JAG Press Conference

Another law student/future JAG (that's at least two of us!) has started a new blog called Law from the Center and has a very interesting post up analyzing the very unusual press conference given by the US military lawyer representing an Australian detained at Gitmo. As Pete says:

[O]ur civilian intuition tells us that the defendant should be able to speak publicly through his attorney, and when the only one available is military, he should be able to speak freely to the public in order to defend his client in the court of public opinion. No such right exists, though. "The Judge Advocate General has issued a policy letter instructing that the public affairs office will normally answer news media inquiries. Judge Advocates assigned to the US Army Trial Defense Service (USATDS) are reminded to refer media to the installation public affairs officer.

It's highly unlikely that anyone in this Marine's chain of command authorized that kind of high profile, extremely critical statement. Usually, all a TDS lawyer can do is say the client's name, the nature of charges, and a general claim of innocence. This goes far beyond that.

Very interesting stuff. I've always been vaguely aware of the general restrictions on First Amendment rights of military personnel, and made myself a bit more knowledgeable before I began blogging. But this is the first I've ever learned about restrictions on the speech of military defense lawyers, and Pete is right, my intuitions would have led me to a different conclusion.