Section 5924.37 | Unlawful influence.
(A) No authority convening a general, special, or summary court-martial, other commanding officer, or officer serving on the staff of a convening authority or other commanding officer may censure, reprimand, or admonish the court or any member, military judge, or counsel of the court, with respect to the findings or sentence adjudged by the court or with respect to any other exercise of its or the member's, military judge's, or counsel's functions in the conduct of the proceeding. No person subject to this code may attempt to coerce or, by any unauthorized means, influence the action of the court-martial or any other military tribunal or any member of the court-martial or military tribunal in reaching the findings or sentence in any case, or the action of any convening, approving, or reviewing authority with respect to the authority's judicial acts. This division does not apply to:
(1) General instructional or informational courses in military justice, if such courses are designed solely for the purpose of instructing members of a command in the substantive and procedural aspects of courts-martial;
(2) Statements and instructions given in open court by the military judge, the president of a special court-martial, or counsel.
(B) In the preparation of a fitness, evaluation, or performance report, or any other report or document used in whole or in part for the purpose of determining whether a member of the organized militia is qualified to be advanced in grade, in determining the assignment or transfer of a member of the organized militia, or in determining whether a member of the organized militia should be retained on duty, no person subject to this code may do either of the following:
(1) Consider or evaluate the performance of duty of the member as a member of a court-martial;
(2) Give a less favorable rating or evaluation of any member of the organized militia because of the zeal with which the member, as counsel, represented any accused before a court-martial.
Available Versions of this Section
- September 28, 2012 – House Bill 490 - 129th General Assembly [ View September 28, 2012 Version ]