UCMJ

UCMJ — the Uniform Code of Military Justice — is the federal military criminal law of the United States, setting out rules on discipline, criminal procedure and sanctions for persons subject to US military jurisdiction. The code is not part of the civilian justice system but constitutes a separate military legal system with its own courts, prosecutors and defence counsel. The UCMJ is codified in Title 10, United States Code, Chapter 47, and applies to active-duty service members, reservists while on duty, and certain civilians connected to the military. It covers everything from disciplinary infractions to serious crimes such as murder, rape and war crimes.

The principal form of proceeding under the UCMJ is the court-martial, comparable to a military criminal court. There are three types: summary, special and general court-martial, the last of which handles the most serious cases and can result in lengthy prison sentences or even the death penalty.

In the Eddie Gallagher case, the US Navy SEAL was charged under the UCMJ with, among other things, the intentional killing of a wounded ISIS prisoner in Iraq in 2017. The case was tried as a general court-martial. In 2019 Gallagher was acquitted of the murder charge but convicted of the lesser offence of posing for a photograph with the dead prisoner. The case illustrates how the UCMJ is used to prosecute service members for acts committed on active duty — including in war zones.

The UCMJ differs from civilian criminal law in, among other respects, allowing the chain of command to influence charging decisions, although reforms have repeatedly sought to limit that influence in order to secure independent prosecutions.