Abstract
With the prevalence of autism and developmental disabilities in today’s society, the military courts have been asked to wrestle with the implications of enlisted soldiers who have these disabilities. This issue is especially important because the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) requires that soldiers have the mental capacity to contract for the enlistment to be valid, and therefore for the military courts to have jurisdiction of the case at all. The nation’s highest military court, the Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces, recently addressed this issue in United States v. Fry by ruling that a developmental disability does not destroy federal military jurisdiction even if the soldier did not have the mental capacity to contract under state law. This Note examines the decision in United States v. Fry and argues that the decision was incorrect because it confuses the legislative history of the article of the UCMJ conferring jurisdiction, invites error by military trial judges in the handling of developmental disability cases, and inconsistently applies Department of Defense policies to soldiers who have developmental disabilities.
Recommended Citation
Eric P. Wilber,
To Prison or the Brig: Slamming the Door Shut on Military Mental Competency Defenses in United States v. Fry, 70 M.J. 468 (C.A.A.F. 2012),
38
S. Ill. U. L.J.
357
(2014).
Available at:
https://opensiuc.lib.siu.edu/siulj/vol38/iss2/7