Civilian Court-Martial Defense Lawyer: End of Year Wrap-Up and Welcome to 2021

Happy New Year. 2020 has been a very difficult and tragic year for many. We keep them in our thoughts and prayers. We hope for a brighter 2021. While the pandemic progressed through 2020, the military justice system pressed forward. We want to sincerely thank our clients for allowing us the privilege of representing them and their families. Thank you all so much for your service and your sacrifice!

As former active duty military defense JAG lawyers, and now as civilian court-martial defense attorneys with decades of military justice experience, we strive to help military members and their families during very difficult times. Therefore, we measure the term “success” by how well we were able to help our clients and their families with outcomes that positively resolved the military cases, allegations, adverse actions and investigations they faced – not by our financial bottom line.

Looking back on our 2020 cases, it was marked by positive outcomes and grateful clients – from court-martial trials dropped and won, administrative hearings successfully litigated, to successful appeals and responses to other military adverse actions and discipline. These outcomes are extremely gratifying for us. Some of the successes from this past year have been documented in our blog (when we have time to post updates).

Here are some links to blog posts describing the outcomes of some of my 2020 cases:

• Senior Officer Discharge Board (BOI, Show Cause, Officer Elimination)
• Attempt to Kill Unborn Child and Murder Cases
• Senior Officer Administrative Disciplinary Action Dropped
• Cases Regarding Rape and Sexual Assault:
  • http://militaryadvocate.blogspot.com/2020/10/civilian-court-martial-defense-lawyer_19.html
  • http://militaryadvocate.blogspot.com/2020/10/civilian-court-martial-defense-lawyer.html
  • http://militaryadvocate.blogspot.com/2020/09/civilian-court-martial-defense-lawyers.html
  • http://militaryadvocate.blogspot.com/2020/07/civilian-court-martial-defense-lawyer_15.html
  • http://militaryadvocate.blogspot.com/2020/07/civilian-court-martial-defense-lawyer.html
  • http://militaryadvocate.blogspot.com/2020/01/civilian-court-martial-defense-lawyer_25.html
• Flying Evaluation Board (FEB)
• Senior Officer and Commander Administrative Discipline
• Rape, Sexual Assault, Domestic Violence
• Distribution of Illegal Drugs
• Three Administrative Discipline Cases
• DUI and Gun Offenses

We are very thankful for the successful outcomes we have been able to secure for our clients this past year. For ease of researching, here are links to blog posts, and case outcomes, from previous years (2011-2019): http://militaryadvocate.blogspot.com/2020/06/civilian-court-martial-defense-lawyer.html

This past year, I defended, represented, advised, counseled or otherwise assisted clients and/or handled cases out of:

• Deployed location in Afghanistan
• The Pentagon (Washington, DC)
• Fort Hood (Killeen, TX)
• Fort Bragg (Fayetteville, NC)
• Fort Sam Houston (San Antonio, TX)
• Fort Carson (Colorado Springs, CO)
• Fort Drum (Watertown, NY)
• Duke Field (Crestview, FL)
• MCAS Cherry Point (Havelock, NC)
• NAS Pensacola (Florida)
• Washington Naval Yard (National Capital Region)
• U.S. Air Force Academy (Colorado Springs, CO)
• Joint Base Andrews (Washington DC, National Capital Region)
• Tyndall AFB (Panama City, Florida)
• Travis AFB (California)
• Hill AFB (Salt Lake City, UT)
• Robins AFB (Georgia)
• Minot AFB (North Dakota)
• Maxwell AFB (Montgomery, AL)
• Holloman AFB (New Mexico)
• Beale AFB (California)
• Joint Base San Antonio, Lackland AFB (San Antonio, Texas)
• Little Rock AFB (Little Rock, Arkansas)
• Joint Base San Antonio, Randolph AFB (San Antonio, Texas)
• Eglin AFB (Florida)
• Hurlburt Field (Mary Esther, Florida)
• USAFCENT, Middle East
• USCENTCOM, MacDill AFB (Tampa, Florida)

Some of the cases, allegations and military law issues I handled this past year included:

• Rape, Sexual Assault, Sexual Misconduct (UCMJ Article 120)
• Attempt to Kill an Unborn Child (UCMJ Article 119A)
• Espionage (UCMJ Article 106)
• Larceny, Wrongful Appropriation, BAH Fraud, PCS Fraud, Travel Voucher Fraud (UCMJ Article 121)
• Insubordination, Failure to Obey Lawful Orders, & Dereliction of Duty (UCMJ Articles 91 & 92)
• Drug Offenses: Wrongful Use, Possession, Introduction, Distribution of Controlled Substances (UCMJ Article 112a)
• Physical Assault and Assault Consummated by Battery (UCMJ Article 128)
• Various domestic violence and domestic abuse
• Various sexual abuse
• False Official Statement (UCMJ Article 107)
• Intent to Unlawfully Gain Advantage (Blackmail, UCMJ Article 127)
• Conduct Unbecoming an Officer and Gentleman (UCMJ Article 133)
• UCMJ Article 134 offenses including:
  • Adultery
  • Fraternization
  • Sexual Harassment
  • Receipt, possession and/or distribution of child pornography
  • Obstruction of Justice
  • Wrongfully communicating a threat
  • Wrongfully posting sexual pictures online

Some of the adverse actions I have defended against this past year have included:

• Court-martial trials (general court-martial and special court-martial)
• Administrative discharge boards, administrative separation boards
• Officer Elimination Actions, Board of Inquiry (BOI)
• Senior Officer Investigations and Discipline
• Officer Grade Determination (OGD)
• Article 15, Nonjudicial Punishment (NJP)
• Performance report appeals (OER, NCOER, OPR, EPR)
• Board for Corrections of Military Records (BCMR) appeals in different military branches
• Discharge Review Board (DRB) appeals in different military branches
• Medical Evaluation Board (MEB) and Physical Evaluation Board (PEB) cases in different military branches
• Medical De-Credentialing, Privileging Actions
• Flying Evaluation Boards (FEB)
• Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests
• Military Academy discipline, disenrollment, boards, and appeals

As we always warn, while the military court-martial trials and other military cases described in our blog posts were successfully defended against, it is important to understand that every case has different facts, evidence, and participants, and success in previous military courts-martial and military cases does not guarantee success in any particular future court-martial or military case. No military lawyer or civilian defense lawyer, including those who specialize in military law, can guarantee the outcome of any military case or military trial.

Given the potential consequences to military careers, families and personal freedom when facing military discipline, adverse action and/or court-martial trial, it is critical to be defended by a lawyer with experience in military law. For those seeking assistance, we offer free initial case consultations. You can reach us by completing a contact form on this site or calling toll free at (888) 399-0693.

You can also learn more about our work by seeing our appearances in the news at https://militaryadvocate.com/Appearances/ and reading reviews at http://www.avvo.com/attorneys/32566-fl-richard-stevens-693212/reviews.html.