Ask the public to give an example of a court martial and many would probably cite the trial of ‘Flanders pigeon murderer’ Captain Edmund Blackadder.
‘Pass me the black cap, I’ll be needing that later,’ mutters presiding chair General Sir Anthony Cecil Hogmanay Melchett, deliciously. (Even now, Stephen Fry admits to being discombobulated when someone shouts ‘You shot my Speckled Jim!’ at him from across the street.)
Not that I can lay claim to comprehensive knowledge of military justice. I did not know, for example, that to serve on a court martial board, a member of the armed forces must rank no lower than staff sergeant (army), chief petty officer (navy) or flight sergeant (RAF). That seems to me remarkable: a throwback to the days when only gentlemen could cast a vote.
One recommendation in a little-noticed Commons select committee report on the quinquennial Armed Forces Bill is that the Ministry of Defence review this stipulation. But it is only a suggestion. Few will expect the ministry to jump to attention. The director of service prosecutions told the committee that the requirement is a ‘guarantee of independence’, as those on a board would not be required to judge someone who may become their boss.
Elsewhere, the MPs broadly approve of reforms to the Service Justice System that follow the scrutiny and scandal arising from its handling of serious crimes, and specifically sexual offences. Serious flaws remain, however, according to solicitor and campaigner Emma Norton, founder of the Centre for Military Justice. The committee agrees with her that independent research should be commissioned into the seeming discrepancy between rape conviction rates at court martial and Crown court. And she laments that the committee has not taken the opportunity to remove the power of commanding officers to deal with domestic abuse offences at summary hearings. ‘COs have no business dealing with these kinds of offences,’ she told me.
The Ministry of Defence was predictably non-committal when I asked it to comment on the recommendations for further SJS reform. ‘We welcome the Committee’s recognition of the Bill’s focus on improving support for victims, alongside its emphasis on effective implementation, training and awareness,’ the MoD said.
Maybe in another five years.
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