Criminal charges will not be filed against a construction company for the electrocution death of a Green Beret Soldier who died while showering in his barracks in Iraq. The military investigation found insufficient evidence to prove intent to commit the crime or culpable negligence, and while no one is criminally culpable in his death, the investigation showed a breach of duty of care for both the contractor and the military commanders who should have provided oversight.

Breach of Duty of Care

This incident has resulted in established procedures to ensure quality performance of construction in Iraq. Failure of the system appears to have been many small issues that culminated in a tragic event. The military investigators found that both contractors and government employees “breached their respective duties of care” identifying that while they complied with the current procedures and regulations at the time, those procedures were not thorough enough to prevent harm.

Correction of Procedures

A military investigation focuses on the intent and culpability or negligence as it relates to the Uniform Code of Military Justice. It appears in this case, the investigators could find no one person or system liable for the death, but a collection of smaller events or failures, which individually would not have caused the death. Those individual events or failures are then analyzed and corrections to procedures and regulations are identified to prevent this type of failure in the future.

Application of Military Justice

While this does not account for the loss of a Soldier, nor provide any comfort to the family nor restore his life, the military justice system does provide one answer. It is designed to thoroughly review actions on the battlefield or in garrison to ensure that anyone who does have intent to harm one of our own military members is brought to full accounting for their actions.

Defending military members in criminal cases is more difficult when a military member under investigation makes statements to friends and family that then appear in the military investigation. Those statements can, and often do, make negotiating lesser punishment almost impossible.

Manual for Courts-Martial

The Manual for Courts-Martial is the “how to” guide for military justice and is based upon the US Law and the regulations issued under that law, the constitutional powers of the President and the command authority delegated to military commanders. The military rules of evidence define what is and is not admissible in a military court of law.

Military Client Privileges

Military members charged under the Uniform Code of Military Justice have the right to expect that anything said to their assigned uniform military attorney or their civilian attorney is confidential and not admissible in court. Additionally, anything said to a member of the clergy is considered confidential information and not to be revealed in a military trial.

Military Member and Their Spouse

A spouse of an accused military member has the right to refuse to testify against him or her, and the military member has the right to prevent the spouse from testifying. This does not apply to divorced members or marriages that are annulled. An exception to the rule of a spouse not testifying against the military member is if the spouse is the victim of the crime charged.

When To Not Speak

When you are suspected of a crime in the military, it is tempting to talk to your friends and family members (those other than your spouse) about the details of the case. Those friends and family, like your sister or cousin or even your parents, could be called to testify on the government’s behalf about what you have said. This puts your friends and family in a difficult position of lying or providing information that may make your defense more difficult, or worse, incriminate you. When you are being investigated, don’t talk to anyone but your lawyer, the chaplain, or your spouse. Protect yourself and give your military defense attorney the best chance to defend your rights.