Legal Opinion
United States v. Cotten
United States Court of Military Appeals
Decided February 9, 1981No. 38,924; NCM 79 1641PublishedCited by 29 opinions
1Opinion of the Court
Opinion of the Court
FLETCHER, Judge:
As part of his general instructions to the court-martial members trying appellant1, the military judge quoted2 the following language:
[B]y reasonable doubt, it is intended not a fanciful and ingenious doubt or conjecture but substantial, honest, conscientious doubt suggested by the material evidence, or lack of it, in the case. It is an honest, substantial misgiving generated by insufficiency of proof of guilt.
This followed a prior reference in the military judge’s preliminary instructions that reasonable doubt was defined as “substantial” doubt.3 After the…
2Cases cited20 opinions
- In Re WINSHIPSupreme Court of the United States · 1970
- Holland v. United StatesSupreme Court of the United States · 1955
- Taylor v. KentuckySupreme Court of the United States · 1978
- Miles v. United StatesSupreme Court of the United States · 1881
- United States v. Robert L. PinkneyCourt of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit · 1976
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3Cited by29 opinions
- Solomon Monk, Also Known as David L. Martin v. Colonel Gordon N. Zelez, CommandantCourt of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit · 1990
- United States v. MartinUnited States Court of Military Appeals · 1982
- United States v. CherryUnited States Court of Military Appeals · 1982
- United States v. BrooksUnited States Court of Military Appeals · 1981
- United States v. KennedyU S Coast Guard Court of Military Review · 1981
24 more not listed; retrieve them via the Exa API.