United States v. Barnes

33 M.J. 893, 1991 CMR LEXIS 1386, 1991 WL 238656
CourtU S Air Force Court of Military Review
DecidedNovember 5, 1991
DocketACM 28771
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 33 M.J. 893 (United States v. Barnes) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering U S Air Force Court of Military Review primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
United States v. Barnes, 33 M.J. 893, 1991 CMR LEXIS 1386, 1991 WL 238656 (usafctmilrev 1991).

Opinion

OPINION OP THE COURT

O’HAIR, Senior Judge:

Contrary to his pleas, Technical Sergeant Barnes was convicted of a failure to go to his appointed place of duty and wrongful use of cocaine. Although charged with desertion, in accordance with his pleas he was found guilty of a 3-week AWOL terminated by apprehension. A general court-martial panel of officers sentenced him to a bad-conduct discharge, confinement for 8 months, forfeiture of $225 pay per month for 6 months and reduction to E-1.

On appeal the appellant alleges it was error for the military judge to admit the results of a urinalysis test because it was not based on voluntary, informed consent. He also challenges the military judge’s failure to sua sponte give the court members an instruction on inability as a defense to the charge of failure to go to his appointed place of duty. We find no prejudicial error and affirm.

The appellant was working a day shift on 2 October 1989. He failed to return to work after lunch and called several hours later to explain he had car trouble. His supervisor, TSgt Olsen, knew the appellant lived a distance away from the base, so he told appellant to take care of his car and that he need not return to work that day. On the following day appellant was not heard from until mid-afternoon when he called again. He explained the reason for his absence was that, on the prior evening, he had been abducted in his car by an unknown man and woman to whom he had just given a ride. After they pushed him out of his car, he was required to walk home, a distance variously described as between 40 and 60 miles. TSgt Olsen advised the appellant he would have squadron members pick him up for work the next morning, 4 October. The airmen so assigned stopped by the appellant’s house, but no one answered their knocks at the door. A short time later, the appellant called the office and asked about his ride. This time TSgt Olsen drove to appellant’s house, found the appellant, brought him back to the base and took him to the office of the First Sergeant, MSgt Yoke. Also present for this meeting was SMSgt Cooke, TSgt Olsen’s supervisor.

MSgt Yoke advised appellant of his Article 31(b), 10 U.S.C. § 831(b) rights which appellant waived, agreeing to explain his absences from work. He then described, in more detail, the series of events he had related to TSgt Olsen about picking up two hitchhikers who he agreed to transport to some designated point for $50. Upon arrival at the destination they took the $50 from him, as well as his car, and forced him to walk home.

Following this discussion MSgt Yoke asked appellant something to the effect of “Sgt Barnes, I would like for you to provide us a urine sample. Will you do that?” The appellant responded that he would, and then asked why everyone was persecuting him. MSgt Yoke responded that no one was persecuting him and that they did not suspect him of drug abuse; it was just normal procedure to request a urine sample. There was no other discussion about the urine sample until MSgt Yoke left the room and returned with two sheets of paper for the appellant to sign.

[895]*895It is at this point that appellant claims that his urinalysis became commander-directed and was no longer consensual. The first piece of paper presented to appellant for his signature is addressed “To Whom It May Concern”, and it contains only the simple statement: “I ... do hereby give my consent to give a urine sample.” The second piece of paper was a letter with three indorsements. The letter is addressed to the appellant, from his commander, and the subject line is: “Commander Directed Urinalysis (Consent)”. This letter directed appellant to the hospital to provide a urine sample. The first indorsement was signed by appellant and it acknowledged receipt of the commander’s letter; the second indorsement was signed by the commander and it requested the hospital to perform a urinalysis on appellant; and the third indorsement is from the laboratory technician who reported to the commander that a sample was received on that date.

There was no discussion accompanying the signing of these documents other than that MSgt Yoke said they needed to be signed before the hospital could take the sample. When asked to distinguish between the contradictory language in the subject line of the second letter “Commander Directed Urinalysis (Consent),” MSgt Yoke testified they used the same letter for both types of urinalyses in order to simplify the amount of paperwork.

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Related

United States v. Hughes
48 M.J. 700 (Air Force Court of Criminal Appeals, 1998)
United States v. Barnes
39 M.J. 230 (United States Court of Military Appeals, 1994)
United States v. Guron
37 M.J. 942 (U S Air Force Court of Military Review, 1993)

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Bluebook (online)
33 M.J. 893, 1991 CMR LEXIS 1386, 1991 WL 238656, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-v-barnes-usafctmilrev-1991.