Retiring Military Jurisdiction over Retirees

Fundamental unfairness substantially outweighs any rational basis for maintaining Article 2 jurisdiction over retired service members.

John R. Grasso, Esq.

Seven years after retiring from the Navy, a general court-martial convicted retired Rear Admiral Hooper without recalling him to active duty and sentenced him to dismissal and forfeiture of his retirement benefits. The charges against him were based on alleged homosexual acts occurring at a private residence, not a part of any military reservation. Naval Intelligence secured the evidence against him by staking themselves out on the rooftop of a neighboring house and peering into the admiral’s bedroom with binoculars. Even though the admiral was no longer serving in the Navy and had not been for seven years, Article 2 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) clearly subjected him to the Navy’s criminal justice system without limitations or conditions.

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Retiring Military Jurisdiction over Retirees