air force letter

7/27/2019 Air Force Letter

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AKATZ, MARSHALL & BANKS,Susan L. BurkeDirect Dial: 202-552-5364burke(kmbIegaI.com

By Certified MailOctober 28, 2013The HonorableJ11 T. RymerInspector GeneralDepartment of Defense400 Army Navy DriveArlington, Virginia 2202-4704

Dear Inspector General Rymer:I write to express concern regarding a letter Lieutenant General Richard C. Harding andColonel Jeffrey A. Rockwell sent to all members of the United States Air Force Judge AdvocateGenerals Corps (JAGC) on or around October 18, 2013 entitled Looking Back to LookForward. See Letter from General Harding and Colonel Rockwell, attached hereto as Exhibit 1.In the letter, General Harding and Colonel Rockwell -- both of whom are active members andleaders in the Air Force -- embark on a campaign to garner support among Air Force membersfor continuing the practice of adjudicating sexual assault claims in the military justice system.Over the past year, there has been growing criticism of the effectiveness of adjudicatingsexual assault claims in the military justice system. This debate has raised questions regarding

how allegations of sexual assault are addressed by the chain of command and the fairness ofconvening court-martial proceedings in this context. Emerging ou t of this debate has been anexplosion of new legislation aimed at reforming how the military handles sexual assault claims,including bills that propose removing rape accusations from the chain of command.General Harding and Colonel Rockwells letter attempts to sway the support of membersof the Air Force JAGC in favor of keeping the adjudication of sexual assault claims within themilitary chain of command. These efforts are in clear violation of the provisions and spirit ofAir Force Instruction 51-902 (AFT 51-902), Political Activities by Members of the USA ir Force.AFI 51-902 requires that members of the Air Force remain politically neutral and divorced frompartisan politics. Air Force Instruction 1-1 2.13 (AFT 1-1), Air Force Standards. To achieve

this end, the directive prohibits, inter alia, active members of the Air Force from using officialauthority or influence to ... solicit votes for a particular candidate or issue and [a]ny activitythat may be reasonably viewed as directly or indirectly associating the Air Force or DoD with apartisan political activity or is otherwise contrary to the spirit and intention of this instruction.AFI 5 1-902 4.1.2; AFT 5 1-902 4.3.Here, General Harding and Colonel Rockwell improperly seek to use their influence asleaders in the Air Force to rally support against the political movement attempting to remove

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KATZ , MARSHALL & BANKS,The Honorable Jon T. RymerOctober 29, 2013Page 2

sexual assault claims from the military chain of command. These efforts are evidenced by thelanguage employed in the letter, which emphasizes the importance of the chain of command toachieving the military mission and the harm that could result if society breaks, or unnecessarilydilute[s] this authority in the context of sexual assault claims.Due to the importance of the issue of proper adjudication of sexual assault in the military,it is imperative that leaders such as General Harding and Colonel Rockwell refrain from issuingtheir support for or against legislation on such a divisive and important issue. Fo r the reasons se tforth in this letter, I request an investigation of this matter from the Department of DefensesInspector General.Thank you for your time and consideration of this request.

Sincerely,

Susan L. Burke


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A MESSAGE FOR THE CORPSLooking Back to Look ForwardThese are historic times to be a uniformed lawyer. Air Force JAGs areknee-deep in the nations debate on how to halt sexual assaults, a militaryand society-wide scourge, which has now morphed into a Congressional debateon how to best organize the entire military justice system. Here in thenations capital, many of us have engaged with members of Congress, theirstaffs and members of the media to teach, implore and explain the reasons,or the why, behind commanders authority and the current set-up of themilitary justice system. Colonel Rockwell is one of the best at engagingwith the public and he offers his profound insight and analysis below.Please read, absorb and share with your commanders and media types whereveryou are located. This will truly make a difference. As always, thank you forall you do!RICHARD C. HARDINGLieutenant General, USAFThe Judge Advocate GeneralThe practice of law is fascinating. To find justice we search the past toresolve the now and evolve the future. Critical analysis demands we lookback to find timeless principles, then look forward to apply and adapt thoseprinciples today. Done correctly, we evolve the law to best serve society.Done incorrectly, we risk becoming mired in precedent as the world passesthe law by, or alternatively charge off a cliff into an unreasoned unknown.This dynamic is evident in the debate on how the military handles sexualassault. Looking back, we call on the timeless proven principles of unity ofcommand, command authority and command and control (C2), which have broughtthe nation success. Simply put, commanders C2 Airmen to execute mission andeffective C2 requires disciplined Airmen. Effective commanders builddisciplined Airmen by operating across the continuum of disciplinarypractice, from feedback to courts-martial and everywhere in between. Break,or unnecessarily dilute, this authority and we render a commander lesseffective to accomplish mission. While this concept may be difficult tograsp for those not steeped in military science, two observations prove itspower. The first a riddle: an Airman is in a room with his commander, alongwith a cop, a JAG, a SARC and a Shirt. All five begin to speak at the sametime, same volume. Who does the Airman listen to?The second involves the power of words like zero tolerance. Some outsidean organization may view the words as tri te , but only words from a commanderwill truly affect Airman behavior. Because the commander said so actuallyand effectively sets a command expectation, establishes a military duty, and


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reflects a culture that exists nowhere else in society. This is real powerwith historical success. So the question really isnt whether we break thatchain of authority, the question becomes to what level do we raisedisposition and other decisions in that chain.Looking forward, we will have many opportunities to improve the law usingthese timeless principles. TCs, DCs and SVCs will shine as legalprofessionals in advocating and advancing the law in the areas of victimlaw, pretrial investigations, post-trial action, and managing cases,processes and databases for convening authorities. SJAs, MJs and CCs mustmake the important decisions to evolve the law to best effectuate change toimprove our system and society.Good lawyers and paralegals will continue to be masters of precedent. Reallygood lawyers and paralegals, while preserving much of the timelessbrilliance found in Articles 32, 60 and the UCMJ generally, will compare,contrast and develop rationale - the critical why behind it a ll - thatevolves the law to the future. A fascinating process . . . how lucky we areto be part of it.

JEFFREY A. ROCKWELL, Colonel, USAF

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