I worked in a large hospital's ER for 20 years so I'm at least somewhat familiar with the subject of domestic violence.I've seen more women who were savagely beaten by a husband/boyfriend than I care to recall.I've even seen a few women who were *murdered* by same.I see you're former military as well as a lawyer.Picture yourself as having been assigned to defend a Marine accused of murdering his wife on base.He's done at least one tour of Iraq/Afghanistan,he's been wounded at least once,and there's evidence that he hasn't been the same,mentally and/or physically,since.Perhaps he even sustained a traumatic brain injury while in combat.What do you do?
I'm not saying that *all* these points apply to this Marine but we know that at least *one* of them does.
I was a JAG in the military back in the 80s. Even then the military knew about the individual soldier that was great in battle but didn’t do civilian life so well.
I am not a fan of pschycobabble. So, I say it is a matter of right and wrong. He is responsible for conducting himself in an appropriate manner and as an adult is charged with know thing the difference between right and wrong. He is not the center of any universe. He has a brain and he has a soul and he better grow up fast. Life is full of hard things and disappointments. Life is unfair. You conduct yourself appropriately. And especially in the military. When I was in the military, the culture was such that you didn’t offer up excuses for wrongfulness, you said I was wrong, no excuse.