Attorneys will now serve as Article 32 Investigating Officers for alleged sexual offenses….hire a strong advocate to represent you at the Article 32.

If you have been ordered to an Article 32 investigation and are facing sexual offense charges, then you will be facing an experienced Judge Advocate when you go to your Article 32 hearing.  In August 2013, the Secretary of Defense mandated that the services begin using Judge Advocates as the Article 32 investigating officers in cases involving sexual offenses.  The services have begun implementing this now.  What does this mean for you?  It means that you need to take your Article 32 investigation seriously.  In some ways, having an attorney conduct your Article 32 hearing will work in your favor.  He or she should be able to analyze your case the way a military judge might.  This will give you a good indication as to whether the government has a good court-martial case against you or not.  Also, if there is not sufficient evidence against you, the attorney holding the Article 32 will certainly point that out to the government and may even recommend that the case not go to a court-martial.  In some ways, however, having an attorney conduct your Article 32 hearing is intimidating.  My advice?  Don’t face the Article 32 hearing alone or in the hands of an inexperienced attorney.  Go to your Article 32 hearing prepared.  Make sure you have an attorney next to you who can and will be strong and advocate to the Judge Advocate holding your hearing that you are innocent of the charges you face.  You need an advocate who can confidently go through the elements of the charges you face and show that attorney why the government does not have the evidence to prove those elements.  If you are facing an Article 32 investigation based on sexual offenses, you need an experienced attorney to represent you in front of the attorney who will now hold your hearing.  Don’t wait, call now.  To speak to an experienced court-martial and military defense attorney, call Bill Cassara at 706-860-5769 for a free consultation.