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Illinois Compiled Statutes

Information maintained by the Legislative Reference Bureau
Updating the database of the Illinois Compiled Statutes (ILCS) is an ongoing process. Recent laws may not yet be included in the ILCS database, but they are found on this site as Public Acts soon after they become law. For information concerning the relationship between statutes and Public Acts, refer to the Guide.

Because the statute database is maintained primarily for legislative drafting purposes, statutory changes are sometimes included in the statute database before they take effect. If the source note at the end of a Section of the statutes includes a Public Act that has not yet taken effect, the version of the law that is currently in effect may have already been removed from the database and you should refer to that Public Act to see the changes made to the current law.

EXECUTIVE BRANCH
(20 ILCS 1807/) Illinois Code of Military Justice.

20 ILCS 1807/Pt. V

 
    (20 ILCS 1807/Pt. V heading)
PART V. APPOINTMENT AND COMPOSITION OF COURTS-MARTIAL
(Source: P.A. 99-796, eff. 1-1-17.)

20 ILCS 1807/22

    (20 ILCS 1807/22)
    Sec. 22. Article 22. Who may convene general courts-martial.
    (a) General courts-martial may be convened by:
        (1) the Governor, or;
        (2) the Adjutant General.
    (b) (Reserved).
(Source: P.A. 99-796, eff. 1-1-17.)

20 ILCS 1807/23

    (20 ILCS 1807/23)
    Sec. 23. Article 23. Who may convene special courts-martial.
    (a) Special courts-martial may be convened by:
        (1) any person who may convene a general
    
court-martial;
        (2) the Commander of the Illinois Army National of
    
members of the Illinois Army National Guard when empowered by the Adjutant General; or
        (3) the Commander of the Illinois Air National
    
Guard of members of the Illinois Air National Guard when empowered by the Adjutant General.
    (b) If any such officer is an accuser, the court shall be convened by superior competent authority and may in any case be convened by such superior authority if considered desirable by such authority.
(Source: P.A. 99-796, eff. 1-1-17.)

20 ILCS 1807/24

    (20 ILCS 1807/24)
    Sec. 24. Article 24. Who may convene summary courts-martial.
    (a) Summary courts-martial may be convened by:
        (1) any person who may convene a general or special
    
court-martial;
        (2) the commanding officer or officer in charge of
    
any other command when empowered by the Adjutant General.
    (b) When only one commissioned officer is present with a command or detachment that officer shall be the summary court-martial of that command or detachment and shall hear and determine all summary court-martial cases. Summary courts-martial may, however, be convened in any case by superior competent authority if considered desirable by such authority.
(Source: P.A. 99-796, eff. 1-1-17.)

20 ILCS 1807/25

    (20 ILCS 1807/25)
    Sec. 25. Article 25. Who may serve on courts-martial.
    (a) Any commissioned officer of the State military forces is eligible to serve on all courts-martial for the trial of any person subject to this Code.
    (b) Any warrant officer of the State military forces is eligible to serve on general and special courts-martial for the trial of any person subject to this Code, other than a commissioned officer.
    (c) Any enlisted member of the State military forces who is not a member of the same unit as the accused is eligible to serve on general and special courts-martial for the trial of any enlisted member subject to this Code, but that member shall serve as a member of a court only if, before the conclusion of a session called by the military judge under subsection (a) of Article 39 of this Code prior to trial or, in the absence of such a session, before the court is assembled for the trial of the accused, the accused personally has requested orally on the record or in writing that enlisted members serve on it. After such a request, the accused may not be tried by a general or special court-martial the membership of which does not include enlisted members in a number comprising at least one-third of the total membership of the court, unless eligible enlisted members cannot be obtained on account of physical conditions or military exigencies. If such members cannot be obtained, the court may be assembled and the trial held without them, but the convening authority shall make a detailed written statement, to be appended to the record, stating why they could not be obtained. In this Article, "unit" means any regularly organized body of the State military forces not larger than a company, a squadron, a division of the naval militia, or a body corresponding to one of them.
    (d) When it can be avoided, no person subject to this Code may be tried by a court-martial any member of which is junior to the accused in rank or grade.
    (e) When convening a court-martial, the convening authority shall detail as members thereof such members of the State military forces as, in the convening authority's opinion, are best qualified for the duty by reason of age, education, training, experience, length of service, and judicial temperament. No member of the State military forces is eligible to serve as a member of a general or special court-martial when that member is the accuser, a witness, or has acted as investigating officer or as counsel in the same case.
    (f) Before a court-martial is assembled for the trial of a case, the convening authority may excuse a member of the court from participating in the case. The convening authority may delegate the authority under this subsection to a judge advocate or to any other principal assistant.
(Source: P.A. 99-796, eff. 1-1-17.)

20 ILCS 1807/25a

    (20 ILCS 1807/25a)
    Sec. 25a. Article 25a. (Reserved).
(Source: P.A. 99-796, eff. 1-1-17.)

20 ILCS 1807/26

    (20 ILCS 1807/26)
    Sec. 26. Article 26. Military judge of a general or special court-martial.
    (a) A military judge shall be detailed to each general and special court-martial. The military judge shall preside over each open session of the court-martial to which the military judge has been detailed.
    (b) In addition to the requirements noted in Article 6a, a military judge shall be:
        (1) an active commissioned officer of an organized
    
state military force;
        (2) a member in good standing of the bar of the
    
highest court of a state or a member of the bar of a federal court for at least 5 years; and
        (3) certified as qualified for duty as a military
    
judge by the senior force judge advocate which is the same force as the accused.
    (c) In the instance when a military judge is not a member of the bar of the highest court of this State, the military judge shall be deemed admitted pro hac vice, subject to filing a certificate with the senior force judge advocate which is the same force as the accused setting forth such qualifications provided in subsection (b).
    (d) The military judge of a general or special court-martial shall be designated by the senior force judge advocate which is the same force as the accused, or a designee, for detail by the convening authority. Neither the convening authority nor any staff member of the convening authority shall prepare or review any report concerning the effectiveness, fitness, or efficiency of the military judge so detailed, which relates to performance of duty as a military judge.
    (e) No person is eligible to act as military judge in a case if that person is the accuser or a witness, or has acted as investigating officer or a counsel in the same case.
    (f) The military judge of a court-martial may not consult with the members of the court except in the presence of the accused, trial counsel, and defense counsel nor vote with the members of the court.
(Source: P.A. 99-796, eff. 1-1-17.)

20 ILCS 1807/27

    (20 ILCS 1807/27)
    Sec. 27. Article 27. Detail of trial counsel and defense counsel.
    (a)(1) For each general and special court-martial the authority convening the court shall detail trial counsel, defense counsel, and such assistants as are appropriate.
    (2) No person who has acted as investigating officer, military judge, witness, or court member in any case may act later as trial counsel, assistant trial counsel, or, unless expressly requested by the accused, as defense counsel or assistant or associate defense counsel in the same case. No person who has acted for the prosecution may act later in the same case for the defense nor may any person who has acted for the defense act later in the same case for the prosecution.
    (b) Except as provided in subsection (c), trial counsel or defense counsel detailed for a general or special court-martial must be:
        (1) a judge advocate as defined in paragraph (10) of
    
Article 1 of this Code; and
        (2) in the case of trial counsel, a member in good
    
standing of the bar of the highest court of the state where the court-martial is held.
    (c) In the instance when a defense counsel is not a member of the bar of the highest court of this State, the defense counsel shall be deemed admitted pro hac vice, subject to filing a certificate with the military judge setting forth the qualifications that counsel is:
        (1) a commissioned officer of the armed forces of
    
the United States or a component thereof; and
        (2) a member in good standing of the bar of the
    
highest court of a state; and
        (3) certified as a judge advocate in the Judge
    
Advocate General's Corps of the Army, Air Force, Navy, or the Marine Corps; or
        (4) a judge advocate as defined in paragraph (10) of
    
Article 1 of this Code.
(Source: P.A. 99-796, eff. 1-1-17.)

20 ILCS 1807/28

    (20 ILCS 1807/28)
    Sec. 28. Article 28. Detail or employment of reporters and interpreters. Under such regulations as may be prescribed, the convening authority of a general or special court-martial or court of inquiry shall detail or employ qualified court reporters, who shall record the proceedings of and testimony taken before that court and may detail or employ interpreters who shall interpret for the court.
(Source: P.A. 99-796, eff. 1-1-17.)

20 ILCS 1807/29

    (20 ILCS 1807/29)
    Sec. 29. Article 29. Absent and additional members.
    (a) No member of a general or special court-martial may be absent or excused after the court has been assembled for the trial of the accused unless excused as a result of a challenge, excused by the military judge for physical disability or other good cause, or excused by order of the convening authority for good cause.
    (b) Whenever a general court-martial, other than a general court-martial composed of a military judge only, is reduced below 5 members, the trial may not proceed unless the convening authority details new members sufficient in number to provide not less than the applicable minimum number of 5 members. The trial may proceed with the new members present after the recorded evidence previously introduced before the members of the court has been read to the court in the presence of the military judge, the accused, and counsel for both sides.
    (c) Whenever a special court-martial, other than a special court-martial composed of a military judge only, is reduced below 3 members, the trial may not proceed unless the convening authority details new members sufficient in number to provide not less than 3 members. The trial shall proceed with the new members present as if no evidence had been introduced previously at the trial, unless a verbatim record of the evidence previously introduced before the members of the court or a stipulation thereof is read to the court in the presence of the military judge, the accused, and counsel for both sides.
    (d) If the military judge of a court-martial composed of a military judge only is unable to proceed with the trial because of physical disability, as a result of a challenge, or for other good cause, the trial shall proceed, subject to any applicable conditions of subparagraph (B) of paragraph (1) of Article 16 or subparagraph (B) of paragraph (2) of Article 16 of this Code, after the detail of a new military judge as if no evidence had previously been introduced, unless a verbatim record of the evidence previously introduced or a stipulation thereof is read in court in the presence of the new military judge, the accused, and counsel for both sides.
(Source: P.A. 99-796, eff. 1-1-17.)