U.S. v. Sager, 76 M.J. 158

Core Criminal Law Subjects: Crimes: Article 120 - Rape and Sexual Assault Generally Pre-2019 offenses › (d) Abusive Sexual Contact

1. Article 120(d), UCMJ, prohibits sexual contact with another person if they are asleep, unconscious, or otherwise unaware that the sexual contact is occurring; the language which states that a person may not make sexual contact with someone who is asleep, unconscious, or otherwise unaware, creates three separate theories under which one may be guilty of the offense; the words ‘asleep’ or ‘unconscious’ not are mere examples of how an individual may be ‘otherwise unaware’; the words ‘otherwise unaware’ mean unaware in a manner different from asleep and different from unconsciousness

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

1. an appellate court reviews questions of statutory interpretation de novo
2. the ordinary meaning canon of statutory construction provides that the words of a statute are to be taken in their natural and ordinary signification and import; the surplusage canon of statutory construction provides that, if possible, every word and every provision is to be given effect and that no word should be ignored or needlessly be given an interpretation that causes it to duplicate another provision or to have no consequence
3. courts must presume that a legislature says in a statute what it means and means in a statute what it says there; when the words of a statute are unambiguous, then, the first canon of statutory construction is also the last, and judicial inquiry is complete
4. words and phrases used in the UCMJ are interpreted by examining the ordinary meaning of the language, the context in which the language is used, and the broader statutory context; in any such analysis, a court should give meaning to each word of the statute; only where the statute remains unclear does the court look next to the legislative history

Miscellaneous Matters: Statutes, Treaties, Regulations, Executive Orders, Directives, etc.: Generally

1. the ordinary meaning canon of statutory construction provides that the words of a statute are to be taken in their natural and ordinary signification and import; the surplusage canon of statutory construction provides that, if possible, every word and every provision is to be given effect and that no word should be ignored or needlessly be given an interpretation that causes it to duplicate another provision or to have no consequence
2. courts must presume that a legislature says in a statute what it means and means in a statute what it says there; when the words of a statute are unambiguous, then, the first canon of statutory construction is also the last, and judicial inquiry is complete
3. words and phrases used in the UCMJ are interpreted by examining the ordinary meaning of the language, the context in which the language is used, and the broader statutory context; in any such analysis, a court should give meaning to each word of the statute; only where the statute remains unclear does the court look next to the legislative history
4. canons of statutory construction ordinarily suggest that terms connected by a disjunctive be given separate meanings, unless the context dictates otherwise