Court-martial
A court-martial is empowered to determine the guilt of members of the armed forces subject to military law, and, if the defendant is found guilty, to decide upon punishment.
The Geneva Conventions require that POWs who are on trial for war crimes be subject to the same procedures as would be the holding military's own forces.
Finally, courts-martial can be convened for other purposes, such as dealing with violations of martial law, and can involve civilian defendants.
[5] Usually, a court-martial takes the form of a trial with a presiding judge, a prosecutor and a defense attorney (all trained lawyers as well as officers).
Courts-martial have the authority to try a wide range of military offences, many of which closely resemble civilian crimes like fraud, theft or perjury.
For members of the United States Armed Forces offenses are covered under the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ).
These offences, as well as their corresponding punishments and instructions on how to conduct a court-martial, are explained in detail based on each country and/or service.
Harold Pringle was the last Canadian soldier executed pursuant to a court martial, in 1945, having been convicted of murder.
If the brigade commander feels that the crime warrants a punishment more severe than he can give, he refers the case to the local district attorney who commences prosecution.
In addition, they may handle criminal cases against civilians in areas where ordinary courts have ceased operation, if the matter is urgent.
The President of India can use the judicial power under Article 72 of the constitution to pardon, reprieve, respite or remission of punishment or sentence given by a court martial.
[17] They are criminal courts with jurisdiction over offences committed by soldiers in active military service, as well as certain offences committed by civilian military personnel and soldiers of the armed forces of foreign countries (Article 647 of the Code of Criminal Procedure[18]).
In 2005, ex-AFP Major General Carlos Garcia (PMA Class of 1971, assigned comptroller of the AFP was court martialled for violating two articles of the Articles of War for the alleged Php 303 million Peso Money Laundering/Plunder and direct Bribery against him.
The act allows the Judge Advocate General of Thailand (Thai: เจ้ากรมพระธรรมนูญ) to establish court regulations.
Previously courts-martial were convened on an ad hoc basis with several traditions, including usage of swords.
However, they can also be convened for other purposes, including military tribunals and the enforcement of martial law in an occupied territory.
In Herman Melville's novella Billy Budd (first published 1924), the title character is convicted at a drumhead court-martial of striking and killing his superior officer on board HMS Indomitable, is sentenced to death, and is hanged.
The novella has been adapted for the stage, film and television; notably in Benjamin Britten's 1951 opera Billy Budd.
Forester's 1938 novel Flying Colours, Captain Horatio Hornblower is court-martialled for the loss of HMS Sutherland.
In Michael Morpurgo's novel Private Peaceful, the main character of "Tommo" reflects on the childhoods of himself and his brother, Charlie as Charlie awaits a court martial during WWI, which he receives at the end of the story for disobeying orders and cowardice in the face of the enemy.
Several courts-martial occur in the British naval TV series Warship, including notably that of Lieutenant Palfrey, a Royal Marines officer accused of killing a foreign officer during a military exercise, and that of Fleet Air Arm pilot Edward Glenn, brother of Alan Glenn, one the principal characters, charged with a range of offences relating to a dangerous flight manœuvre.
The 1992 movie A Few Good Men (and the play on which it was based) deals almost entirely with the court martial of two enlisted Marines.
