United States v. Curtis

Opinion of the Court

EVERETT, Senior Judge:

Appellant was sentenced to death by a general court-martial convened at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina. The issues now before us are whether the President was empowered to prescribe the procedure under which this sentence was adjudged and, if so, whether the rule he prescribed complied with constitutional requirements.

I

On April 14, 1987, Curtis used a pretext to obtain entry to the home of his supervisor, First Lieutenant James Lotz. His purpose — apparently the result of perceived racial slurs and the imbibing of gin — was to kill Lotz. He carried out…