Possible Alternative Protections Under Military Law during the 2020 Presidential Election and its aftermath
Topic/Background: During the last four years of the Trump administration, we have seen a growing use of military units in politicized ways against civilian populations in this country, including in the deployments to the US border and the more recent deployments of national guard troops against Black Lives Matter protesters as well as the formation of National Guard “Rapid Response Units”.
In the weeks leading up to the election, it now appears that these same risks may be arising again in the context of administration efforts at voter suppression and possible action against protesters and even legal observers in the aftermath of the election, even if military leadership has repeatedly stated their desire to be apolitical in this election.
This workshop is primarily intended for attorneys with at least some experience in military law, but other attorneys (especially those whowant to work with an experienced mentor attorney in taking on a case) as well as GI Rights counselors and advocates are welcome to attend.
NOTE: This CLE (continuing legal education) seminar is free to listen to at this link. If you wish to receive a certificate showing you completed the course and CLE credits for attorneys (see below for details), please follow the instructions here.
Presenter: James M. Branum has practiced military criminal defense and free speech law since 2006. He has represented military service members at posts across the United States including many of the public resisters to the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. He is the author of the book US Army: A Practice Guide and Formbook and is a past chair of the Military Law Task Force of the National Lawyers Guild.
CLE Credit: CLE credit accreditation is pending for Oklahoma and California (we expect the presentation will earn one hour of credit). Attorneys in other states can still attend the workshop but will be given a “uniform application for accreditation of CLE credit” which can be submitted to one’s state bar. We cannot guarantee that a state bar will approve the CLE credit but most states will likely do so. Your state may also require you to pay a nominal fee for submitting this form, which would be your responsibility. To claim CLE credit after listening to the presentation, please complete this form.
FORMAT: This program is a recorded audio presentation which can be listened to any time. While the topic will be most relevant during the next few weeks, it will be available online as an on-demand/non-participatory CLE seminar for one year.
COST: Anyone can listen to the presentation for free (but donations are greatly appreciated!), but attorneys who are claiming CLE credit are asked to pay a sliding scale amount of $50-100 when you receive your certificate of attendance.
Materials:
- Memorandum “The Limits of the Illegal Orders Defense and Possible Alternative Protections Under Military Law during the 2020 Presidential Election and its aftermath” – DRAFT VERSION/PDF DOWNLOAD
- Manual for Courts-Martial (2019 Edition) – PDF Download
- Sourcebook for Advising Military Personnel from The Orders Project
Audio Content: MP3 Download of the presentation
