Section 130.37. Unlawfully influencing action of court  


Latest version.
  • (a) No authority
      convening a general, special, or summary court-martial,  nor  any  other
      commanding  officer, shall censure, reprimand, or admonish such court or
      any member, military judge, or counsel  thereof,  with  respect  to  the
      findings or sentence adjudged by the court, or with respect to any other
      exercise  of  its  or his functions in the conduct of the proceeding. No
      person subject  to  this  code  shall  attempt  to  coerce  or,  by  any
      unauthorized means, influence the action of a court-martial or any other
      military  tribunal  or  any  member thereof, in reaching the findings or
      sentence in any case, or the action  of  any  convening,  approving,  or
      reviewing  authority  with  respect  to his judicial acts. The foregoing
      provisions of the subdivision  shall  not  apply  with  respect  to  (1)
      general  instructional  or  informational courses in military justice if
      such courses are designed solely for the purpose of instructing  members
      of   a   command   in   the   substantive   and  procedural  aspects  of
      courts-martial, or (2) to statements  and  instructions  given  in  open
      court  by  the  military judge, president of a special court-martial, or
      counsel.
        (b) In the preparation of an  effectiveness,  fitness,  or  efficiency
      report  or any other report or document used in whole or in part for the
      purpose of determining whether a member is qualified to be advanced,  in
      grade,  or  in  determining the assignment or transfer of a member or in
      determining whether a member should be retained on any type of  duty  or
      status,  no  person  subject  to this chapter may, in preparing any such
      report (1) consider or evaluate the performance  of  duty  of  any  such
      member  as  a  member  of  a court-martial, or (2) give a less favorable
      rating or evaluation of any member because of the zeal with  which  such
      member, as counsel, represented any accused before a court-martial.