The Court Martial Manual has existed in one form or another since 1890, although they were certainly manuals on military trials long before that. Perhaps the best-known and earliest version of a standard MCM was written by Brigadier General John R. Brooke and Acting Judge Attorney P. Henry Ray at their headquarters in Omaha, Nebraska. It was entitled Instructions for Courts Martial and was just over 50 pages long. The manual operated alongside the war articles and naval government articles for more than 60 years, but no final manual had yet been printed for military use. On May 6, 1951, President Truman signed a congressional bill consolidating the newly formed UCMJ and the Court Martial Manual. Links to the most recent version of the Court Martial Manual, as well as previous versions, can be found below: The Court Martial Manual (MCM) is the official guide to the conduct of courts martial in the U.S. military. An executive order of the President of the United States, the MCM details and expands the military law set forth in the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ). The MCM contains five parts plus 22 appendices: The Court Martial Manual is the official U.S. Army reference for courts martial and trials for all branches of the armed forces. The manual is updated to reflect recent changes to the Uniform Code of Military Justice and has been regularly supplemented and revised since it became the official document of the U.S.

Army and UCMJ in 1951. The manual is regularly reviewed and published by the Joint Service Committee on Military Justice. This committee is responsible for ensuring that the manual remains up-to-date with respect to procedural etiquette, jurisdictional issues, amendments to criminal articles and other military tribunal procedures. In June 2019, the Federal Register published the 2019 Court Martial Handbook with all the most recent amendments. The Court Martial Manual is divided into five parts and supplemented by 28 appendices at the time of writing. Although the substance of the parts and the number of accessories have changed and increased considerably over the years, the structure of the MCM has remained largely the same since 1950. Part I: Preamble Defines the Sources and Exercise of Military Jurisdiction, and the Nature and Purpose of Military Law Part II: Rules for Courts Martial describe general provisions, rules relating to arrest, transfer and indictment, calling of courts martial, withdrawal of charges, and more. Part III: Military rules of evidence govern what may and may not be used by lawyers and prosecutors before military tribunals. Part IV: Criminal Items contains the complete list of offenses, their elements, and their minimum and maximum penalties under subchapter 10 of the United States Code. Part V: The non-judicial sanction procedure describes who can impose non-binding judges, how they should proceed and how the sanction should be imposed.

This article, which refers to the law of the United States or its constituent jurisdictions, is a heel. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. Previous additions: The first modern court martial manual, representing all branches of the armed forces, was published in 1951. But the MCM dates from 1890. You can review all previous editions on the Library of Congress website. If you are in the crosshairs of military law enforcement, do not hesitate to contact the experienced lawyers at Bilecki Law Group. Call us anytime, day or night, to arrange your free consultation today.