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Mr. Cassara recently represented an Army Captain who was facing discharge for serous misconduct including posting nude pictures of his former girl friend on a fake Facebook account.  The officer was facing an Other Than Honorable Discharge, which would have lead to the loss of his VA benefits even after two deployments.   While the Board … Read more

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Temporary Early Retirement Authority (TERA) is now available in all services.  The Army just implemented TERA last week on 10 June 2013.  TERA is designed to allow those servicemembers with over 15 years of service, being denied continued service based on the centralized board process, to retire early instead of receiving an involuntary separation.  The … Read more

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If you were separated or retired because of a disability, you may be under the impression that you are stuck with the rating percentage that you were given.  This is not necessarily true.  In fact, two different boards have been specifically set up to review disability ratings.  In 2009, the Physical Disability Board of Review … Read more

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In March I posted a blog talking about how sexual assault in the military is all over the news these days.  Well, this continues to be true as top military leaders resist proposals by some Senators that sexual assaults should no longer be handled by the military chain of command.  One of the bills introduced … Read more

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Mr. Cassara recently succeeded in having a client’s sexual assault conviction overturned on appeal.  SSG Daniel Gaskins was convicted at court-martial for sexual assault of a minor and sexual assault of a fellow service member.   He has steadfastly maintained his innocence.  He was originally sentenced to twelve years in prison.  Mr. Cassara succeeded in having … Read more

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If you have been titled by the military police, NCIS or CID you know what a pain this can be.  It shows up every time a background check is done and it seems to follow you everywhere.  It does not take a lot to be titled, in fact, all that is needed is “credible information” … Read more

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Last week on May 23, 2013, after hearing my oral argument, the Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces (CAAF) ruled in favor of my client.  At my client’s original court-martial in 2008, the Government lost one of the exhibits submitted for sentencing.  This exhibit is sometimes nicknamed a “good soldier book” because it is … Read more

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It depends.  As an enlisted accused, you have three different options regarding who will hear your court-martial, a military judge, an officer panel or an enlisted panel (in which at least one-third of the members will be enlisted).  As an officer accused, you can choose between a military judge and an officer panel.  This is … Read more

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Possessing or receiving child pornography may not be as hard to defend against as you think.  If the government charges a servicemember at a court-martial of violating a statute by possessing or receiving child pornography, the government will have to be able to prove during the court-martial that the picture or pictures in question meet … Read more

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Yes.  Article 73 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice states that at any time within 2 years of the convening authority approving a court-martial sentence, an accused can petition The Judge Advocate General (TJAG) for a new court-martial on the basis of newly discovered evidence or fraud on the court.  If your case is … Read more