Promotion of Naval Reserve Officers
NRMAL No. 15-49, providing for the promo-

* * *

tion of Naval Reserve officers, has recently been issued, and is quoted in part. Selection Boards to consider officers in the promotion zones are to be convened as follows:

(a) LCDR-line-1 June 1949. (b) LT-line-20 June 1949.

(c) LTJG-line-5 Sept 1949 (approximate). (d) LCDR & LT-staff corps-1 June 1949. (e) LTJG-staff corps-5 Sept 1949 (approximate).

Selection boards will not be convened to consider the following promotions:

(a) Captain to rear admiral-no vacancy exists.

(b) Commander to captain-those officers in the selection zone were previously selected as captains and are now being appointed as their USN running mates are promoted.

(c) Ensign to lieutenant (junior grade)-Ensigns will not be required to undergo selection but upon completing three years of commissioned service will become eligible for promotion to lieutenant (junior grade).

Lieutenant-commanders, lieutenants, and lieutenants (junior grade) under consideration for promotion will be Reserve officers whose USN contemporaries are in the promotion zone. This year those zones include all officers whose dates of rank are prior to the following dates and also the more senior officers whose dates of rank are on the dates listed:

(a) LCDR March 15 1944. (b) LT July 1 1944.

(c) LTJG July 1 1945.

from the Naval Reserve those officers whose records indicate that their discharge is advisable in the best interests of the Naval Service.

Written promotion examinations will not be required and the selection boards listed above will be constituted as Naval Examining Boards for the purpose of examining officers on their records.

The membership and proceedings of selection boards shall be as specified in article H-3401 of the Bureau of Naval Personnel Manual, except that at least 50 percent of the members of each selection board shall be Naval Reserve officers if practicable.

Retirement Point Credit

BuPers 1tr 1D10-be Serial F: 794 dated 5 May 1949 states that the crediting of retirement points is confined to items listed in paragraph 2 of NRMAL 54-48 and must be for duty or training sponsored by and under the supervision of the Navy, or for duty or training in an approved joint service program. No credit may be given for any activity sponsored by or under the control of civilian activities or organizations such as attendance at meetings of civilian organizations, veterans organizations, conventions of various kinds and classroom instruction offered by various educational institutions.

Activities of Volunteer Law Units

VLU 12-4 (San Francisco-Oakland) met on 9 February and 9 March to hear CDR T. R. Vogeley, USN, Executive Officer of the Naval Station, Treasure Island, and CAPT Minor C. Heine, USN, District Intelligence Officer, respectively. CDR Vogeley spoke about his experiences in the Antarctic regions while on "Operations Highjump" and CAPT Heine gave an informative talk concerning the activities of Naval Intelligence. The next meeting will be held at Treasure Island on 13 April, with CAPT R. W. Truitt, ChC, USN, District Chaplain, as the speaker of the evening; 12-4 will commence meeting twice monthly at that time. Each meeting will qualify for a point on retirement but one meeting each month will present a "general interest" speaker of high caliber as in the past.

Published monthly by the Judge Advocate General of the Navy in the interest of true justice. The mission of the JAG JOURNAL is to promote legal forehandedness among naval personnel charged with the administration of naval law. The goal to be attained through this unofficial medium of instruction and review for those untrained or trained in law is the clear understanding of the basic laws governing Navy life and of the rights and obligations of naval personnel.

The editorial policy has been established as one of informality, to insure that articles are presented in interesting form. Its pages are citable in Navy judicial proceedings and will be accorded such weight as the respective courts may determine, when unsupported by official reports of cases referred to therein. Court Martial Orders and opinions of the Judge Advocate General remain as the Navy's official sources of precedent, binding upon courts as such.

Views on controversial topics expressed herein by individual authors must be construed as being their own personal views, not necessarily bearing the endorsement or approval of the Navy Department or of the Judge Advocate General.

The printing of this publication has been approved by the Director of the Bureau of the Budget, 13 July 1948.

RADM. G. L. RUSSELL, USN Judge Advocate General of the Navy

CAPT. E. E. WOODS, USN Assistant Judge Advocate General of the Navy

COMDR. T. F. RYAN, USNR Editor

LCDR. G. H. ROOD, USN Associate Editor

For sale by the Superintendent of Documents,

U. S. Government Printing Office, Washington 25, D. C. Price 10 cents, $1.00 per year, $1.35 Foreign

TWO years ago this month of August the JAG JOURNAL made its first appearance as a Navy periodical. Save for one gap of a month, necessitated by rearrangement of printing schedules. the JOURNAL has appeared regularly every month. It was conceived and born of the Judge Advocate General's firm belief that all the officers of the naval service are interested in doing justice to their fellowman, and that a publication which discussed the intricacies of law in everyday language would help them to do so.

How well the JAG JOURNAL is performing its function is demonstrable by many bits of evidence. The most tangible proofs are the many letters from Fleet and Force Commanders, commenting favorably on the JOURNAL and the work it does in their commands. That our publication is recognized outside the services as being legally sound and of real value to lawyers and law students, is proven by requests and subscriptions received from nearly all the major university law schools. The Supreme Court of the United States makes space for the JOURNAL on the shelves of its library.

Most pleasing proof is offered by the records of court's martial in which the JAG JOURNAL's pages are cited in explanation of pertinent legal points. Best of all, in the majority of cases observed, the points though technical, appear to have been clearly understood, properly presented and well argued by counsel who were not lawyers.

All of these are factors which encourage those who write our articles to continue their contributions to the cause of justice. To the best of knowledge all have been produced outside of the authors' normal working hours, on their own free timea busman's holiday, indeed. Your many letters to the individual authors have assured them that

their words are being read, not filed in the wastebasket.

We cannot look backward any longer, though, because the years ahead of the JAG JOURNAL will be busy ones and fruitful, we trust. The next 12 months, in particular, will be the most important of any we have known. The reason is that this Congress undoubtedly will give to the armed forces some form of uniform code of military justice. As this is written the House has passed such an Act, and the Senate has it for consideration. By the time you read these words the Code may be enacted into law. In its present form the Code varies radically from current Navy terminology, practice and procedure, explaining the differences between current and new provisions, and instructing in the new procedures. Since the JOURNAL'S mission is to promote "legal forehandedness," the editors can do no less than demonstrate the same virtue. Accordingly, a series of articles is now in the process of preparation, dealing with the Code. These will be presented when the Code has become an actuality.

TRANSFERS

RADM. John D. Murphy to JAG (War Crimes Office) from ComMarianas.

CAPT. George W. Bains to JAG (Court Martial Board of Review) from Ninth Naval District. CDR. John Owen to JAG (Military Law Division) from Fourth Naval District.

LCDR. William W. Kelly to JAG from Fighting Squadron 171.

LT. Olive W. Ehrich to JAG (Legislative Division) from Secretary of the Navy.

CAPT. John I. Loy to JAG from MARCORPS.
CAPT. James E. Stauffer to JAG from MAR-
CORPS.

CAPT. Robert, Stubbs to JAG from MARCORPS.
LTJG. Thomas J. Moran to JAG from School of
Naval Justice, Port Hueneme, Calif.
LTJG. Glenn E. Nippert to JAG from School of
Naval Justice, Port Hueneme, Calif.

CDR. Peter V. Dabbieri from JAG to Com 4. District Legal Office.

LCDR. Daniel J. Corcoran from JAG to ComServPac.

LT. George S. Sharratt, Jr., from JAG to Com 14.

LT. John W. Ryan, Jr., from JAG to USS Sicily (CVE 118) as Gunnery Officer.

HELP WHEN

COMA

MOST NEEDED

OMMANDING officers in the Hampton Roads area have found that by sending an officer representative to the police courts daily they can insure that their men who are in the toils of the law will get their stories before the court for full consideration. By this means many a frightened sailor, encouraged by the presence of an officer from his own ship, has told his side of the story and disclosed facts which have gained him his freedom.

Because no attempt is made to interfere with the enforcement of local laws or to secure special favors not granted to civilians, judges in the Hampton Roads area have cooperated to the fullest extent. ADM. W. H. P. Blandy, Commander in Chief, U. S. Atlantic Fleet, has found the system so workable that he has recommended that the JAG consider the inclusion of instructions for such representatives, in future editions of Naval Courts and Boards.

Admiral Blandy's letter enclosed a copy of an instruction sheet given to each officer designated as his commanding officer's representative. Although the instructions are particularly pertinent to the time schedule of the area, they are reproduced here because they are easily adaptable to all

areas.

INSTRUCTIONS TO OFFICERS REPRESENTING COMMANDING OFFICERS OF NAVAL PERSONNEL OF THE FIFTH NAVAL DISTRICT AT LOCAL POLICE COURT HEARINGS

Arrive at the court at 0800 and contact the Chief Shore Patrolman, where one is assigned the duty of being present at police court hearings. Each such Chief Shore Patrolman acts as liaison between the commanding officer's representatives and the jailer, and will arrange, if practicable, to have the men from the respective commands paroled in the custody of the commanding officer's representative for the purpose of an interview in the lawyer's conference room. If a private interview is not practicable due to crowded conditions, no conference room available, or the exigencies of the work required of the jailer or bailiff at the time, permission should be requested for the commanding officer's representative to interview his imen in the safekeeping cell or bull pen. Interviews must be completed by 0830 at the Norfolk and Portsmouth courts, or one-half hour before court opens, because the jailer is usually too busy thereafter with his official duties to make the necessary arrangements for the interview.

The naval personnel to be interviewed should first be informed as a group that you are the representative of the commanding officer, and have been sent to advise each man to inform the court of the favorable aspects of his case or to advise of the need of retaining an attorney in serious cases, and that you are to be available for testimony as to the character and past record of each man if such information is desired by the Judge. Inform them that you cannot act as their attorney in court. It is well to warn the men that each must speak up and give his side of the story and include therein all the pertinent and relevant facts, naming witnesses, otherwise the judge will have no course but to believe the story of the arresting officers as being the complete truth. It is well also to remark that the judge has had a tremendous amount of experience with listening to the testimony of accused persons and he has become adept at determining whether or not the witness or the accused is telling the truth. Naturally, if he feels that the man is telling a deliberate falsehood, or is belligerent, the punishment may be greater than it would otherwise be. This he does in order to make it a sufficiently effective deterrent.

Thereafter, you are to interview each Navy man who is attached to your command, requesting him to tell his version of the incident that caused his arrest so that you can advise him. As soon as he has told his story and answered clarifying questions, it is well to summarize and remind him of the particular facts which he should be sure to tell the judge, explaining that they will cast a more favorable light upon either his intent or general conduct. If the case is a serious one which involves the accused in a felony, it is usually better to advise the man to refrain from making a statement and to request that he be given the opportunity to engage an attorney. In this event, the commanding officer's representative should assist the man in contacting an attorney of his choice. The commanding officer's representative may refer to the District Legal Office for advice and for a list of attorneys who might be approached to take the case. When a case appears to be particularly meritorious as to extenuating circumstances and the commanding officer's representative can testify with assurance that the record of the accused is excellent, it is not improper to advise the accused during the interview to request a suspension of sentence if he is found guilty.

When you are directed to represent the commanding officer at the hearing of a man who has been released on bail, or to the temporary custody of the commanding officer, the preliminary interview and instructions will be completed before leaving your ship or station.

You should stand by the accused when he is called before the bar for hearing. If the accused becomes tongue-tied, you should inform the judge that the man does have a story that should be heard for a proper consideration of the case, and respectfully request the judge to encourage the man further to testify. If there are any material facts in defense which the accused omits in his testimony, or there are extenuating or mitigating circumstances omitted, the commanding officer's representative may respectfully request permission of the judge to describe the facts

If one is sentenced to 30 days or more, he gets one-third of the time off for good behavior.

If the man has pay due him on the books, it is usually beneficial to the naval service in the saving of manpower to advise the accused that, if he so desires, the commanding officer's representative will carry his request to the Commanding officer that arrangements be made to pay him special money in the amount of the fine so that he can expedite his return to the command. The commanding officer may then direct the disbursing officer or his authorized representative to carry the amount of the fine to the man at the place of his confinement and upon receiving his signature on the pay receipt, to pay the fine so that the man can be released for return to his command.

You will prepare a written report giving the names of the accused, the charges against each, the gist of the testimony given to the court by the arresting officers or other complaining witnesses and of the accused and his witnesses, and the action of the court. This report will be addressed to your commanding officer. Information received during the interview is confidential due to the counsel-client relation (Naval Courts and Boards, Sec. 360).

When the District Legal Office work load permits, a law specialist from that office appears as a representative of the Commandant to interview and advise those confined men who do not have a representative of their commanding officer present. The law specialist makes himself available for consultation with the commanding officer's representatives present.

It will be noted that the representative need not be a lawyer. On the other hand, some clear knowl edge of court procedure is necessary if the aid given is to be really effective. Then the personality of the officer representative should be given the closest study, to avoid antagonizing the judges and arriving at a result opposite to that intended. Giving due thought to the protection of our men and to full cooperation with busy judges, officers selected should be neither perfunctory nor "windy" in giving the court information requested.

In some localities advance liaison with police and court officials will be needed before such a system can be put into effect. In most large cities the District legal officer will be able to assist in this liaison work, but in areas distant from a District Headquarters the ranking command undoubtedly can accomplish the desired result.