John Kerry's Multiple Violations of the UCMJ -- why wasn't he tried and sentenced?

Uniform Code of Military Justice (United States) ^ | 9/22/04

[pabianice]

Undisputed are the facts that when John Kerry met with the enemy overseas in 1970 and 1971, and when he lied before Congress, he was an officer in the US Naval Reserve (he was not discharged until 1978, 1998, or 2001, depending upon which forged document you believe).

Here's an initial list of his crimes...

Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ)

ART. 88 - CONTEMPT TOWARD OFFICIALS

Any commissioned officer who uses contemptuous words against the President, the Vice President, Congress, the Secretary of Defense, the Secretary of a military department, the Secretary of Transportation, or the Governor or legislature of any State, Territory, Commonwealth, or possession in which he is on duty or present shall be punished as a court-martial may direct.

Article 92—Failure to obey order or regulation

Text. “Any person subject to this chapter who—

(1) violates or fails to obey any lawful general order or regulation;

(2) having knowledge of any other lawful order issued by a member of the armed forces, which it is his duty to obey, fails to obey the order; or

(3) is derelict in the performance of his duties; shall be punished as a court-martial may direct.”

Article 94—Mutiny and sedition

(a) "Any person subject to this chapter who--

(1) with intent to usurp or override lawful military authority, refuse, in concert with any other person, to obey orders or otherwise do his duty or creates any violence or disturbance is guilty of mutiny;

(2) with intent to cause the overthrow or destruction of lawful civil authority, creates, in concert with any other person, revolt, violence, or other disturbance against that authority is guilty of sedition;

(3) fails to do his utmost to prevent and suppress a mutiny or sedition being committed in his presence, or fails to take all reasonable means to inform his superior commissioned officer or commanding officer of a mutiny or sedition which he knows or has reason to believe is taking place, is guilty of a failure to suppress or report a mutiny or sedition.

(b) A person who is found guilty of attempted mutiny, mutiny, sedition, or failure to suppress or report a mutiny or sedition shall be punished by death or such other punishment as a court-martial may direct."

Article 99—Misbehavior before the enemy

Text. “Any member of the armed forces who before or in the presence of the enemy—

(1) runs away;

(2) shamefully abandons, surrenders, or delivers up any command, unit, place, or military property which it is his duty to defend;

(3) through disobedience, neglect, or intentional misconduct endangers the safety of any such command, unit, place, or military property;

(4) casts away his arms or ammunition;

(5) is guilty of cowardly conduct;

(6) quits his place of duty to plunder or pillage;

(7) causes false alarms in any command, unit, or place under control of the armed forces;

(8) willfully fails to do his utmost to encounter, engage, capture, or destroy any enemy troops, combatants, vessels, aircraft, or any other thing, which it is his duty so to encounter, engage, capture, or destroy; or

(9) does not afford all practicable relief and assistance to any troops, combatants, vessels, or aircraft of the armed forces belonging to the United States or their allies when engaged in battle; shall be punished by death or such other punishment as a court-martial may direct.”

Article 104—Aiding the enemy

Text. “Any person who—

(1) aids, or attempts to aid, the enemy with arms, ammunition, supplies, money, or other things; or

(2) without proper authority, knowingly harbors or protects or gives intelligence to or communicates or corresponds with or holds any intercourse with the enemy, either directly or indirectly; shall suffer death or such other punishment as a court-martial or military commission may direct.”

Article 107—False official statements

Text.

“Any person subject to this chapter who, with intent to deceive, signs any false record, return, regulation, order, or other official document, knowing it to be false, or makes any other false official statement knowing it to be false, shall be punished as a court-martial may direct.” (You in a HEAP of trouble John Boy!)

Article 123—Forgery

Text.

“Any person subject to this chapter who, with intent to defraud—”

“(1) falsely makes or alters any signature to, or any part of, any writing which would, if genuine, apparently impose a legal liability on another or change his legal right or liability to his prejudice; or”

“(2) utters, offers, issues, or transfers such a writing, known by him to be so made or altered; is guilty of forgery and shall be punished as a court-martial may direct.”

Article 131—Perjury

Text.

“Any person subject to this chapter who in a judicial proceeding or in a course of justice willfully and corruptly—

(1) upon a lawful oath or in any form allowed by law to be substituted for an oath, gives any false testimony material to the issue or matter of inquiry; or (2) in any declaration, certificate, verification, or state ent under penalty of perjury as permitted under section 1746 of title 28, United States Code, subscribes any false statement material to the issue or matter of inquiry; is guilty of perjury and shall be punished as a court-martial may direct.” (see 1971 testimony before Congress)

Article 132—Frauds against the United States

Text.

“Any person subject to this chapter—”

(1) “who, knowing it to be false or fraudulent—” (a) “makes any claim against the United States or any officer thereof; or” (b) “presents to any person in the civil or military service thereof, for approval or payment, any claim against the United States or any officer thereof;”

(2) “who, for the purpose of obtaining the approval, allowance, or payment of any claim against the United States or any officer thereof—”

(a) “makes or uses any writing or other paper knowing it to contain any false or fraudulent statements;” (b) “makes any oath to any fact or to any writing or other paper knowing the oath to be false; or”

(c) “forges or counterfeits any signature upon any writing or other paper, or uses any such signature knowing it to be forged or counterfeited;”

(3) “who, having charge, possession, custody, or control of any money, or other property of the United States, furnished or intended for the armed forces thereof, knowingly delivers to any person having authority to receive it, any amount thereof less than that for which he receives a certificate or receipt; or”

(4) “who, being authorized to make or deliver any paper certifying the receipt of any property of the United States furnished or intended for the armed forces thereof, makes or delivers to any person such writing without having full knowledge of the truth of the statements therein contained and with intent to defraud the United States; shall, upon conviction, be punished as a court-martial may direct.”

Article 133—Conduct unbecoming an officer and gentleman

Text.

“Any commissioned officer, cadet, or midshipman who is convicted of conduct unbecoming an officer and a gentleman shall be punished as a court-martial may direct.”

134: General Articles You can read these for yourself.

This is the next President of the United States, if Dan Rather and his friends have their way.

[Chapita]

Yep! The Sing Sing couple..........

[Grampa Dave]

Three words answer the question, why he wasn't tried:

Senator Ted Kennedy

[NoControllingLegalAuthority]

Powerful political friends. The Dems turned him into a poster boy. They had control of the federal budget with their majorities in congress in those days. The funding of the federal government was a powerful sledge hammer in the hands of the majority. Not only was the power of congress on his side, but the major media supported Kerry's efforts and back then, people believed what they saw on the nightly news. The media would have made Kerry a martyr if he had been prosecuted.

Fortunately, the American people are going to hand Kerry a much more bitter pill in November and it will hurt like nothing's he's ever felt. Even a prosecution by the government for his treason wouldn't have hurt the guy like the humiliation he's gonna feel on election day.

[Earl B.]

The real answer? Although in the reserves, Kerry was not on active duty at the time of his "offenses." He therefore was not subject to the UCMJ at that time. Which means his conduct was not a violation of the UCMJ. Perhaps other laws, but not the UCMJ.

A reservist can be brought back onto active duty for a court-martial IF it is for offenses committed while he was on active duty.

[ops33]

Article 2, Section A of the UCMJ shows that John Kerry was not subject to the UCMJ. He was in inactive reserve status and persons in this category are not subject to the UCMJ unless the offense that they committed occured while they were in a status subject to the UCMJ.

[pabianice]

Article 2, Section A of the UCMJ shows that John Kerry was not subject to the UCMJ. He was in inactive reserve status and persons in this category are not subject to the UCMJ unless the offense that they committed occured while they were in a status subject to the UCMJ.

No. Reserve officers remain legally "Officers of the United States." They can be, and have been, involuntarily recalled to active duty to be court-martialed for acts done in an inactive status.

[El Gato]

I think Private Slovak/Martin Sheen got a firing squad for less!

Private Slovak was subject the Law of Land Warfare (predecessor to the UCMJ). SKerry was not subject the UCMJ once he became an individual ready reservist. Reservists are only subject to the UCMJ when in a duty status.

That doesn't mean that his action in treating with the enemy were not criminal and treasonous, they were. However his reserve status doesn't enter into the question. The actions were illegal for anyone.

[ops33]

I went back and re-read Article 2 and cannot find any subparagraph that would apply to Kerry when he met with the North Vietnamese. Can you please tell me which part of Article 2 states that Kerry would have been subject to the UCMJ when he met with the North Vietnamese?

As much as I dislike Kerry and loathe what he did in meeting with the North Vietnamese, I cannot see where he violated the UCMJ or was even subject to it during the time he met with them.