U.S. v. Barnett, 71 M.J. 248

Military Justice Personnel: Military Judge: Duties and Responsibilities

1. the military judge has an independent duty to determine and deliver appropriate instructions

Military Justice Personnel: Military Judge: Instructions

1. the military judge has an independent duty to determine and deliver appropriate instructions
2. once evidence of pretrial punishment was introduced during sentencing by the accused, in the interests of reliable and truthful sentencing, it was within the military judge’s discretion to initially instruct the members of the Article 13 credit and how it would be credited
3. the military judge correctly responded to the members’ question about whether they could increase the accused’s sentence to offset the 100 days of pretrial confinement Article 13 credit the accused received by instructing the members that they had a duty to adjudge an appropriate sentence that they regarded as fair and just when imposed, not one whose fairness depended upon the actions of others; nothing in the instruction invited the members, either expressly or by inference, to either impose extra confinement to offset the pretrial confinement Article 13 credit or impose less confinement in consideration for the pretrial punishment
4. while counsel may request specific instructions, the military judge has substantial discretion in deciding on the instructions to give and whether the requested instructions are appropriate; this discretion must be exercised in light of correct principles of law as applied to the facts and circumstances of the case
5. denial of a requested instruction is error if: (1) the requested instruction is correct, (2) it is not substantially covered in the main charge, and (3) it is on such a vital point in the case that the failure to give it deprives the accused of a defense or seriously impairs its effective presentation
6. the military judge did not abuse his discretion in declining to specifically instruct the members that they could not increase the amount of the accused’s confinement to offset or nullify some or all of the accused’s pretrial confinement Article 13 credit, where the issue as to how the members should consider the credit was substantially covered in the instructions provided; if the military judge had instructed the members that they could not consider the Article 13 confinement credit in determining an appropriate sentence, that instruction would have been in conflict with the standard instruction properly informing the members that they should consider all matters in extenuation and mitigation as well as those in aggravation in determining an appropriate sentence

Trial Stages: Sentence and Punishment: Credits

1. once evidence of pretrial punishment was introduced during sentencing by the accused, in the interests of reliable and truthful sentencing, it was within the military judge’s discretion to initially instruct the members of the Article 13 credit and how it would be credited
2. the military judge correctly responded to the members’ question about whether they could increase the accused’s sentence to offset the 100 days of pretrial confinement Article 13 credit the accused received by instructing the members that they had a duty to adjudge an appropriate sentence that they regarded as fair and just when imposed, not one whose fairness depended upon the actions of others; nothing in the instruction invited the members, either expressly or by inference, to either impose extra confinement to offset the pretrial confinement Article 13 credit or impose less confinement in consideration for the pretrial punishment
3. the military judge did not abuse his discretion in declining to specifically instruct the members that they could not increase the amount of the accused’s confinement to offset or nullify some or all of the accused’s pretrial confinement Article 13 credit, where the issue as to how the members should consider the credit was substantially covered in the instructions provided; if the military judge had instructed the members that they could not consider the Article 13 confinement credit in determining an appropriate sentence, that instruction would have been in conflict with the standard instruction properly informing the members that they should consider all matters in extenuation and mitigation as well as those in aggravation in determining an appropriate sentence

Trial Stages: Sentence and Punishment: Instructions

1. once evidence of pretrial punishment was introduced during sentencing by the accused, in the interests of reliable and truthful sentencing, it was within the military judge’s discretion to initially instruct the members of the Article 13 credit and how it would be credited
2. the military judge correctly responded to the members’ question about whether they could increase the accused’s sentence to offset the 100 days of pretrial confinement Article 13 credit the accused received by instructing the members that they had a duty to adjudge an appropriate sentence that they regarded as fair and just when imposed, not one whose fairness depended upon the actions of others; nothing in the instruction invited the members, either expressly or by inference, to either impose extra confinement to offset the pretrial confinement Article 13 credit or impose less confinement in consideration for the pretrial punishment
3. the military judge did not abuse his discretion in declining to specifically instruct the members that they could not increase the amount of the accused’s confinement to offset or nullify some or all of the accused’s pretrial confinement Article 13 credit, where the issue as to how the members should consider the credit was substantially covered in the instructions provided; if the military judge had instructed the members that they could not consider the Article 13 confinement credit in determining an appropriate sentence, that instruction would have been in conflict with the standard instruction properly informing the members that they should consider all matters in extenuation and mitigation as well as those in aggravation in determining an appropriate sentence

Trial Stages: Appeals: Standards of Review, Burdens, etc.

1. an appellate court reviews issues concerning non-mandatory instructions for an abuse of discretion