As discussed previously here, the 2023 National Defense Authorization Act opened up access to the appellate courts to every servicemember convicted at general or special courts-martial, no matter the sentence. If you are court-martialed and receive a sentence that includes a bad conduct discharge, dishonorable discharge, dismissal, or confinement for two years or more, your … Read more
At the conclusion of the court-martial, the convening authority (usually the base commander) has the authority to either approve or disapprove the conviction and the sentence, either in whole or in part. This is commonly referred to as the clemency process of “1105 submission.” This is due to the fact that the authority to ask … Read more
Your appellate lawyer, whether it be an active duty JAG or a civilian attorney, is responsible for preparing a “brief” or written pleading, to present to the Court of Criminal Appeals. This is done by carefully reading the record of trial, or transcript, and identifying legal issues that may result in relief for the client. … Read more
How long will it take to get my case heard? There is no clear answer to this. In some cases, it can take years before all of the appeals are over. What else might happen? In some cases, the court can order a “DuBay” hearing, in order to gather more facts about the issues raised … Read more
I recently posted how the Army Court of Criminal Appeals had reversed my client’s child sexual abuse conviction in U.S. v. Swift. In a rare move, the government appealed that decision to the Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces. Yesterday, the CAAF agreed with us, and denied the government’s appeal. This means my client … Read more
I recently represented an Air Force captain, who was convicted of sexually molesting his two step daughters. Unfortunately, this is a scenario all too often where allegations are brought against a service member in the midst of a divorce. My client has steadfastly maintained his innocence, and there was no physical evidence to link him … Read more
I previously reported on how I successfully had a client’s conviction for rape of a child thrown out on appeal by the Navy-Marine Corps Court of Criminal Appeals. As I reported in that post, my client still had several convictions on his record. Now, two more of those convictions have been overturned on appeal, this … Read more
Mr. Cassara recently represented a soldier who was convicted of two separate rapes and sentenced to seven years confinement and a dishonorable discharge. Mr. Cassara argued on appeal that the soldier had been denied a fair trial when the military judge ruled that the prior sexual activities of the two alleged victims were inadmissible at … Read more
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
Mr. Cassara represented a Navy E-6 at trial on a single charge of use of cocaine. After a hard fought case, the panel convicted the sailor and reduced him one grade. Mr. Cassara appealed that decision to the Office of the Judge Advocate General pursuant to Rule for Courts-Martial 69b. That office forwarded the case … Read more