United States v. Clemons

Opinion of the Court

FLETCHER, Judge:

Appellant’s conviction by court members at a general court-martial * is now before us by way of a grant of review. We are asked to determine whether he was prejudiced by the military judge’s failure to admit evidence of his good military character and his character for lawfulness under Mil. *45R.Evid. 404(a)(1). We hold that the ruling was erroneous, and we are unable to conclude that this error was harmless. Article 59(a), Uniform Code of Military Justice, 10 U.S.C. § 859(a); see United States v. Hewitt, 634 F.2d 277 (5th Cir.1981). Our examination proceeds…