Completely Lost / What is the legal process?

[Kimiko]

My husband was taken to the brig yesterday and is now waiting for his pre-trial hearing date.

He called me from his cell phone on base to say they were taking him last night and now I don't know when the next time I'll hear from him is or even wth is going on. Will they assign him a lawyer? Will his lawyer honestly try to help him or just look out for the interest of the Navy? Will the military help me pack up our house and move back home if he gets in trouble? How long will his pay continue?

I feel like there is so much I need to know without the slightest idea of where to start since it's all out of left field to me and I've had under 24 hours to process everything.

[Aprilmay2010]

First of all I am sorry to hear you are going through this. The whole process is hard. They will assign him a lawyer when he asks for one. He has options to keep that lawyer or pay for a civilian lawyer himself. Civilian lawyers are spendy! Each place is different as to how they are held prior to the hearing. So I am not sure when you will be able to talk. You should be able to contact the defense lawyer soon though and get a little info if you don't hear from him. As for how helpful the lawyers are that are assigned it differs greatly. Ours was basically useless. Hed say one thing then not do it or asked us to get a test done that cost us 2000 then didnt research it to make sure it was even the right one so we ended up wasting the money. But I have heard that there are some great lawyers assigned. We just were not lucky enough to have one.

As for the move yes you will be returned to your HOR but you have to get all of that taken care of yourself once his orders are given. We asked for a special EROD so we could start the moving process before he was completely gone. I don't know if they will allow you that. His sgts were very helpful to us! They did alot for us. I believe if he is court martialed you have 90 days in housing on post after the CM. We got things done a week after so we never had to find out the length possible to stay.

As for pay it should continue till the check after his court martial if there is one. You can get his pay continued through his lawyer for an extended period but I am not sure the max time for that. But his lawyer has to ask the judge for that. Also after his CM his pay will probably be lessened to a lower level depending on his rank. My mans dropped to private. So it is significant in change. He is army but I think the basic process is the same. If i'm wrong someone please correct me.

My man is now at Ft. Leavenworth and has adjusted quickly but he still is not in general population yet. Please feel free to pm me anytime all of this is still very fresh in mind for me having been out 1 month from his CM. It was all crazy and I know you will have plenty of questions like I did and need someone to just vent because they military gets less and less helpful here on out!

I wish you the best of luck and let me know if you have any more questions.

[Kimiko]

So it's been about 10 days now which seemed like an ETERNITY since the difference of our whole lives hang in the balance of him being CM'd or not. And... I'm pretty scared he is heading for a CM since they are keeping a tight hold on him instead of letting him walk free until his court date. (Which we don't have yet.)

I have heard from my DH since I posted, he is allowed a 10 minute phone call every other day and if he shows good behavior for... I dunno how long~ he'll be bumped up to 20 minute calls every other day while still in PCF. I bought him a phone card, but so far he has been calling collect and I have just been calling that number right back because FL in-state calling card rates are insane. For every 1 minute a FL in-state call takes away 5 minutes.
He also has visitation on weekends and holidays so I did get to see him this past weekend and will get to see him next weekend with the extra day being Memorial Day.

We've just been waiting for them to assign him someone from legal which finally happened today! I feel a bit better knowing at least soon we'll get some information on worse case scenario and I can ask some of my many questions. Right now, however, we are still waiting to find out what they are going to charge him with exactly. *sigh* It's been a long ten days...

[Kimiko]

Went to see hubby today! It was a better visit this time since he has been able to get himself to eat more and sleep a bit. I will get to go again tomorrow since it's a holiday~ I don't get to see him on Saturdays because I work during visitation hours~ so I'm excited to see him two days in a row.

He will meet with his attorney for the first time on Tuesday. I can't wait for this to happen so that maybe we will find out SOMETHING about what he might be charged with and what we can do. I'm such a wreck and it's only been two weeks. .__. Just sitting around is torture.

[Kimiko]

So~ we finally have an attorney assigned to us and she says that it'll be the end of June/beginning of July before charges are given for my guy since NCIS requested an extension for their investigation... he's just waiting around in the brig until then. Hurry up and wait, I guess. It's harder sitting around doing nothing and not knowing what I can do or research since he doesn't have official charges, yet.

From what I understand the reason he has to stay there is because before he asked for an attorney he was interrogated and just based on the confession he gave there they are keeping him in. If he hadn't done that then he'd probably be home right now waiting for his court date instead of in the brig. I miss him so much because he's so close and yet I can't see him when I please.

It was hard for me to find anything helpful about the brigs he could be assigned to after his CM anywhere online. I found a few things about visitation but nothing really about the conditions or what you're allowed to send and such. I'm just trying to find as much information as I can so I know everything I can get my hands on~ I know I'm talking to myself in here, lol, but, I continue to update this thread with the steps of our process just in case it can be helpful to anyone in the future who finds themselves where I am. I'm hoping once the search feature is back up I'll be able to find a lot more information to help me prepare for what's to come for my family.

It's just sooo frustrating! I'm all alone in a town where I know no one except my husband and our kids so I just feel so overwhelmed with no one to talk with about any of this or anything else for that matter. I don't want to stress my family out with too much of my anxiety because we had a death in the family recently and so everyone is still trying to deal with that and I don't want to put all my stresses on them when there's not much anyone can do at this point.

So~ I guess the next time I'll have our next step won't be until July... so very far away.

[ilwhfe]

Here are a few things I have learned, my hisband just had his special court martiel today.

Firstly, talk to the lawyers! Any and all questions you have write them down and make the answer those questions!

If you don't have a power of attorney yet tell the lawyer you want one written up. Sooner you get it done the better.

When it fomes to the court martiel, any pretrial confinment he serves should count towards his ultimate sentence make sure you both press the judges on that.

Any sentence over 5 years gets you sent to Ft. Leavenworth, 5 years and under or nonviolent offenders get sent to smaller regional facilities.

The first 3 weeks after the CM will be hardest as he gets transferred and in processed and gets you on his mail list so you can send him money orders for phone calls etc.

Miliary facilities are extremly nice in comparison to civillian ones. Work out yards, tv rooms, libraries...they treat them well from all I hear

Oh also, talk to the lawyer now about defeered payment. They always take 2/3 of the soldiers pay and depending on current rank typically demote them to pvt. Which means only 600 a month, if you request deferment of pay for the family they will give you full pvt. pay for 6 months excludng bas and cola.

Hope this helps good luck!!

[Kimiko]

Thank you SO VERY MUCH for this post! I've been dying for information on how things happen in the military court systems and coming up empty handed so often. Not knowing is driving me insane with not being able to prepare for anything.

Can I talk to my husband's lawyer??? I haven't really tried except that NCIS called me a few days ago asking me to come down answer some questions and I called her to ask what I should do and her response was "Well, I can't really give you advice because I'm your husband's lawyer not yours, but you certainly don't have to talk to anyone." and I haven't called her since then cuz I felt like that was her sorta telling me she's not allowed to talk to me even tho my husband said he asked her to be as helpful to me as possible.

I do have a PoA already a General and special DEERS one so I can get my ID renewed since it expires soon because my husband was about to be up for re-enlistment in August. *sigh*

He did tell me that any pretrial confinement would count towards his days. Is this not written in stone? I'll have to inform him to make sure they definitely do this!

Oh that's good to know about where he will be sent depending. Hopefully when charges are finally brought up we'll have a better idea to what his sentence could look like. All of the military brigs you can get sent to are so far from us though so I hate that I won't be able to see him every weekend like I do now.

That deferment thing is good to know! I will definitely talk to my husband about this so he can talk with the lawyer. Thank you soooo much for posting I really appreciate all the information I can get at this point! *hugs*

Originally Posted by ilwhfe

Here are a few things I have learned, my husband just had his special court martial today.

Firstly, talk to the lawyers! Any and all questions you have write them down and make the answer those questions!

If you don't have a power of attorney yet tell the lawyer you want one written up. Sooner you get it done the better.

When it fomes to the court martiel, any pretrial confinment he serves should count towards his ultimate sentence make sure you both press the judges on that.

Any sentence over 5 years gets you sent to Ft. Leavenworth, 5 years and under or nonviolent offenders get sent to smaller regional facilities.

The first 3 weeks after the CM will be hardest as he gets transferred and in processed and gets you on his mail list so you can send him money orders for phone calls etc.

Miliary facilities are extremly nice in comparison to civillian ones. Work out yards, tv rooms, libraries...they treat them well from all I hear

Oh also, talk to the lawyer now about defeered payment. They always take 2/3 of the soldiers pay and depending on current rank typically demote them to pvt. Which means only 600 a month, if you request deferment of pay for the family they will give you full pvt. pay for 6 months excludng bas and cola.

Hope this helps good luck!!

[DeNada]

Your husband's lawyer can talk to you. Her loyalty is to her client but she can talk to you. No, you do not have to talk to NCIS; that is your choice. You might consider getting your own lawyer if you do, though. That will protect you. I could type forever here giving you a preview of the show to come but the best thing you can do is look online for the UCMJ and the related Military Judge's Benchbook. UCMJ is found in Title 10 of the United States Code. I forget the exact sections but will look and repost a link for you. It spells out very clearly the military justice process and procedures. You will learn a lot from reading it and have a context to put information in as you get it. Hope this is helpful.

[DeNada]

http://codes.lp.findlaw.com/uscode/10/A/II/47

this is the link to the US Code Section pertaining to military justice system (UCMJ) just copy and paste into your browser's search bar.

[Kimiko]

Originally Posted by DeNada

Your husband's lawyer can talk to you. Her loyalty is to her client but she can talk to you. No, you do not have to talk to NCIS; that is your choice. You might consider getting your own lawyer if you do, though. That will protect you. I could type forever here giving you a preview of the show to come but the best thing you can do is look online for the UCMJ and the related Military Judge's Benchbook. UCMJ is found in Title 10 of the United States Code. I forget the exact sections but will look and repost a link for you. It spells out very clearly the military justice process and procedures. You will learn a lot from reading it and have a context to put information in as you get it. Hope this is helpful.

Originally Posted by DeNada

this is the link to the US Code Section pertaining to military justice system (UCMJ) just copy and paste into your browser's search bar.

DeNada, thank you so much for taking the time to write to me! I really appreciate it. *hug*

I decided not to talk to them and their investigation is suppose to be up tomorrow. So hopefully we'll know charges by the end of the week? I'm not sure how long it takes.

I greatly appreciate the link! I'm going to start reading through it now.

[ilwhfe]

His lawyer may not be able to give you any personal legal advice but can most certainly discuss everything with you that you need to know about the process, the charges, and the type of case she is going to put together for your husband.

Remember if you are unhappy with this lawyer and feel as though she isn't going to represent your husband properly talk to him about it and have him ask for another lawyer. I am assuming she is simply a TDS lawyer assigned by the military, sometimes they are great (in our case the cpt. was personally committed and has been a huge help to me) in other cases they honestly don't care enough and leave the family short handed.

You and your husband both need to feel confident in her abilities and not be afraid to ask for good representation.

As far as his current confinement counting towards his sentence it almost ALWAYS does, but this is still something the lawyer has to specifically request and file for during the trial.

When the process starts, remember it most likely wont be a quick one, expect this to last a couple months. Also, remember that once the charges are brought against your husband your lawyer needs to be working to get him released from pre-trial confinement.

Keep your head up I know how hard it is. There are certain things you can push for though and hope for! If you are currently on base housing it is my understanding that typically you are afforded the privilege of staying on post for a short period of time, if your husband receives a sentence with discharge from the military. You will however keep post privileges, your ID card and Tri-care until his official discharge date which occurs after the completion of his sentence.

Hang in there, sending well wishes your way!

[hiswifey-76]

From my own experiance dealing with this mess, I feel for you. There has been lots of good advice given tho...whatever you do dont be afraid to stand up!! I see it all to often the military plays pass the pot when it comes time to deal with spouses that were left in a messy spot. Remebr to keep a copy of everything as it will be usefull at some point, Legal Assistance is a help. Also keep the number for IG and make sure you know how to contact the CG Helpline if need be. As for the court martial process alot will depend on the charges.....but it can take anywheres from couple of months to more. Hang in there, stand tall you are not alone in this mess.

[2nd_chance11]

I was at NAVCON Brig C and all I can say is that the professional staff helped me progress in my recovery.

If you give respect you get it back....be patient and learn to tolerate others, its part of the process.

Good luck and never NEVER give up on hope

2nd_chance11

[Kimiko]

Originally Posted by 2nd_chance11

I was at NAVCON Brig C and all I can say is that the professional staff helped me progress in my recovery.

If you give respect you get it back....be patient and learn to tolerate others, its part of the process.

Good luck and never NEVER give up on hope

2nd_chance11

Thank you so much, Chance. I hope you're doing well!

My guy might go to Miramar... but, they are trying to put him at the SC brig because it's closer and he's up for parole in Feb. *crosses fingers*