If you are suspected of a “minor offense” under the UCMJ, your command may offer you NJP. Your commanding officer has wide discretion to determine what qualifies as a “minor offense.” But you have an absolute right to refuse NJP and demand trial by court-martial (*except if you are currently attached to or embarked in a vessel). Depending on your rank, character of service, and number of years in service, there are pros and cons of each choice. And there can be very strategic considerations when deciding to accept NJP or demand trial by court-martial. You are usually permitted to speak with an attorney before making this decision. If given the opportunity, you should always talk to attorney before deciding whether to accept NJP or demand trial by court-martial.
The punishments at NJP are much more limited than at a court-martial. Punishments authorized at NJP are forfeiture of pay, restriction to certain specified limits, extra duties, correctional custody, reduction in pay grade, and others. Service members above certain pay grades may not be reduced in rank. Confinement in a brig or jail is not authorized for NJP. If a service member feels that his punishment at NJP was unjust or disproportionate to the offense, he may appeal to the next superior authority but must do so in writing. An attorney is usually beneficial in preparing such an appeal.
Contact the lawyers at Carmichael Ellis & Brock, PLLC at 703-684-7908 to address your legal matter promptly.
Contactless video consultations available. Please note, if you are inquiring about an expungement, sealing, or pardon, please answer the questions on those pages to help us better assist you.
Descriptions and summaries about the attorneys’ prior cases and settlements found on this website are intended only to provide information about the activities and experience of our attorneys and should not be understood as a guarantee or assurance of future success in any matter. The results portrayed were dependent on a variety of facts and circumstances unique to the particular matters described. Past results are not a guarantee of future results, and the outcome of your particular case or matter cannot be predicted using a lawyer’s or law firm’s past results. Every case is unique and different and should be evaluated on its own merits, without comparison to other cases that may have had different facts and circumstances.
