With three Army and Air force joint bases in the area, San Antonio has been properly named Military City, USA. San Antonio has one of the oldest military installations in the nation. Prior military personnel and their families come to the area to be near some of the best medical care and to stay connected to the military culture that they might have left behind.
The joint bases have been carefully preserving military’s rich history, and host the Air Force’s oldest museum, Hangar 9/Edward H. White Museum. San Antonio’s military installations represent the past, present, and future of the armed forces. Because of this heightened stature, military sexual assault allegations at any of these installations receive intense scrutiny not just from the military but from the media as well. The effect of all this attention is that there is unprecedented pressure to get convictions in cases like this.
You owe a duty to yourself and your loved ones to contact an experienced sexual assault lawyer
At Gagne, Scherer & Associates, LLC, we represent airmen and soldiers accused of terrible crimes. A sexual assault charge can ruin an Airman’s or Soldier’s life: overnight it can destroy his career and reputation. If you’ve been charged with sexual assault and are facing a court martial, you have to find a sexual assault lawyer that will fight for and defend your rights, and will help you resume your career in San Antonio.
Sexual assault charges are some of the hardest to defend because of the media’s, military’s, and politicians’ drive to diminish the rights of people accused of this kind of crime. Politicians, aided by the media, have created a false and misleading picture of the military environment, making it seem as if the military condones sexual assault. The reality is that military leadership at the highest levels has pushed for higher conviction rates, regardless of the defendant’s rights under military law and the Constitution. Because of the relentless attacks by politicians and advocacy groups, attacks largely driven by distortions of statistics, the military feels compelled to take sexual assault cases to court martial, no matter how absurd the allegations are, and regardless of whether the alleged victim wants it to go that far. Working with experienced sexual assault lawyers is the only chance you have at receiving a fair day in court. You need attorneys who know how to get judges and jurors to set the propaganda aside, a task that is becoming increasingly difficult by the day.
Article 120 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice
With the politicians, activists, and the media hammering the military for its response to sexual assault allegations, the military has revised Article 120 of the UCMJ to include just about every allegation of sexual misconduct, even sexual harassment. Article 120 is not limited to rape and sexual assault. Almost any type of action can be perceived as sexual assault—things have gone so far that those convicted of crimes under Article 120 now face devastating mandatory punishments, such as a dishonorable discharge for enlisted airmen and soldiers, and a dismissal for officers. This is in addition to the other punishments, such as jail, loss of rank, forfeiture of pay, and fines. And anyone convicted of a sex crime in the military will have to register as a sex offender after returning to civilian life.
Furthermore, there is now no end-date on when an alleged victim can come forward with a case. Before the 2014 revisions by the National Defense Authorization Act, there was a 5-year statute of limitations. In a sense, military members are never safe from false accusations for consensual sex they had many years ago.
Under Article 120, allegations of sexual assault will go through a General Court-Martial, with no chance to be tried at a Special or Summary Court Martial. Sex-related cases, even the use of dirty language or crude remarks at in the duty place, are now essentially a felony trial.
A General Court-Martial is the worst place for any Airman or Soldier to find himself. You need to do everything you can to defend yourself. Start by contacting a sexual assault attorney immediately to handle your case.
Those facing A General Court-Martial will be perceived as guilty at first
A General Court-Martial is the most serious type of trial in the military.
An Airman or Soldier facing a General Court-Martial often feels like his chain of command has left him for dead. An aggressive e sexual assault and court martial attorney can help bring people back over to your side, both in the courtroom and within the unit. At Gagne, Scherer & Associates, LLC, our sexual assault attorneys have defended Airmen and Soldiers in courts-martial for many years, using a wide variety of tactics, always adapting our strategies to the unique circumstances of each case. As a result of our adaptability, knowledge of developments in the law, and courtroom skill, we have achieved outstanding results for our clients and earned a great reputation.
A good sexual assault attorney is your strongest weapon. The government will spare no expense prosecuting you. Your appointed attorney will have nowhere near the resources the prosecution has. It’s critically important that your defense attorneys know how to create maximum leverage from minimal funding, and know how to persuade a judge to compel the government to play fair.
How Gagne, Scherer & Associates, LLC can help San Antonio Airmen and Soldiers
At Gagne, Scherer & Associates, LLC, our civilian military trial lawyers have dedicated their careers to defending military servicemen and woman that have been accused of crimes. We have enjoyed tremendous success handling the toughest General Court-Martial trials.
As former Air Force officers ourselves, we understand the military environment. We remain committed to helping military members in trouble, and we never lose sight of what’s at stake.
If you have been accused of sexual assault and are facing a court martial in San Antonio, contact an experienced sexual assault attorney at Gagne, Scherer & Associates, LLC immediately to start blueprinting an action plan.
We will fight for your honorable integrity, career, and military career.
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