I 

117TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 3647 

To improve the military justice system, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JUNE 1, 2021 

Mr. GOHMERT (for himself and Mr. GOSAR) introduced the following bill; 

which was referred to the Committee on Armed Services, and in addition 

to the Committee on the Judiciary, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions 

as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To improve the military justice system, and for other 

purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Justice for Warriors Act’’. 

6 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

7 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Pretrial confinement. 

Sec. 3. Qualifications and selection of members for courts-martial. 

Sec. 4. Preliminary hearings and investigations. 

Sec. 5. Role of convening authority. 


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Sec. 6. Prohibition on certain communications regarding courts-martial. 

Sec. 7. Adequate representation of defendants. 

Sec. 8. Votes required for conviction, sentencing, and other matters. 

Sec. 9. Electronic records of trial. 

Sec. 10. Petition for new trial. 

Sec. 11. Defense investigators for individuals accused of offenses under the 

Uniform Code of Military Justice. 

Sec. 12. Prohibition on involuntary separation as nonjudicial punishment for a 

charge brought under the Uniform Code of Military Justice. 

Sec. 13. Certiorari to the United States Court of Appeals for the Armed 

Forces. 

Sec. 14. Treatment of certain records of criminal investigations. 

1 SEC. 2. PRETRIAL CONFINEMENT. 

2 (a) STANDARD FOR PRETRIAL CONFINEMENT.—Sec3 tion 809(d) of title 10, United States Code (article 9(d) 

4 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice), is amended to 

5 read as follows: 

6 ‘‘(d)(1) No person may be ordered into arrest except 

7 for probable cause. 

8 ‘‘(2)(A) Except as provided in subparagraph (B), no 

9 person may be ordered into confinement for more than 

10 seven days unless it is beyond a reasonable doubt that the 

11 person committed the offense for which confinement is or12 dered. 

13 ‘‘(B) In the event that a determination with respect 

14 to reasonable doubt has not been made by the expiration 

15 of the seven day period described in the subparagraph (A), 

16 a person may be placed under in-home confinement pend17 ing such determination.’’. 

18 (b) STANDARD OF PROOF FOR REVIEWS OF PRE19 TRIAL CONFINEMENT.—Not later than 180 days after the 

20 date of the enactment of this Act, the President shall issue 


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1 regulations revising subsection (i)(2)(A)(iii) of Rule For 

2 Courts-Martial 305 (as set forth in the Manual for Courts3 Martial, 2019 edition, or any successor to such rule) to 

4 provide that the requirements for confinement under sub5 section (h)(2)(B) of such rule must be proved beyond a 

6 reasonable doubt. 

7 (c) SENTENCING CREDIT FOR PRETRIAL CONFINE8 MENT.—Not later than 180 days after the date of the en9 actment of this Act, the President shall issue regulations 

10 revising subsection (k) of Rule for Courts-Martial 305 (as 

11 set forth in the Manual for Courts-Martial, 2019 edition, 

12 or any successor to such rule) to provide that— 

13 (1) the remedy for noncompliance with sub14 section (f), (h), (i), or (j) of such rule shall be an 

15 administrative credit against the sentence adjudged 

16 for any confinement served as the result of such 

17 noncompliance; and 

18 (2) such credit shall be computed at the rate of 

19 20 days credit for each day of confinement served as 

20 a result of such noncompliance. 

21 SEC. 3. QUALIFICATIONS AND SELECTION OF MEMBERS 

22 FOR COURTS-MARTIAL. 

23 (a) MEMBER QUALIFICATIONS.—Section 825 of title 

24 10, United States Code (article 25 of the Uniform Code 


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1 of Military Justice), is amended by striking ‘‘on active 

2 duty’’ each place it appears. 

3 (b) SELECTION PROCESS.—Section 825(e) of title 10, 

4 United States Code (article 25 of the Uniform Code of 

5 Military Justice), is amended— 

6 (1) by amending paragraph (2) to read as fol7 lows: 

8 ‘‘(2)(A) When convening a court-martial, the 

9 convening authority shall notify the Judge Advocate 

10 General of the armed force of which the convening 

11 authority is a member who shall select the members 

12 of the court-martial in accordance with subpara13 graph (B). 

14 ‘‘(B)(i) After receiving a notification under sub15 paragraph (A), the Judge Advocate General shall de16 tail members of the armed forces at random to serve 

17 as members of the court-martial. The selection of 

18 members shall be made from a randomized list of 

19 potential members generated using a computer data20 base that includes all members of the armed forces 

21 (including members serving on active duty and mem22 bers of the reserve components) who are eligible to 

23 serve as members of the court martial. 

24 ‘‘(ii) The Judge Advocate General shall detail 

25 not less than the number of members necessary to 


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1 impanel the court-martial under section 829 of this 

2 title (article 29). 

3 ‘‘(iii) When convening a court-martial in which 

4 the accused is a member of the reserve components, 

5 the Judge Advocate General shall ensure that not 

6 less than half of the panel members selected to serve 

7 on the court-martial are members of the reserve 

8 components. 

9 ‘‘(C) No member of an armed force is eligible 

10 to serve as a member of a general or special court11 martial in a case in which that member— 

12 ‘‘(i) is the accuser or a witness for the 

13 prosecution; 

14 ‘‘(ii) has acted as preliminary hearing offi15 cer or as counsel in the same case; or 

16 ‘‘(iii) is assigned to the same unit as the 

17 accused.’’; and 

18 (2) by striking paragraph (3). 

19 SEC. 4. PRELIMINARY HEARINGS AND INVESTIGATIONS. 

20 (a) PRELIMINARY HEARING AND INVESTIGATION.— 

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 832 of title 10, 

22 United States Code (article 32 of the Uniform Code 

23 of Military Justice) is amended— 


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1 (A) in the section heading by inserting 

2 ‘‘and investigation’’ after ‘‘Preliminary 

3 hearing’’; 

4 (B) in subsection (a)— 

5 (i) in paragraph (1)(B)— 

6 (I) by striking ‘‘Under regula7 tions’’ and inserting ‘‘(i) Under regu8 lations’’; and 

9 (II) by adding at the end the fol10 lowing: 

11 ‘‘(ii) In a case in which an a preliminary 

12 hearing is waived under clause (i), the con13 vening authority shall make a determination as 

14 to the disposition which shall be made of the 

15 case in the interest of justice and discipline, in16 cluding whether the case should be referred for 

17 trial by general court-martial in accordance 

18 with section 834(b) of this title (article 

19 34(B)).’’. 

20 (ii) by striking paragraph (2) and in21 serting the following new paragraphs: 

22 ‘‘(2) A preliminary hearing shall include— 

23 ‘‘(A) a thorough and impartial investiga24 tion of all the matters set forth in the charges 

25 and specifications, including inquiry as to the 


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1 truth of the matter set forth in the charges and 

2 specifications; 

3 ‘‘(B) a determination, which shall be bind4 ing on the convening authority as described in 

5 section 834 of this title (article 34), as to— 

6 ‘‘(i) whether or not the specification 

7 alleges an offense under this chapter; 

8 ‘‘(ii) whether or not it is beyond a 

9 reasonable doubt that the accused com10 mitted the offense charged; 

11 ‘‘(iii) whether or not the convening 

12 authority has court-martial jurisdiction 

13 over the accused and over the offense; and 

14 ‘‘(iv) whether or not the case shall be 

15 referred for trial by general court-martial; 

16 and 

17 ‘‘(C) if the case shall not be referred for 

18 trial by general court-martial, a recommenda19 tion as to the disposition which shall be made 

20 of the case in the interest of justice and dis21 cipline. 

22 ‘‘(3) The standards for the admissibility of evi23 dence in a preliminary hearing shall be the same as 

24 the standards for the admissibility of evidence in a 

25 court-martial.’’; 


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1 (C) in subsection (b), by striking ‘‘con2 ducted by’’ and inserting ‘‘presided over by’’; 

3 (D) by redesignating subsections (c) 

4 through (h) as subsections (d) through (i), re5 spectively; 

6 (E) by inserting after subsection (b) the 

7 following new subsection: 

8 ‘‘(c) PANEL.— 

9 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The determinations under 

10 subsection (a)(2)(B) shall be made by an impartial 

11 panel composed of three members of the armed 

12 forces who— 

13 ‘‘(A) are eligible to serve on a court-mar14 tial under section 825 of this title (article 25); 

15 and 

16 ‘‘(B) may not be in a rank that is— 

17 ‘‘(i) more than three ranks higher 

18 than the accused; or 

19 ‘‘(ii) more than two ranks lower than 

20 the accused. 

21 ‘‘(2) DETAIL OF PANEL MEMBERS.— 

22 ‘‘(A) The preliminary hearing officer shall 

23 detail members to serve on the panel. 

24 ‘‘(B) In addition to the members detailed 

25 under subparagraph (A), the preliminary hearVerDate Sep 11 2014 20:50 Jul 09, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3647.IH H3647

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1 ing officer shall detail alternate members who 

2 may serve on the panel in the event that a 

3 panel member cannot fulfill the member’s du4 ties. 

5 ‘‘(3) LEVEL OF CONCURRENCE REQUIRED.—All 

6 matters to be decided by the preliminary hearing 

7 panel shall be determined by the unanimous concur8 rence of all members present.’’; and 

9 (F) in subsection (d), as so redesignated— 

10 (i) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘rea11 soning and conclusions of the hearing offi12 cer with respect to the determinations 

13 under subsection (a)(2)’’ and inserting 

14 ‘‘reasoning and conclusions of the prelimi15 nary hearing panel with respect to deter16 minations under subsection (a)(2)’’; and 

17 (ii) in paragraph (2), by striking 

18 ‘‘Recommendations for’’ and inserting ‘‘A 

19 determination with respect to’’. 

20 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sec21 tions at the beginning of subchapter VI of chapter 

22 47 of title 10, United States Code (the Uniform 

23 Code of Military Justice), is amended by striking the 

24 item relating to section 832 (article 32) and insert25 ing the following new item: 


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‘‘832. 32. Preliminary hearing and investigation required before referral to general court-martial.’’. 

1 (b) INVESTIGATIVE SUBPOENA.—Section 846(d) of 

2 title 10, United States Code (article 46 of the Uniform 

3 Code of Military Justice) is amended— 

4 (1) in paragraph (1)(C), by striking the semi5 colon and inserting ‘‘, including an investigation con6 ducted as part of a preliminary hearing under sec7 tion 832 of this title (article 32);’’; and 

8 (2) by amending paragraph (2) to read as fol9 lows: 

10 ‘‘(2) INVESTIGATIVE SUBPOENA.—An investiga11 tive subpoena under paragraph (1)(C) may be issued 

12 before referral of charges to a court-martial only 

13 if— 

14 ‘‘(A) a general court-martial convening au15 thority has authorized counsel for the Govern16 ment to issue such a subpoena; 

17 ‘‘(B) a military judge issues such a sub18 poena pursuant to section 830a of this title (ar19 ticle 30a); or 

20 ‘‘(C) an officer presiding over a prelimi21 nary hearing under section 832 of this title (ar22 ticle 32) issues such a subpoena.’’. 


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1 SEC. 5. ROLE OF CONVENING AUTHORITY. 

2 (a) REFERRAL FOR TRIAL BY CONVENING AUTHOR3 ITY.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 834 of title 10, 

5 United States Code (article 33 of the Uniform Code 

6 of Military Justice) is amended— 

7 (A) in the section heading by striking 

8 ‘‘Advice to convening authority be9 fore referral for trial’’ and inserting ‘‘Re10 ferral for trial by convening author11 ity’’; 

12 (B) by redesignating subsections (a) 

13 through (d) as subsections (b) through (e), re14 spectively; 

15 (C) by inserting before subsection (b) the 

16 following new subsection: 

17 ‘‘(a) REFERRAL TO GENERAL COURT-MARTIAL.— 

18 ‘‘(1) The convening authority may not refer a 

19 specification under a charge to a general court-mar20 tial unless— 

21 ‘‘(A) the report of the preliminary hearing 

22 under section 832(d) of this title (article 32(d)) 

23 concludes that— 

24 ‘‘(i) the specification alleges an of25 fense under this chapter; 


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1 ‘‘(ii) it is beyond a reasonable doubt 

2 that the accused committed the offense 

3 charged; 

4 ‘‘(iii) a court-martial would have juris5 diction over the accused and the offense; 

6 and 

7 ‘‘(iv) the specification shall be referred 

8 to a general court-martial; or 

9 ‘‘(B) the accused has waived a preliminary 

10 hearing under section 832(a)(B) of this title 

11 (article 32) and the convening authority deter12 mines, in accordance with subsection (b) of this 

13 section (article), that referral of the specifica14 tion to a general court-martial is appropriate. 

15 ‘‘(2)(A) Except as provided in subparagraph 

16 (B), if the report of the preliminary hearing indi17 cates that charges and specifications shall be re18 ferred for trial by general court-martial, the con19 vening authority shall make such referral. 

20 ‘‘(B) The convening authority may elect not to 

21 make the referral required under subparagraph (A) 

22 only if the convening authority becomes aware of 

23 new evidence that was not considered at the prelimi24 nary hearing under section 832 of this title (article 


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1 32) and such evidence creates reasonable doubt with 

2 respect to the guilt of the accused. 

3 ‘‘(3)(A) Except as provided in subparagraph 

4 (B), if the report of the preliminary hearing indi5 cates that charges and specifications shall not be re6 ferred for trial by general court-martial, the con7 vening authority shall— 

8 ‘‘(i) dismiss the charges; or 

9 ‘‘(ii) determine whether to dispose of the 

10 charges and specifications through a special 

11 court-martial, a summary court-martial, or 

12 through another authority or proceeding au13 thorized under this chapter other than a gen14 eral court martial. 

15 ‘‘(B) In a case in which the convening authority 

16 becomes aware of new evidence that was not consid17 ered at the preliminary hearing under section 832 of 

18 this title (article 32), and such evidence indicates 

19 the guilt of the accused, the convening authority 

20 may order a new preliminary hearing to include con21 sideration of such evidence.’’; and 

22 (D) in subsection (b), as so redesignated— 

23 (i) in the subsection heading, by strik24 ing ‘‘GENERAL COURT-MARTIAL’’ and inVerDate Sep 11 2014 20:50 Jul 09, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00013 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3647.IH H3647

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1 serting ‘‘ADVICE BEFORE REFERRAL

2 WITHOUT PRELIMINARY HEARING’’; and 

3 (ii) in paragraph (1)— 

4 (I) in the matter preceding sub5 paragraph (A), by striking ‘‘Before re6 ferral’’ and inserting ‘‘In a case in 

7 which the accused has waived a pre8 liminary hearing under section 

9 832(a)(1)(B) of this title (article 

10 32(a)(1)(B)), before referral’’; and 

11 (II) in subparagraph (B), by 

12 striking ‘‘there is probable cause to 

13 believe’’ and inserting ‘‘it is beyond a 

14 reasonable doubt’’. 

15 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sec16 tions at the beginning of subchapter VI of chapter 

17 47 of such title is amended by striking the item re18 lating to section 834 and inserting the following new 

19 item: 

‘‘834. 34. Referral for trial by convening authority.’’. 

20 (b) WHO MAY CONVENE GENERAL COURTS-MAR21 TIAL.—Section 822(a) of title 10, United States Code (ar22 ticle 22 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice), is 

23 amended by striking ‘‘General courts-martial’’ and insert24 ing ‘‘Subject to section 834 of this title (article 34), gen25 eral courts-martial’’. 


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1 SEC. 6. PROHIBITION ON CERTAIN COMMUNICATIONS RE2 GARDING COURTS-MARTIAL. 

3 Section 837 of title 10, United States Code (article 

4 37 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice), is amended 

5 by adding at the end the following new subsection: 

6 ‘‘(e)(1) No court-martial convening authority, nor 

7 any other commanding officer, may provide a briefing con8 cerning a pending court-martial, or allegations that may 

9 lead to a court-martial, to any subordinate who may be 

10 selected to serve as a member of such court-martial. 

11 ‘‘(2) The prohibition in paragraph (1) shall not apply 

12 to a briefing provided in the course of a court-martial pro13 ceeding to a member of the armed forces who is partici14 pating in such proceeding.’’. 

15 SEC. 7. ADEQUATE REPRESENTATION OF DEFENDANTS. 

16 (a) ADEQUATE REPRESENTATION.—Section 838(b) 

17 of title 10, United States Code (article 38(b) of the Uni18 form Code of Military Justice) is amended by adding at 

19 the end the following new paragraph: 

20 ‘‘(8) Each Secretary of a military department shall 

21 ensure that— 

22 ‘‘(A) an accused who is represented by military 

23 or civilian counsel has access to the investigative, ex24 pert, and other services that defense counsel deter25 mines is necessary for adequate representation 

26 under this subsection; and 


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1 ‘‘(B) the amount of funds and other resources 

2 provided to an accused for investigative, expert, and 

3 other services under subparagraph (A) is propor4 tionate to the amount of funds and other resources 

5 provided to prosecutors for such services, except that 

6 the amount funds provided for such defense services 

7 may not exceed actual expenses.’’. 

8 (b) EQUAL ACCESS TO SERVICES.—Section 846(a) of 

9 title 10, United States Code (article 46a of the Uniform 

10 Code of Military Justice), is amended by striking the pe11 riod at the end and inserting ‘‘and equal access to inves12 tigative, expert, and other services.’’. 

13 SEC. 8. VOTES REQUIRED FOR CONVICTION, SENTENCING, 

14 AND OTHER MATTERS. 

15 Section 852 of title 10, United States Code (article 

16 52 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice), is amended— 

17 (1) in subsection (a)(3), by striking ‘‘by the 

18 concurrence of at least three-fourths of the members 

19 present’’ and inserting ‘‘by the unanimous concur20 rence of all members present’’; and 

21 (2) in subsection (b)(2), by striking ‘‘by the 

22 concurrence of at least three-fourths of the members 

23 present’’ and inserting ‘‘by the unanimous concur24 rence of all members present’’. 


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1 SEC. 9. ELECTRONIC RECORDS OF TRIAL. 

2 Section 854 of title 10, United States Code (article 

3 54 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice), is amended— 

4 (1) by redesignating subsections (d) and (e) as 

5 subsections (e) and (f), respectively; 

6 (2) by inserting after subsection (c) the fol7 lowing new subsection: 

8 ‘‘(c) FORM OF RECORD.—The record shall be kept 

9 in electronic format. A hard copy of the record shall not 

10 be kept or maintained except under such circumstances 

11 as the President may prescribe by regulation. The Presi12 dent shall issue regulations establishing a process by 

13 which a court reporter or official described in subsection 

14 (a) may certify the electronic version of the record.’’; 

15 (3) in subsection (e), as so redesignated, by 

16 striking ‘‘copy’’ and inserting ‘‘electronic and hard 

17 copy’’; and 

18 (4) in subsection (f), as so redesignated, by 

19 striking ‘‘copy’’ and inserting ‘‘electronic and hard 

20 copy’’. 

21 SEC. 10. PETITION FOR NEW TRIAL. 

22 Section 873 of title 10, United States Code (article 

23 73 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice) is amended— 

24 (1) by striking ‘‘At any time within three years 

25 after’’ and inserting the following: 


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1 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in subsection 

2 (b), at any time after’’; and 

3 (2) by adding at the end the following new sub4 section: 

5 ‘‘(b) LIMITATION.—For any offense that is subject 

6 to a statute of limitations, the right of an accused to peti7 tion for a new trial under subsection (a) shall terminate 

8 three years after the date of the entry of judgment on 

9 the offense under section 860c of this title (article 60c).’’. 

10 SEC. 11. DEFENSE INVESTIGATORS FOR INDIVIDUALS AC11 CUSED OF OFFENSES UNDER THE UNIFORM 

12 CODE OF MILITARY JUSTICE. 

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 53 of title 10, United 

14 States Code, is amended by inserting after section 1044e 

15 the following new section: 

16 ‘‘§ 1044f. Defense investigators for individuals ac17 cused of offenses under the Uniform Code 

18 of Military Justice 

19 ‘‘(a) DESIGNATION; PURPOSES.—The Secretary con20 cerned shall establish, within the department over which 

21 the Secretary has jurisdiction, an organization (to be 

22 known as a ‘Defense Investigator Unit’) for the purpose 

23 of providing investigative assistance to individuals who are 

24 accused of offenses under chapter 47 of this title (the Uni25 form Code of Military Justice). 


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1 ‘‘(b) ADMINISTRATIVE INDEPENDENCE.—Each De2 fense Investigator Unit shall be funded and maintained 

3 independently from any military criminal investigative or4 ganization in the department over which the Secretary 

5 concerned has jurisdiction. 

6 ‘‘(c) EQUITABLE SUPPORT.—The Secretary con7 cerned shall provide to the Defense Investigator Unit a 

8 level of support, including funding, staffing, and adminis9 trative support, that is sufficient to ensure that an accused 

10 has access to the investigative services necessary for ade11 quate representation, as required under section 838 of this 

12 title (article 38 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice). 

13 ‘‘(d) EQUITABLE ACCESS TO INVESTIGATIONS.—The 

14 Secretary concerned shall issue guidance under which a 

15 member of a Defense Investigator Unit— 

16 ‘‘(1) may access a crime scene in the same 

17 manner and to the same extent that a member of a 

18 military criminal investigative organization may ac19 cess a crime scene; and 

20 ‘‘(2) to the extent practicable, shall be present 

21 during any investigative activities conducted by a 

22 military criminal investigative organization, includ23 ing the processing of crime scenes and witness inter24 views.’’. 


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1 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

2 at the beginning of such chapter is amended by inserting 

3 after the item relating to section 1044e the following new 

4 item: 

‘‘1044f. Defense investigators for individuals accused of offenses under the Uniform Code of Military Justice.’’. 

5 (c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

6 are authorized to be appropriated to carry out section 

7 1044f of title 10, United States Code, as added by sub8 section (a), such sums as may be necessary for each fiscal 

9 year. 

10 SEC. 12. PROHIBITION ON INVOLUNTARY SEPARATION AS 

11 NONJUDICIAL PUNISHMENT FOR A CHARGE 

12 BROUGHT UNDER THE UNIFORM CODE OF 

13 MILITARY JUSTICE. 

14 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 59 of title 10, United 

15 States Code, is amended by inserting after section 1167 

16 the following new section: 

17 ‘‘§ 1167a. Prohibition on involuntary separation as 

18 nonjudicial punishment for a charge 

19 brought under the Uniform Code of Mili20 tary Justice 

21 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in section 

22 1167, a member charged with an offense under chapter 

23 47 of this title (the Uniform Code of Military Justice) may 


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1 not be involuntarily separated from the armed forces solely 

2 on the basis of such charge unless— 

3 ‘‘(1) the member is convicted of the offense by 

4 a court-martial; and 

5 ‘‘(2) separation of the member from the armed 

6 forces is prescribed as a sentence by the court mar7 tial. 

8 ‘‘(b) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this sec9 tion shall be construed to prohibit the involuntary separa10 tion of a member from the armed forces for misconduct 

11 that is not subject to a charge brought under chapter 47 

12 of this title (the Uniform Code of Military Justice).’’. 

13 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

14 at the beginning of such chapter is amended by inserting 

15 after the item relating to section 1067 the following new 

16 item: 

‘‘1067a. Prohibition on involuntary separation as nonjudicial punishment for a 

charge brought under the Uniform Code of Military Justice.’’. 

17 SEC. 13. CERTIORARI TO THE UNITED STATES COURT OF 

18 APPEALS FOR THE ARMED FORCES. 

19 (a) COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE ARMED FORCES; 

20 CERTIORARI.— 

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 1259 of title 28, 

22 United States Code, is amended— 

23 (A) in paragraph (3), by inserting ‘‘or de24 nied’’ after ‘‘granted’’; and 


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1 (B) in paragraph (4), by inserting ‘‘or de2 nied’’ after ‘‘granted’’. 

3 (2) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMEND4 MENTS.— 

5 (A) TITLE 10.—Section 867a(a) of title 10, 

6 United States Code (article 67a of the Uniform 

7 Code of Military Justice), is amended by strik8 ing ‘‘The Supreme Court may not review by a 

9 writ of certiorari under this section any action 

10 of the United States Court of Appeals for the 

11 Armed Forces in refusing to grant a petition 

12 for review.’’. 

13 (B) TIME FOR APPLICATION FOR WRIT OF

14 CERTIORARI.—Section 2101(g) of title 28, 

15 United States Code, is amended to read as fol16 lows: 

17 ‘‘(g) The time for application for a writ of certiorari 

18 to review a decision of the United States Court of Appeals 

19 for the Armed Forces, or the decision of a Court of Crimi20 nal Appeals that the United States Court of Appeals for 

21 the Armed Forces refuses to grant a petition to review, 

22 shall be as prescribed by rules of the Supreme Court.’’. 

23 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.— 

24 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), 

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1 fect upon the expiration of the 180-day period begin2 ning on the date of the enactment of this Act and 

3 shall apply to any petition granted or denied by the 

4 United States Court of Appeals for the Armed 

5 Forces on or after that effective date. 

6 (2) AUTHORITY TO PRESCRIBE RULES.—The 

7 authority of the Supreme Court to prescribe rules to 

8 carry out section 2101(g) of title 28, United States 

9 Code, as amended by subsection (a)(2)(B) of this 

10 Act, shall take effect on the date of the enactment 

11 of this Act. 

12 SEC. 14. TREATMENT OF CERTAIN RECORDS OF CRIMINAL 

13 INVESTIGATIONS. 

14 (a) GUIDANCE REQUIRED.—The Secretary of De15 fense, in consultation with the Secretaries of the military 

16 departments, shall develop and implement uniform guid17 ance to modify the systems used by Defense criminal in18 vestigative organizations to document records of criminal 

19 investigations (commonly known as ‘‘title systems’’) to en20 sure that a record identifying a member of the Armed 

21 Forces as the subject of a criminal investigation is re22 moved from such system if that member is cleared of 

23 wrongdoing as described in subsection (d). 

24 (b) DOCUMENTATION BY JUDGE ADVOCATE.—As 

25 soon as practicable after a member of the Armed forces 


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1 is cleared of wrongdoing as described in subsection (d), 

2 a judge advocate in the chain of command of the member 

3 shall submit to the Defense criminal investigative organi4 zation concerned a written notice verifying that the mem5 ber has been cleared of wrongdoing. 

6 (c) DEADLINE FOR REMOVAL.—A record described in 

7 subsection (a) shall be removed from the title system of 

8 a Defense criminal investigative organization not later 

9 than 30 days after the date on which the organization re10 ceives the notice described in subsection (b). 

11 (d) DISPOSITION OF INVESTIGATIONS.—A member of 

12 the Armed Forces who is the subject of a criminal inves13 tigation shall be considered to have been cleared of wrong14 doing for purposes of subsection (a) if— 

15 (1) the member is found not guilty, not respon16 sible, or it is found that the reasons specified for the 

17 proceeding are unsupported by the evidence of the 

18 offense for which the member was under investiga19 tion— 

20 (A) through a court-martial or other pro21 ceeding brought under the chapter 47 of title 

22 10, United States Code (the Uniform Code of 

23 Military Justice); 


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1 (B) through an administrative proceeding 

2 within the Department of Defense or the Armed 

3 Force concerned; or 

4 (C) by a civilian court; or 

5 (2) the Government makes a final determina6 tion not to prosecute the member for the criminal of7 fense for which the member was under investigation. 

8 (e) DEFENSE CRIMINAL INVESTIGATIVE ORGANIZA9 TION DEFINED.—In this section, the term ‘‘Defense crimi10 nal investigative organization’’ means any organization or 

11 element of the Department of Defense or an Armed Force 

12 that is responsible for conducting criminal investigations, 

13 including— 

14 (1) the Army Criminal Investigation Command; 

15 (2) the Naval Criminal Investigative Service; 

16 (3) the Air Force Office of Special Investiga17 tions; 

18 (4) the Coast Guard Investigative Service; and 

19 (5) the Defense Criminal Investigative Service. 

Æ 


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