Sex Offenses
I defend service members in all branches — Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard — who are accused of military sex offenses such as sexual assault, indecency, offenses involving children, and adultery, and who are facing legal actions such as court-martial, Article 32 investigation, Article 15 nonjudicial punishment (also known as NJP, captain’s mast, or office hours), and administrative separations. My law office is centrally located in the Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas area, which allows easy access to every military base in CONUS, as well as around the globe.
Sex crimes are serious, and people accused of sex crimes find themselves in a world where even weak allegations are believed by law enforcement to be gospel truth. I have seen false allegations made for all kinds of reasons, such as for leverage in a divorce action, revenge, and very commonly regret over an ill-advised, but consensual, sexual encounter. Particularly in the military, these are “he said, she said” cases. The penalties can be among the most severe known to the law, including the possibility of having to register as a sex offender for the rest of your life.
These cases can be highly difficult for an inexperienced lawyer to defend, which is why it’s critical to hire someone who knows what he’s doing. In addition to handling numerous sex crimes cases in my career, I also was an investigator for Child Protective Services in a busy civilian jurisdiction before becoming a lawyer. As a result, I am skilled at effective interviewing and cross-examination of alleged victims and child witnesses — normally a very difficult task for an inexperienced practitioner.
Increasingly, the military is using experienced “special victims prosecutors” — often lieutenant colonels — to spearhead these cases and take advantage of newer active-duty defense counsel. As in all areas, the government likes to do everything it can to stack the deck against the accused. I can and will help balance the scales, and make the case about the facts and not about the prosecutor.
If you are being investigated for any kind of military sex offense, invoke your 31(b) rights and don’t make any statement! But whether you make a statement or not, contact me as soon as possible for a free consultation.
