Your Career is in Jeopardy . . .
As an officer or a senior enlisted service member, you have invested years of your time, talents and efforts in serving your country, leading your troops, and sacrificing your personal comfort for what you know to be the greater good. As a result of your efforts, you have developed a record of honorable service and a reputation of integrity, initiative and solid performance. You can see a future which includes an honorable retirement and a rich and satisfying life after your service is complete.
Then an allegation against you arises, and that image of the future, that reputation of honor, is threatened.
For those who have invested much in the service, what may appear to be a minor offense can have a long term and devastating impact. In the competitive promotion environment of today, an adverse fitness report or performance evaluation will likely bar to future promotion. A finding of misconduct can be the triggering event of a number of negative consequences.
Misconduct Redefined
For most criminal cases, misconduct focuses in on affirmative acts done by an accused with some sort of criminal mind set—knowledge or intent—that makes the act criminal. With the responsibilities of leadership in the military environment, the standard becomes much more challenging. The concept of “dereliction of duty”—failing to perform your job to the standards required, even if that dereliction of duty is negligent and not intentional, and “responsibility of commanders”—the concept that a leader is responsible for all that his subordinates do or fail to do—is alive and well in today’s military. Recent high profile cases have shown officers and senior enlisted leaders held accountable and their careers ended because of both intentionally criminal acts and negligent dereliction of duty committed by their subordinates when they were not present and were unaware of the actions.
A Multitude of Consequences
For a junior enlisted member, punishment at Nonjudicial Punishment or even a special court-martial is an event that, if there is adequate time, can be recovered from. For an officer or senior enlisted, this is not the case. Because of the “higher standard” that officers and senior enlisted are held to, a single negative event can have long term consequences. For example, a Marine Corps Captain who fraternizes with a subordinate could expect:
1. Relief from command or any leadership responsibilities pending resolution of the case. Upon report of officer misconduct, higher headquarters will continually track the resolution of the case;
2. Preferral of charges, and the appointment of an Article 32 investigation, with the possibility of the case going to a general court-martial;
3. Even in the best of cases, where the charge is dealt with at Nonjudicial punishment vice a court-martial, there is a number of immediate consequences;
a. Adverse fitness reports or performance evaluation, which end the chance of promotion;
b. Revocation of Security Clearances, with the potential of losing the ability to continue to function in the current MOS;
c. Reporting of the resolution of the offense to higher headquarters.
4. In many cases, the finding of misconduct at the level of the officer's command is the basis for higher headquarters ordering a “Show Cause” Hearing or “Board of Inquiry.” At this hearing, the board examines the misconduct of teh individual in light of the entire record of the officer, in a manner similar to that at an administrative discharge board for enlisted. For a person who has not reached vesting for retirement, this could mean discharge from the service with an other than honorable characterization of service; for an officer eligible for retirement, the board could recommend reduction to the rank where the individual last served honorably.
These are representative of the serious consequences to a military career that can arise from a single act.
When Should I Act?
For an officer or senior enlisted, the time to retain an experienced attorney is now. As the investigation progresses and decisions are made, your field of options begins to progressively narrow, your access to evidence and witnesses not tainted by the allegations against you decreases, and your ability to mount an aggressive defense is lessened.
I have had extensive experience representing officers from 2d Lieutenant to Colonel and all levels of Senior Enlisted in all types of cases. I can assist you now in:
1. Responding to an investigation against you, and determining what actions you should take in the face of the inquiry;
2. Rebutting any Relief for Cause, Adverse Fitness Report or Performance Evaluation, Voiding of MOS, Revocation of Security Clearance, or other adverse administrative action that can arise immediately upon an allegation against you;
3. Preparing you for and representing you in pretrial negotiations with a view toward a derailment of the process;
4. Representing you at an Article 32 investigation and at your trial, if it becomes necessary;
5. Negotiating to dismiss the case or handle it at any alternative forum;
6. Representing you at a “show cause” hearing or Board of Inquiry or administrative discharge board; and
7. Preparing and presenting an application to the Board of Correction of Naval/Military Records to remove adverse material from your permanent records.
Do not hesitate in acting. Your career is worth defending.
Contact me. Now.
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