U.S. v. Jacobsen, 77 M.J. 81

First Principles: Jurisdiction: Generally

1. a court must always satisfy itself that it has jurisdiction

First Principles: Jurisdiction: Subject Matter

1. there is a presumption against federal subject-matter jurisdiction, and jurisdiction is neither granted nor assumed by implication

First Principles: Jurisdiction: Of Courts of Criminal Appeals

1. military courts, as Article I courts, are courts of special jurisdiction and their authority to act is conferred and strictly confined by statute

First Principles: Jurisdiction: Of U.S. Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces

1. military courts, as Article I courts, are courts of special jurisdiction and their authority to act is conferred and strictly confined by statute

Trial Stages: Writs and Interlocutory Appeals: Article 62 Appeal

1. government appeals in criminal cases are disfavored and may only be brought pursuant to statutory authorization
2. the authority to review a government appeal is provided by Article 62, UCMJ, which represents Congress’s view that particular decisions made by a military judge permit an interlocutory government appeal
3. Article 62(a)(1)(B), UCMJ, authorizes the government to appeal, inter alia, an order or ruling which excludes evidence that is substantial proof of a fact material in the proceeding
4. in order to effectuate an interlocutory appeal under Article 62, UCMJ, the government trial counsel must both submit written notice of appeal to the military judge within seventy-two hours of the military judge’s ruling, and include a certification that the appeal is not taken for purpose of delay and that the evidence excluded is substantial proof of a fact material in the proceeding; the interlocutory appeal is then forwarded to the Court of Criminal Appeals
5. the plain language of Article 62(a)(1), UCMJ, confers appellate jurisdiction for orders or rulings that actually meet specified criteria; the language of Article 62, UCMJ, is not ambiguous, it provides that the government may appeal certain kinds of rulings by a military judge; given the limits on government appeals specifically, and Article I courts generally, an appeal must actually fall within the strictures of Article 62(a)(1)(A)-(F), UCMJ, to create appellate jurisdiction; and as relevant to the instant case, Article 62(a)(1)(B), UCMJ, requires that the military judge’s ruling (1) excludes evidence, and (2) that excluded evidence is substantial proof of a fact material in the proceeding
6. the language in Article 62, UCMJ, that requires that the evidence excluded by a military judge’s trial ruling was evidence that is substantial proof of a fact material in the proceeding is a threshold jurisdictional requirement for an interlocutory government appeal
7. a trial counsel’s certification that evidence is substantial proof of a fact material in the proceeding is not conclusive for purposes of establishing appellate jurisdiction under Article 62(a)(1)(B), UCMJ
8. although interlocutory appeal certifications made by a US attorney conclusively establish jurisdiction under 18 USC § 3731, certifications made by the government under Article 62, UCMJ, are not conclusive on the question of appellate jurisdiction

Trial Stages: Appeals: Courts of Criminal Appeals › Generally

1. military courts, as Article I courts, are courts of special jurisdiction and their authority to act is conferred and strictly confined by statute

Trial Stages: Appeals: Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces

1. military courts, as Article I courts, are courts of special jurisdiction and their authority to act is conferred and strictly confined by statute

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

1. an appellate court reviews issues of statutory interpretation and jurisdiction de novo
2. in interpreting a statute, an appellate court first looks to the text of the statute, and when statutory language is unambiguous, the statute’s plain language will control
3. it is a fundamental rule of statutory interpretation that a court afford all parts of a statute the same construction

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

1. in interpreting a statute, an appellate court first looks to the text of the statute, and when statutory language is unambiguous, the statute’s plain language will control
2. it is a fundamental rule of statutory interpretation that a court afford all parts of a statute the same construction