Manual For Courts-Martial, United States, 1951

Washington DC [assumed]: U. S. Government Printing Office [assumed], 1951. Presumed First Edition, First printing this edition. Hardcover. Good. ix, [1], 665 pages. Appendices. Index. No dust jacket present. Rear pocket empty. One pager of Executive Order 10565 of 1954 amending portions of this manual laid in. Some cover wear noted. Name of previous owner stamped inside front board. and on bottom edge. Previous owner's mailing label [Roger P. Meekins] on fep. This copy may have been owned by the Roger P. Meekins who was born on September 2, 1930. At the age of 15, he started learning to fly an airplane, soloing at the age of 16 and qualifying for his private pilot's license at age 17. He graduated from UNC-Chapel Hill in 1954 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism. Having been in Air Force ROTC, he soon was called to active duty with USAF, where he spent the next 20 years. A large part of his USAF career was spent flying in the Strategic Air Command, but at times flew other types of aircraft as well. He flew, acting alternatively as co-pilot, pilot, aircraft commander and instructor pilot. He was assigned to Vietnam, where he flew 401 combat sorties, during which time his aircraft took 38 hits, causing battle damage and sometimes emergencies but always returned safely back to base. Roger spent years in the intelligence field and was assigned to the Defense Intelligence Agency. For three years he was attached to the State Department and accredited as the Assistant Air Force Attaché at the US Embassy in Manila, Philippines. In 1974 he was discharged from USAF, retiring as lieutenant colonel. He was 3 times awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross, 7 times the Air Medal, plus 37 other decorations and recognition. On February 8, 1951 President Harry S. Truman, by Executive Order 10214 proscribe this Manual for Courts-Martial, United States, 1951. This is directly related to the establishment of a Uniform Code of Military Justice. The manual when issued was in force and effect in the armed forces of the United States on and after May 31, 1951, with respect to all court-martial processed taken on and after My 31, 1951. A court-martial or court martial (plural courts-martial or courts martial) is a military court or a trial conducted in such a court. A court-martial is empowered to determine the guilt of members of the armed forces subject to military law, and, if the defendant is found guilty, to decide upon punishment. In addition, courts-martial may be used to try prisoners of war for war crimes. The Geneva Conventions require that POWs who are on trial for war crimes be subject to the same procedures as would be the holding military's own forces. Finally, courts-martial can be convened for other purposes, such as dealing with violations of martial law, and can involve civilian defendants.
Most navies have a standard court-martial which convenes whenever a ship is lost; this does not presume that the captain is suspected of wrongdoing, but merely that the circumstances surrounding the loss of the ship be made part of the official record. Most military forces maintain a judicial system that tries defendants for breaches of military discipline. This manual was in force during most of the period of the Korean War and was updated prior to significant U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War.