§950b Review by the Convening Authority

Summary

After a military commission gives a sentence, the commission must send the written findings and sentence quickly to the convening authority (the officer in charge of the commission). The accused can give written matters for the convening authority to consider about the findings and sentence. Those papers must be sent within 20 days after the accused gets the official trial record. The convening authority can extend that deadline for good cause for up to another 20 days. The accused can waive the chance to submit materials in writing, and that waiver cannot be taken back. Only the convening authority decides whether to change findings or the sentence. The convening authority does not have to change findings, and if it does it can only throw out a guilty finding or reduce a guilty finding to a lesser included offense. The convening authority must act on the sentence, following rules set by the Secretary of Defense, and may approve, disapprove, commute, or suspend all or part of the sentence but cannot make it harsher than the commission found. The convening authority must tell the accused or defense counsel what action was taken. The convening authority may also order a revision of the record or a rehearing in limited cases: revisions only for record errors or fixable mistakes that do not hurt the accused’s main rights, and revisions cannot revisit not-guilty findings or increase a sentence unless the sentence is mandatory. A rehearing can be ordered if the convening authority disapproves the findings and explains why; if the convening authority disapproves but does not order a rehearing, the charges must be dismissed. A rehearing for findings is not allowed when the record lacks enough evidence, though a rehearing of the sentence can be ordered if the convening authority disapproves the sentence.