In a military case where there is a conviction, almost every case results in an automatic appeal, as long as there is a relatively serious punishment. That means there is some degree of lengthy jail time or a discharge from the military. Regardless of whether there are good facts or legal issues to raise to the court or not, you have the right to appeal. Oftentimes, there are appeal cases where people will say there is not a good appellate issue. That’s an assessment that should only be made by an appellate attorney after a complete review of the record of trial. The only way you can feel like you’ve done everything you can is to make sure that you’ve got someone on your side who is extraordinarily experienced, has a great success record, and really knows the law inside and out.
Can You Appeal A Sex Crimes Conviction Where You Pled Guilty?
Often, we get phone calls asking if an appeal can be filed even though the person pled guilty at the court martial. A person who pleads guilty absolutely has the right to appeal. Not only do they have the right to appeal, in most cases, they still have an automatic guaranteed appeal right. The courts have been very clear that when you plead guilty, you waive your right to many of the issues that might have been otherwise raised if you had pled not guilty.
We know that during the time period where you are being pressured to plead guilty, the military defense counsel or even some civilian defense counsel may twist your arm to try to get you to do something you don’t want to do. Then, you are left sitting in jail. We’ve had unique success in raising legal issues even though there had been a guilty plea. The most important point is that even if you plead guilty, you need the very best appellate attorney you can find to assess the viable legal arguments.
What Steps Must I Follow To Appeal A Prior Court Martial Decision?
In a military court martial where you are convicted, in almost every case, you are going to get an automatic appeal. You’ve got to take certain steps to make sure that is happening. When a military member is convicted and they have their right to an automatic appeal, they are likely going to be contacted, first by the free military defense counsel, who are going to tell them that their appeal window is open. You don’t get to appeal immediately; it takes time. It goes through the process of getting the transcript of the trial and then it goes through the chain of command, as it gets approved by the generals or the admirals who were in charge of that case. Then, it gets sent off to the appeals court, where the appeal window finally opens.
The best way to appeal is to talk to a civilian attorney who does military appeals as a focus of their practice. They will take the affirmative steps to make sure the court knows that you are represented and to make sure that you are aware as soon as the appeals window opens. They’ll then be communicating back and forth with you to provide status updates and prepare the appeal. In the few cases where there is not an automatic appeal, it’s entirely on your shoulders and there is a very narrow time window to ask for an appeal. That means you have to be talking to your appeals counsel ASAP.
If you are convicted or a family member is convicted and your appeals window hasn’t opened, now is the time to call that civilian counsel to talk about representation. Even if it’s the last day before that appeal is due, please call. There are ways to get extensions and you want to make sure that you are getting the best representation because this is your one and only shot at an appeal, after a court martial conviction.
