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Show 10 HILL TOP TIMES Friday. April 11. 1986 ember may destine Arflide 1 5 if ffeiredl By Maj. Haral Stuart Chief of Military Justice Does a military member have to accept nonjudicial punishment under Article 15 if his or her commander offers it? The answer, of course, is no. Any military member may decline an offered Article 15. It's always wise to consult with the Area Defense Counsel before doing so, but no one may be compelled to accept nonjudicial punishment against his or her will. So what happens if nonjudicial punishment is declined? The answer can be found on Air Force Form 3070, the document used by commanders to offer nonjudicial punishment. In block 5 of the form, the military member may check the square accepting nonjudicial punishment or may place his or her mark next to the other choice "I demand trial by Once this choice is made, a will be convened to determine the guilt or innocence of the alleged offender and, if conviction results, determine an appropriate sentence. This brings up one of the most important aspects of nonjudicial punishment, and one which is often overlooked by military members. No commander can offer an Article 15 based on anything but reliable and convincing evidence. Air Force Regulation 111-9- , which governs nonjudicial punishment actions, requires a thorough legal review and evaluation court-martial- court-marti- ." al of all available evidence before such action can be initiated by a unit commander. If the legal review reveals that the evidence is insufficient to support a proposed charge, no disciplinary action can be taken. convened Several courts-martihere in recent years, involving both enlisted and officers, have resulted from declined Article 15s. In the past three weeks, though, 14 nonjudicial punishment actions were processed to completion after acceptance by the recipients. Five members of the 388th Component Repair Squadron accepted nonjudicial punishment for marijuana use as detected by urinalysis. Four of them, formerly senior airman, were reduced in rank to airman first class. One of these was also ordered to undergo seven days of correctional custody. The fifth military member was reduced from airman first class to airman. Three others also accepted nonjudicial punishment for drug abuse. An airman first class in the 2849th Air Base Group was reduced to airman basic for marijuana use. In the 6514th Test Group, an airman first class was reduced to airman basic and ordered to forfeit $319 for marijuana use and a senior airman was reduced to airman basic for cocaine use. All of the above military members are also subject to discharge for drug of AFR abuse under paragraph al Two other members of the 388th Component Repair Squadron received nonjudicial punishment recently for related offenses. Each was reduced from airman first class to airman for failure to obey a lawful order non-dru- g and failure to go at the time prescribed to the appointed place of duty, respectively. In other actions involving senior airman and below, an airman in the 4488th Aircraft Generation Squadron was ordered to undergo 30 days correctional custody for making a false official statement and failure to go. An airman in the 2849th Air Base Attorney given nomination A member of the Staff Judge Advocate's Office here has been selected as one of six nominees for the 1985 awards. S. Reed Murdock was selected as AFLC's Outstanding Civilian Attorney of the Year for 1985 and nominated for the Air Force's James O. Wrightson Jr. Award. Other AFLC nominees were: Wright-Patterso- Maj. William E. Hughes III of the Air Force Contract Law Center's Acquisition Law Directorate at AFB, Ohio, was selected AFLC's Outstanding Judge Advocate of the Year for 1 985 and nominated for the Air Force's Albert M. Wright-Patterso- n Kuh-fel- d Award. Larry F. Lewis, 0. selected as AFLC's Outstanding 7 and hassle-free- ! Off-dut- y 2 Legal Services Civilian of the Year for 1 985, was nominated for the Air Force's Harold Ft. Vague Award. He is a member of AFLC's Systems Program Division. SSgt. Martha J. Lisinski, 2750th Air Base Wing's n AFB, Judge Advocate Office, Ohio, was selected as AFLC Outstanding Legal Services Airman of the Year for 1 985 and nominated for the Air Force's Steve Swigonski Award. Selected as AFLC's Outstanding Reserve Judge Advocate of the Year for 1 985 and nominated for the Air Force's Reginald C. Harmon Award was Maj. John C. Gatlin, Staff Judge Advocate's Office, Oklahoma City ALC, Tinker AFB, Okla. SSgt. John Whitmar, Staff Judge Advocate's Office, Sacramento ALC, McClellan AFB, Calif., was selected as AFLC's Outstanding Reserve Legal Services Airman of the Year for 1 985 and nominated for the Air Force's Outstanding Legal . : Services Airman Award. (AFLCNS) Judge Advocate General's annual 5-4- 9c 39-1- Group was reduced to airman basic for failure to go. Two noncommissioned officers received nonjudicial punishment recently. A staff sergeant assigned to Det. 4, 40th Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Squadron was reduced to sergeant, ordered to undergo 30 days of correctional custody, and reprimanded for three specifications of dereliction of duty. A technical sergeant assigned to the 6545th Test Squadron received a suspended reduction to staff sergeant and was ordered to forfeit $350 for driving under the influence of alcohol. i ffis QftrftflTto ami HE n A iw a vr 5r a Now let Qriteriomi your cair Iirosmrainice, Tl l tl Mini-jniass- iie .set you free from worries and problems. Criterion is a service-oriente- d company. That's why we invented car insurance. Here's what it can do for you . . . O Low and drive away. O Convenient budget terms. LOWEST PRICE THIS SPRING Three great R.JOHNS Ring Styles to choose from! Price includes special options and custom features (Full name feature extra) 164 95 Applicable on Valadium Rings, 10K & I4K Gold Available at Higher Prices. Ask about our college .. SPECIAL 95 - down-payme- VALAOIUM trade-i- n OFFERED EXCLUSIVELY no-hass- option. BY O Fast-actio- n, O claim service. Protection everywhere in the U.S.A. and Canada. R. 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