Each branch of the U.S. military has its own investigative service unit. In the Coast Guard, this unit is referred to as CGIS or Coast Guard Investigative Service. CGIS a branch of the military that has the authority to act in a federal law enforcement capacity. It derives this authority from Title 14 of the … Read more

The Bell County Bar Association will offer free legal advice at a clinic this Friday afternoon at Texas A&M University – Central Texas. The clinic will be held at Founder’s Hall on the main campus of the university from 1p.m. to 4p.m. All U.S. veterans and spouses of deceased veterans are welcome, free of charge. At the … Read more

The Air Force Office of Special Investigations (AFOSI) is a federal agency that has the full power to conduct criminal investigations, act in a federal law enforcement capacity and provide counter-intelligence services to the Air Force, Department of Defense and the U.S. Government as a whole. The AFOSI’s mission is “to identify, exploit and neutralize … Read more

Criminal Investigation Division (CID), or Criminal Investigation Command, is the investigative branch of the U.S. Army. With less than 2000 soldiers and civilians along with close to 900 special agents working on its behalf, the CID works diligently to investigate any serious crimes which may be of interest or consequence to the Army and its … Read more

The Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces (CAAF) decided the appeal motion for United States v. Nieto recently. The case regarded a military investigator’s search authority and whether or not it could be based entirely on an investigator’s experience, specifically an investigator’s experience with how people generally use their portable electronic devices. The CAAF ruled that … Read more

Attorney Joseph Jordan has been interviewed recently by various high profile media outlets. Here are the answers to the most common questions he gets regarding military criminal defense. I AM CURIOUS IF YOU HAVE NOTICED ANY CHANGE IN HOW THE MILITARY CONDUCTS COURTS-MARTIAL REGARDING SEXUAL ASSAULTS? A: Yes. There are many codified changes to how the military conducts … Read more

Since the start of 2016, millions of TV viewers have become enthralled with Netflix’s Making a Murderer docuseries. The 10-hour program chronicles the life of Steven Avery, a Wisconsin man who was found to be falsely convicted of a 1985 sexual assault—only to be charged with murder shortly after his release in 2003. In perhaps the most … Read more

Another chapter of Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl’s story has unfolded in the latest episode of Serial, “Meanwhile, in Tampa,” the fifth episode of the podcast’s second season. In the latest episode, host Sarah Koenig and her team focus on the many flaws that hampered the search for Bergdahl before his release in 2014. Following Bergdahl’s 2009 … Read more

In the Army case of United States v. Hendrix, the court initially decided to convict Specialist (E-4) Austin L. Hendrix of one specification of sexual abuse of a child. However, The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces (CAAF) concluded a voice lineup was so flawed it rendered the result meaningless. The admission of evidence … Read more

Under the UCMJ, there are three possible types of courts martial that can be convened. The determination on what type is convened is based upon the rank of the accused as well as the type of criminal offense involved. As with civilian court, the accused must be proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt, but military court has an … Read more