United States v. Castillo

34 M.J. 1160, 1992 CMR LEXIS 440, 1992 WL 105874
CourtU.S. Navy-Marine Corps Court of Military Review
DecidedApril 15, 1992
DocketNMCM No. 91 2023
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 34 M.J. 1160 (United States v. Castillo) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering U.S. Navy-Marine Corps 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. Castillo, 34 M.J. 1160, 1992 CMR LEXIS 440, 1992 WL 105874 (usnmcmilrev 1992).

Opinion

MOLLISON, Judge:

Consistent with his pleas, the appellant was found guilty of one specification of willfully disobeying a superior commissioned officer in violation of Article 90, Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ), 10 U.S.C. § 890. A military judge sitting as a special court-martial sentenced the appellant to confinement for five months, forfeiture of $450.00 pay per month for a period of five months, reduction to pay grade E-l, and a bad-conduct discharge. The convening authority approved the sentence as adjudged, but suspended all unexecuted confinement and forfeitures in excess of $250.00 pay per month for five months.1 The appellant asserts six errors were committed in connection with his court-martial.2 Most significantly, he contends that the special court-martial that tried him lacked jurisdiction because his offense was a capital offense at the time and no general court-martial convening authority had consented to his trial by special court-martial. The appellant urges the Court to set aside and dismiss the findings and sentence.

On 20 January 1991, the appellant was assigned to the 3rd Tank Battalion, 1st Marine Division (Reinforced), Fleet Marine Force, then located in Saudi Arabia. The appellant was assigned as the Battalion’s Preventive Medicine Technician. The Officer-in-Charge of the Battalion Aid Station, appellant’s superior commissioned officer, had a requirement to replace a corpsman in Company “A.” He selected the appellant. The appellant willfully refused his order to report and serve in that capacity. Accordingly, the charge and specification alleging willful disobedience of this order were referred to trial by special court-martial by the Commanding Officer, 3rd Tank Battal[1162]*1162ion. That officer is a special court-martial convening authority, not a general court-martial convening authority. Articles 22(a), 23(a)(5), (7), UCMJ, 10 U.S.C. §§ 822(a), 823(a)(5), (7); JAG Instruction 5800.7C of 3 October 1990, Manual of the Judge Advocate General of the Navy (JAG-MAN) § 0120. There is no evidence in the record that a general court-martial convening authority consented to the referral of this charge to a special court-martial. At the time of the offense and the trial, hostilities were underway in the Persian Gulf region. Mil.R.Evid. 201.

Article 19, UCMJ, 10 U.S.C. § 819, provides: “[S]pecial courts-martial have jurisdiction to try persons subject to [the Code] for any non-capital offense made punishable by [the Code] and, under such regulations as the President may prescribe, for capital offenses.” Pursuant to this provision of the Code and others,3 the President and the Secretary of the Navy have promulgated pertinent regulations. As a consequence, a special court-martial lacks jurisdiction to try a capital offense without the concurrence of the appropriate general court-martial convening authority.4 Rules for Courts-Martial (R.C.M.) 103(3), 201(f)(2)(C), Manual for Courts-Martial (MCM), United States, 1984; JAGMAN § 122a(2). The Code provides that a violation of Article 90 is punishable by death “in time of war.” Otherwise, it carries a maximum authorized punishment of a dishonorable discharge, total forfeitures and confinement for 5 years. Articles 56, 90, UCMJ, 10 U.S.C. §§ 856, 890; MCM, Part IV, 1114e.

The appellant contends that his offense occurred “in time of war,” that the offense was a capital offense, and that, since no officer exercising general court-martial convening authority consented to his trial by special court-martial on this offense, the special court-martial before which he was tried and sentenced lacked jurisdiction. Assuming the accuracy of the appellant’s premise—that his offense was a capital offense because it was committed “in time of war”—the appellant would appear to be entirely correct. United States v. Bancroft, 3 U.S.C.M.A. 3, 11 C.M.R. 3 (1953); United States v. Sykes, 32 M.J. 791 (N.M.C.M.R.1990). Moreover, it appears that an error of this nature is jurisdictional, that the appellant did not waive the error by failing to object at trial, that reference of the charge to trial by special court-martial cannot now be retroactively ratified by a general court-martial convening authority, and that the error cannot be cured by affirming the non-capital, lesser offense of failing to obey a lawful order in violation of Article 92, UCMJ. Bancroft; 10 U.S.C. § 892; R.C.M. 907. Therefore, two questions are presented. Did the 1991 Persian Gulf conflict qualify as “time of war” within the meaning of the Code? If so, was capital punishment in fact authorized for Article 90 violations occurring during that conflict? We answer the first in the affirmative and the second in the negative. We, therefore, conclude the appellant’s special court-martial had jurisdiction to try him without the concurrence of a general court-martial convening authority. Discussion follows.

The term “in time of war” appears in various articles of the Code. Article 2(a)(10), UCMJ, 10 U.S.C. § 802(a)(10) (jurisdiction over persons serving or accompanying an armed force in the field in time of war); Article 43(a), (e), (f), UCMJ, 10 U.S.C. § 843(a), (e), (f) (suspension of the statute of limitations in time of war); Article 71(b), UCMJ, 10 U.S.C. § 871(b) (commutation of a dismissal to reduction to any enlisted grade in time of war); e.g., Article 90, UCMJ, 10 U.S.C. § 890 (capital punishment for willfully disobeying a superior commissioned officer in time of war). The Code, however, does not define the term and its legislative history is not particularly enlightening. Analysis, R.C.M. 103(19), App. 21, MCM, 1984, A21-5. Accordingly, defin[1163]*1163ing the term “in time of war” has been a matter of statutory construction by military courts.

Two tests have been adopted to determine whether a conflict is “in time of war” for purposes of the Code: a conflict is “in time of war” if Congress formally declares war (de jure war test) or if the conflict is a war in fact (de facto war test). Cf. United States v. Gann, 3 U.S.C.M.A. 12, 11 C.M.R. 12, 13 (1953); Bancroft. The de jure test is always a valid test for these purposes, however, the de facto test is not always sufficient. Compare United States v. Averette, 19 U.S.C.M.A. 363, 41 C.M.R. 363 (1970) (no jurisdiction to try civilians accompanying the armed forces in Vietnam under Article 2(a)(10), UCMJ, 10 U.S.C. § 802(a)(10) in absence of formal declaration of war by Congress), with United States v. Anderson, 17 U.S.C.M.A. 588, 38 C.M.R.

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Bluebook (online)
34 M.J. 1160, 1992 CMR LEXIS 440, 1992 WL 105874, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-v-castillo-usnmcmilrev-1992.