I’ve been out for over a decade at this point, and even when I was in I never crossed paths with a JAG. I think officer, college education, and probably brainwashed. Opinions or experiences with JAG officers from any other freeper vets?
“””Opinions or experiences with JAG officers from any other freeper vets?””””
My father in law was one many years ago. I believe he once said that he wasn’t always a fan of prosecuting someone for a minor thing but it was his job so it got done.
JAG training is great for lawyers. They are generally more able than other lawyers without that training and experience.
On criminal matters, they prosecute under the Uniform Code of Military Justice, not the statutes they will see in DC.
They also try in front of military judges and tribunals, not civilian juries.
But they are military, they improvise.
I think this is a solid move.
I was a former Military Police Officer and Provost Marshal so I probably had a little more interaction with Army JAG officers than most soldiers. Like any profession, you have a bell curve, with some exceptional, some poor, and a whole bunch in the middle.
If I was to characterize my impressions of the JAG Corps in a broad sweeping generality, it would be that on the day-to-day implementation and practice of UCMJ, they tended to be very sharp. If as a civilian I was ever in any legal trouble, I'd definitely consider a defense lawyer with JAG experience a big plus, and if the prosecutor trying to nail me was prior JAG, that would add to my level of concern.
When it came to guidance on laws of land warfare / rules of engagement, my impression was a little more jaded. They tended to view things on a very macro, abstract, theoretical level that very few were (again, in my experience) able to communicate in a manner that made a lot of sense down at the soldier level where it was to be implemented.
From 83-84, I was a Headquarters Battery CO at Fort Bliss. There were five directorates whose soldiers were assigned to my Battery, including JAG. Never had a problem with them, got along exceptionally well with the Colonel in charge. Political correctness hadn't reared its head yet, that's probably why my experience differed with your notions.