO delivered the opinion of the Court, in which Sen- ior Judge GASTON and Judge STEWART joined. United States v. Allison, NMCCA No. 201800251 Opinion of the Court

This opinion does not serve as binding precedent under NMCCA Rule of Appellate Procedure 30.2(a).

ATTANASIO, Judge: A military judge sitting as a special court-martial convicted Appellant, in accordance with his pleas, of one specification of conspiracy to wrongfully distribute a controlled substance and one specification of wrongful distribu- tion of a controlled substance in violation of Articles 81 and 112a, Uniform Code of Military Justice [UCMJ]. 1 The military judge sentenced Appellant to eight months of confinement, reduction to paygrade E-1, forfeiture of $1,092 pay per month for eight months, a reprimand, and a bad-conduct discharge. The convening authority disapproved the letter of reprimand but otherwise approved the sentence as adjudged. Appellant asserts a single assignment of error: unreasonable post-trial delay violated his right to due process. We find no due process violation but find unreasonably excessive delay and, pursuant to our broad authority to determine sentence appropriateness under Article 66, UCMJ, we grant sentence relief by setting aside the adjudged forfeiture of pay. Finding no other prejudicial error, we affirm the findings and the remainder of the approved sentence.

I. BACKGROUND

This case is before us for review a third time. Each of the first two times, we found error in the convening authority’s Action [Action] and remanded for a new Action and a new staff judge advocate’s recommendation [SJAR]. 2 Following completion of what is now SJAR No. 3 and Action No. 3, the case has returned to this Court for completion of appellate review. To complete

1 10 U.S.C. §§ 881, 912a.

2 United States v. Allison, No. 201800251 (N-M. Ct. Crim. App. Feb. 8, 2019), https://www.jag.navy.mil/courts/documents/archive/2019/Allison Remand for New Post-Trial.pdf (unpublished order) [Allison I]; United States v. Allison, No. 201800251, 2020 CCA LEXIS 111 (N-M. Ct. Crim. App. Apr. 8, 2020) (unpublished order) [Allison II].

2 United States v. Allison, NMCCA No. 201800251 Opinion of the Court

that review and resolve Appellant’s post-trial delay claim, we begin our analysis by examining the case’s procedural timeline. On 23 April 2018, the court-martial adjourned. One hundred days later, on 1 August 2018, the convening authority took action on the case. Twenty- two days later, on 23 August 2018, the case was docketed with this Court. Appellant submitted his case to the Court without assignment of error, but after reviewing the record, we ordered briefing on whether the letter of reprimand reproved Appellant for an offense the military judge had dis- missed. The Government conceded the letter of reprimand’s error and requested that we remand the case for new post-trial-processing. Accordingly, with the Parties’ consent, we set aside the first Action and remanded for new post-trial processing on 8 February 2019. 3 One hundred eighteen days later, on 6 June 2019, the convening authori- ty took action for the second time. One hundred nine days after that, on 23 September 2019, the case was docketed with this Court for the second time. Appellant again submitted his case to the Court without assignment of error. We again found error, this time for a material ambiguity in the new Action, and on 8 April 2020, we set aside the Action and remanded for new post-trial processing. 4 Sixty-five days later, on 12 June 2020, the convening authority took ac- tion for the third time, disapproving the letter of reprimand but otherwise approving the remainder of the adjudged sentence. Twenty-six days after that, on 8 July 2020, the case was docketed with this Court for the third time. Appellant, for the third time, submitted his case without assignment of error. In Appellant’s brief, however, appellate defense counsel included this footnote:

3 Allison I.

4 Allison II. In Allison II, while Appellant initially submitted his case without assignment of error, he subsequently filed a motion for relief, complaining of multiple post-trial processing errors—unrelated to the ambiguity in the Action for which we ultimately ordered remand. In his motion, Appellant sought sentencing relief or, in the alternative, new post-trial processing. In light of our decision to remand for new post-trial processing, albeit for reasons unrelated to Appellant’s complaints, we denied Appellant’s motion without prejudice to raise any and all issues contained therein when the case returned to the Court for completion of appellate review.

3 United States v. Allison, NMCCA No. 201800251 Opinion of the Court

Undersigned counsel did not receive a copy of the new Conven- ing Authority’s Action and therefore does not accept any inac- curacies or procedural violations it may contain. Should the Court identify any errors in the Convening Authority’s Action, counsel requests an opportunity to submit a brief on said er- rors. 5 We ordered appellate defense counsel to review the (third) Action and the (third) SJAR, and inform the Court whether Appellant intended to raise any assignments of error. In response, appellate defense counsel, on Appellant’s behalf, filed a brief and assignment of error asserting unreasonable post-trial delay.

II. DISCUSSION

We address two related but distinct issues when reviewing a claim of unreasonable post-trial delay. 6 First, we review the claim for a due process violation. 7 Second, we determine whether to grant relief for excessive post- trial delay under our broad authority to determine sentence appropriateness under Article 66, UCMJ. 8 We discuss each issue in turn.

A. Due Process Convicted servicemembers have a constitutional “due process right to timely review and appeal of courts-martial convictions.” 9 As a matter of law, we review de novo whether an appellant has been denied his due process right to a speedy appellate review. 10 In United States v. Moreno, our superior court adopted the following four- factor balancing test from Barker v. Wingo 11 to determine whether the post-

5 Appellant’s Br. of Sep. 10, 2020, at 2 n.1.

6 See United States v. Simon, 64 M.J. 205 (C.A.A.F. 2006).

7 See U.S. Const. amend. V; Diaz v. Judge Advocate General of the Navy, 59 M.J.

34, 38 (C.A.A.F. 2003). 8 See United States v. Tardif, 57 M.J. 219, 225 (C.A.A.F. 2002).

9 United States v. Merritt, 72 M.J. 483, 489 (C.A.A.F. 2013) (quoting United States v. Moreno, 63 M.J. 129, 135 (C.A.A.F. 2006)); see also Diaz, 59 M.J. at 37–38. 10 United States v. Arriaga, 70 M.J. 51, 55 (C.A.A.F. 2011) (citing Moreno, 63 M.J.

at 135).

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