Court Opinion

ID: 9444675
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-03 21:08:32.760681+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T17:29:57.704117
License: Public Domain

FINNEGAN, Circuit Judge
(dissenting).
An unknown Korean female was admittedly subjected to a ruthlessly vicious sexual attack by the plaintiff DeCoster. He made a statement describing his reprehensible conduct in specific nauseating detail. Counsel for the prosecution and defense stipulated as to what the substance of a certain medical officer’s testimony would be if he testified about his personal autopsy findings, made after examining the deceased Korean woman. Plaintiff also signed that stipulation made part of the general court-martial record, now before us. I am forced to adopt euphemistic style when recording an established factual element contained in that autopsy report, clearly showing consummation of the kind and type of conduct described by specification 2, set out below. At the outset I am confronted by the significance of DeCoster’s situation in our court for he complains not of proof, nor attacks the adjudication of his guilt or innocence, but constricts his appeal only to the quantum and mode of his punishment. Consequently my narration of facts refers to evidence supplied by the plaintiff himself in his written statements and stipulation. Their relevancy, in my opinion, is obvious since they are the actual evidentiary materials received by, and presented to, the general court-martial that convicted DeCoster. In short, his confession, admissions and stipulation constituted a substantial portion of the prosecution’s proof of specification 2 for which the general court-martial tried him.
My dissent, here, is predicated solely upon the grounds which follow.
Plaintiff and two other persons, members of the Armed Farces at that time, were tried together. Plaintiff was tried for and under:
“Charge: Violation of the 92d Article of War.
“Specification 1: In that Corporal Carl A. DeCoster, Headquarters, Headquarters and Service Company, 72d Tank Battalion, APO 248, did, at Chudong-ni, South Korea, on or about March 16, 1951, with malice aforethought, willfully, deliberately, feloniously, unlawfully, and with premeditation kill an adult Korean *912female person whose name is unknown, a human being, by shooting her in the head with a pistol or carbine.
“Specification 2: In that Corporal Carl A. DeCoster, Headquarters, Headquarters and Service Company, 72d Tank Battalion, APO 248, did, at Chudong-ni, South Korea, on or about March 16, 1951, forcibly and feloniously, against her will, have carnal knowledge of an adult Korean female person whose name is unknown.”
When the general court reached its verdict it reported, through its President, the following:
“Pres.: Corporal Carl A. DeCoster, it is my duty as president of this court to inform you that the court in closed session, and upon secret written ballot, .two-thirds of the members present at the time the vote was taken concurring in each finding of guilty, finds you:
“Of Specification 1, guilty.
“Of Specification 2, guilty, except the word “have” substituting therefor the words, “attempt to have”; of the excepted words, not guilty, of the substituted words, guilty.
“Of the Charge as to Specification 1, guilty; as to Specification 2, not guilty, but guilty of a violation of Article of War 96.”
The law officer’s instruction, complained of by plaintiff, was given after presentencing procedures prescribed by the Manual for Courts — Martial, United States, 1951, Appendix 8a, pp. 520, 521. Before the general court retired a second time to deliberate, pursuant to military law, upon punishment, the law officer then stated to the court:
“LO.: Each accused stands convicted of Specification 1, violation of the 92d Article of War. The punishment on a conviction of the 92d Article of War must be either death or life. It cannot be other than those two sentences. This is provided in Manual for Courts-Martial 1949, page 296, ‘Any person subject to military law found guilty of murder shall suffer death or imprisonment for life, as a court-martial may direct. The court will be closed.’ ”
After deliberating upon punishment the court returned and reconvened, in public hearing, at this time the President announced:
“Corporal DeCoster, it is my duty as president of this court to inform you that the court in closed session and upon secret written ballot, three-fourths of the members present at the time the vote was taken concurring, sentences you to be dishonorably discharged from the service, to forfeit all pay and allowances to become due after the date of the order directing execution of the sentence, and to be confined at hard labor at such place as proper authority may direct for the term of your natural life.”
Upon examination of plaintiff's sentence and underlying record of trial a Board of Review concluded (United States v. Fowler, etc., et al., C. M. 347258, 2 CMR 336, 345):
“that the approved findings of guilty of Specification 1 of the' Charge and the Charge are incorrect in law and fact and the same are set aside; that the approved finding of guilty of Specification 2 of the Charge and the approved finding of guilty of a violation of the 96th Article of War are correct in law and fact; and that only so much of the approved sentence as provides for dishonorable discharge, total forfeitures, and confinement at hard labor for 20 years is correct in law and in fact. The board of review having determined upon the basis of the entire record, that the approved findings of guilty, except as thus set aside, and the approved sentence, as modified, should be approved as to each accused, such findings, except as thus set aside, and sentences, as modified are Affirmed.”
*913A subsequent petition for review of that decision was denied, without opinion, by the United States Military Court of Appeals. United States v. Fowler, etc., et al., No. 681, 3 CMR 151, June 2, 1952.
Starting with Carter v. McClaughry, 1901, 183 U.S. 365, 22 S.Ct. 181, 46 L.Ed. 236 and continuously up to, and including McDonald v. Lee, 5 Cir., 1955, 217 F.2d 619, 622 it has been settled that a gross sentence imposed by court-martial for several charges is proper. Speaking for the McClaughry court, Id., 183 U.S. 393, 22 S.Ct. 192, Mr. Justice Fuller summarized in these words:
“We understand the rule established by military usage to be ‘that the sentence of a court-martial shall be in every case an entirety; that is to say, that there shall be but a single sentence covering aU the convictions on all the charges and specifications upon which the accused is found guilty, however separate and distinct may be the different offenses found, and however different may be the punishments called for by the offenses.’ 1 Winthrop, Military Law, 2d ed. p. 614.
“Where, then, there is conviction of several offenses, the sentence is warranted to the extent that such offenses are punishable.”*
Indeed, plaintiff endorses that proposition by a marginal note on page 5 of his brief, viz.:
“It was entirely legal and proper for the court to fix one penalty in gross, to cover all of the counts or charges. The Manual for Courts Martial specifically authorizes that type of procedure and no other. The imposition of separate penalties for different counts or charges, either to run consecutively or concurrently is not authorized.”
Actually the majority, here, are saying, in substance, that the general court martial did not sentence plaintiff for attempted rape even after particularly convicting him of that offense.
Before going further it should be noted that plaintiff’s conduct, for which he was tried, took place on March 16, 1951 and the Manual for Courts-Martial, U. S. Army, 1949 was then in effect. His trial, June 8, 1951, followed the effective date May 31, 1951, of the Uniform Code of Military Justice, 54 Stat. 108, by nine days and review was had pursuant to that new Code. In fact the Board of Review, in the Office of the Judge Advocate General of the Army handed down its decision, already mentioned on January 15, 1952.
Article 66(c), Uniform Code of Military Justice, 64 Stat. 128; 50 U.S.C.A. § 653, describes and confers the reviewing power, involved, here as follows:
“In a case referred to it, the board of review shall act only with respect to the findings and sentence as approved by the convening authority. It shall affirm only such findings of guilty, and the sentence of such part or amount of the sentence, as it finds correct in law and fact and determines, on the basis of the entire rec-cord, should be approved. In considering the record it shall have authority to weigh the evidence, judge the credibility of witnesses, and determine controverted questions of fact, recognizing that the trial court saw and heard the witnesses.” (Italics added.)
That article has been construed as containing the Board of Review’s power to reduce sentences. United States v. Kuth, 4 CMR 34, 43 (USCMA, 1952); United States v. Strong, 5 CMR 55, 56 (USCMA, 1952).
I view this case in its military setting and within such legal framework as Congress has prescribed for that establishment. Consequently, it is necessary to divest my civilian legal training and approach of that basic principle which inhibits civilian tribunals, above the trial *914level, from reviewing or disturbing sentences imposed by trial judges. Because of the obvious fluid situations confronting military law administrators it is quite understandable why a board of review has power over sentences imposed by a general court martial. See, e. g., United States v. Jones, 3 CMR 36, 38 (USCMA, 1952). Indeed a general court-martial is a transitory body whose complement may be permanently dispersed and scattered around the globe shortly after verdict. Worthy of stress, here, is the fact plaintiff launches no challenges against jurisdiction or power of the general court which convicted him. Moreover, plaintiff admits (his brief, p. 8) the words contained in Article 66 “ * * * only authorize the board to cut down or reduce penalties.” Indeed, his counsel adds, “The natural meaning of that sentence is that the Board shall reduce a penalty if it is in excess of the maximum or if it is unnecessarily harsh”. I would say that is just what the Board did here. Plaintiff has simply erected the structure of his claim for relief, in our court, by overlooking the military principles underlying gross sentences; 'that they are entire and single.
There is still another intriguing facet of the majority’s disposition of this appeal. If plaintiff’s sentence is void, that part of it providing a dishonorable discharge probably enjoys a like fate. Because there is nothing in this record to show whether the dishonorable discharge was imposed for murder or attempted rape; that prong of plaintiff's sentence was also imposed in gross. Accordingly, this brings into focus a question involving the validity of plaintiff’s discharge and whether he is,. indeed, separated from military service.
United States v. Keith, 4 CMR 34, 43 (USCMA, 1952) forces me to disagree with the majority on the helplessness of the military reviewing tribunals. In my opinion plaintiff’s case did not have to be returned to the identical general court-martial.
Actually we are asked to review a dismissal for writ of habeas corpus. I think the trial judge acted correctly and would affirm him. We must remember that the United States Court of Military Appeals consists of three judges, 64 Stat. 129, appointed by the President of the United States, for a term of fifteen years and is a permanent part of the Military appellate system.
As the accused, plaintiff received (and acknowledged in writing) a notice given pursuant to the Uniform Code of Military Justice, Article 67(c), 64 Stat. 129, of his right to petition the Court of Military Appeals for a review of the Board of Review’s decision, now subjected to attack in our court. At the Court of Military Appeals stage, plaintiff had civilian counsel who requested, according to an exhibit in the record, that an army appellate counsel submit DeCoster’s brief in that court.
Prom my examination of the comprehensive petition for review, and brief, filed in the Court of Military Appeals it clearly appears that the proposition concerning punishment, of which plaintiff now complains, was not raised. Yet reduction of sentence is clearly mentioned on the face of DeCoster’s petition and I think the following document is self-explanatory:
“In the United States Court of Military Appeals

To the Honorable, the Judges of the United States Court of Military Appeals:

1. a. The accused having been found guilty of a violation of the 92d and 96th *915Articles of War, and having been sentenced to dishonorable discharge, total forfeiture, and confinement for the term of his natural life on 9 June 1951, at Headquarters, 2d Infantry Division, APO 248, by General Court-Martial Orders Number 43, dated 3 July 1951, and said sentence having been approved by the convening authority, and the board of review having disaffirmed the finding of guilty of Article of War 92 and affirmed the finding of guilty of Article of War 96, and having reduced the sentence to twenty (20) years on 15 January 1952, hereby petitions the United States Court of Military Appeals for a grant of review of the decision of the board of review.
b. The accused requests appellate defense counsel be designated by The Judge Advocate General to represent him in association with his privately retained counsel named below, to the extent such privately retained counsel may desire.
Allen Cain, Esq.,
Central Block Building,
Kaukaune, Wisconsin.”
I remain unpersuaded that we should free plaintiff from federal custody. When the Board struck down DeCoster’s conviction of murder they simply cast out an offense carrying mandatory life imprisonment, which sentence also embraced the punishment for attemped rape. Plaintiff was still legally convicted of this latter offense. Because DeCoster’s conviction under the murder specification carried a mandatory sentence does not mean when it was imposed by the general court-martial that DeCoster was unpunished for attempted rape.
Speaking of Article 66 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice, 64 Stat. 128; 50 U.S.C.A. § 653, it was observed in United States v. Jones, 3 CMR 36, 38 (USCMA, 1952):
“Again, included within the authority granted to the boards of review is the right to reduce the sentence if it should determine that any part is erroneous, excessive, or based on incompetent evidence, which had a tendency to increase the sentence. To interpret the acts more narrowly would defeat the intent clearly expressed by Congress as the entire record is the basis for determining the sentence which should ultimately be affirmed. The breadth of the grant encompassed post-finding errors as well as trial and pre-trial errors, and to narrow the limits to the extent that the reviewing authority could not effectively remove prejudice would tend to defeat one of the salutary provisions of the Code.”
My views, here, coincide with those expressed by Mr. Justice Minton, concurring in the affirmance of judgment in Burns v. Wilson, 1953, 346 U.S. 137, 146, 73 S.Ct. 1045, 97 L.Ed. 1508, a case cited by the majority here. Actually DeCoster’s petition, on review before us, specifically raises only a tenuous constitutional question regarding alleged ex post facto operation of Article 66. But that Article worked no substantive change in powers of Boards of review. Indeed, if Article 66 is defective on DeCoster’s theory, then it would seem the Board of Review was powerless to set aside his murder conviction. Plaintiff attempts to avoid this cul de sac by urging Article 66 is defective as an ex post facto law, only because it did not afford him a new trial. See, e. g., Mallet v. State of North Carolina, 1901, 181 U.S. 589, 21 S.Ct. 730, 45 L.Ed. 1015.
DeCoster has failed or declined to raise the point concerning punishment, now pressed upon us, within the military appellate framework. Since I am satisfied that this case involves neither an illegal detention, deprivation nor impingement of constitutional rights as would warrant issuance of a writ of habeas corpus, I would affirm the judgment entered below.

 “Entirety” is italicized in the original report, all other italicization has been supplied.