United States v. Malia

Since the Supreme Court’s determination, in Gerstein v. Pugh,1 that the Constitution requires “a neutral magistrate” to confirm that probable cause exists to confine a person arrested for alleged commission of a crime, a majority of this Court has evinced a disposition to deny the military commander eligibility to act as the magistrate. I have elsewhere recorded the reasons that led me to conclude that the endeavor to achieve that purpose by decree of this Court is contrary to the Uniform Code of Military Justice and the Manual for Courts-Martial.2 Suffice it to iterate that, contrary to the…