Welcome to Military Elimination, a podcast that will help you to decide if the military option is right for you or someone you care about. I'm your host Gary. I'm a veteran served in the military, and I share the fruits of my journey and heartaches to help you navigate the traps and dangers of military service. We provide information about military recruitments, benefits, traps and lifestyles eliminate. We also eliminate the truth behind the military benefits and issue an issue surrounding military involvement, military elimination. We turn on the lights to show the dark secrets of the United States Armed forces through experiences, historical data stories, and military's own admissions. You'll be in power of position'cause you'll know what the military knows. So therefore, you'll be able to make an informed decision about enlisting in the military or even recommending someone enjoying the military. The flip side is learning about this information while you're in the military going to a negative situation, it'll be too late. So let's turn the lights, and today we're gonna be talking about the uniform UCMJ, our Uniform Code of Military Justice. Article 31. And what is the intent? You ever notice that for decades and for centuries, sports have been played? Baseball, football, hockey, tennis, the difference was ever is the game's always the same. Rules are the same. The only difference is the players change. So whenever you're thinking about the military, understand that the game is the same. The only thing that changes are the players. So when you currently are hearing about maybe injustices, negative situations with the military or something has happened to somebody in the military or an injustice, that is not uncommon. You understand? That's normal. That's the game. The only thing difference is the milit is the officers, the military, and the officers, the players. So when we're talking about Article 31, the intent is to keep someone from incriminating themselves, whether intentionally or unintentionally, re regardless about what it is. It is a protection on the surface. It on the surface. The intent is that before you can be questioned to find out information that's gonna support your suspicion, it, the right thing to do is to let people know. What it is that, that you are, you're looking for, or what it is that you're a person's being incriminated for or being accused of. Sorry. And to give an opportunity to seek legal help or have a legal person there before they answer questions. The civilian counterpart to that is the Miranda warnings. Most of you've seen them or heard on TV whenever a police, somebody gets arrested, you have the right to remain silent. Anything you say la Okay, that's fair. The issue is in, the issue is similar in both civilian and in military, but is more prevalent in the military. They there, there's more, how can I say it? They're more apt to induce incriminating response. Through the neglect of the article, 31 rights of the individual, then you would have in the civilian sector. It is just the nature of the military, the nature of the separation, the nature of the control they have over a person. So when as you're thinking about the military, you think about the laws and the regulations, right? The Uniform Court of Military Justice, the judge Advocate, general Jags. Okay. On the surface, I keep saying this one over and over again, that is the legal system. In most people's mind, they, when you hear the legal system in the laws, they're seeing those laws in the legal system to protect their interest. When you're thinking about in the mil terms of the military. You gotta think about this. These laws and these regulations has no bearing on protecting your interests, but to prosecute you. Okay? As ludicrous as it may sound, let that sink in. Okay? Just let it sink in. The intent of the Article 31 is to prevent self-incrimination. But the actual carrying it out is that, or can I say actual carry it out or should I say what actually happens is that it's ignored in favor of getting evidence to incriminate you, to prosecute the person. So as you're thinking of looking at the military as a career, understand that these laws and the regulations that are within the Uniform Code of military justice. Which is brought, pushed down by the Congress. It's for prosecution, it's to pro, it's to prosecute you. Okay. There's nothing else there. And you subjected to that. How else are you gonna have a strong military if the soldiers have rights and soldiers can bring lawsuits? You can't. You just can't. You can't have both. So when you're thinking about listing, understand that you have no rights. Understand that you have no rights. Say that with me when I enlist, I have no rights when I enlist. I have no rights. When I enlist, I have no rights. I give up these rights willingly. I give up these rights willingly. I give these rights willingly. Repeat that, because that's what's happening. Once you understand that you're given these rights willingly for the me paycheck they give you and the privilege of being called patriotic. You're giving up these rights, okay? I have often explained the military like a cocoon. Whereas it's inside, it's the military and el and the cocoon is shielding it from the outside world. The Farest doctrine, spelled F-E-R-E-S, doctrine, is the thickest layer around that cocoon. It allows the military and the officers not to be held accountable. It allows them to be able to self-rule. To be able to do what they want to do. Autonomy. It is set down by Congress to prevent soldiers and their families from bringing suit against the military. When there is no, there's no suit that can be brought, there's no accountability, and the absence of accountability is, what are you saying? Destruction, discrimination, harassment, absence of accountability, there's injustice. So I, there's three ways that as you're thinking about the military and the, in the injustices, there's three injustices that happens. There's three ways that the military will get around in Article 31. First of all, those harass, harass you or corro. Harass you. Coerce you. That's what I'm thinking about. Coerce you, isolate you, torment you, okay? Until you give in, because remember now you have no outside help. There's no one coming to save you. That's the first way to get it, that they're gonna get around it. The second way they'll get around it. Is that they will ask, they'll give you the after the fact. Okay? And that happened in, in a case, in a couple cases in the National Guard, but not just the National Guard. It happens everywhere. It happens a lot, but that's a second way that they get around it. The third way they'll get around it is they will split it. The lesser crime. They will read it to you. The more demanding crime, the more heavier situation, they will omit it. Okay? They might even lie to you, tell'em that you don't, nothing. I guess the fourth thing, they'll just lie to you saying, we're not, we're just trying to find some answers. They'll lie to you, whatever they say, it's your duty. To hold fast. It's your duty regardless of the situation because you don't know is, don't say anything. If you suspect that you are in trouble, don't say anything. Your commanders, your supervisor in the military are not your friend. They're not your friend. They're your prosecutors. And they'll take something as smooth, something as insignificant, as a mistaken in a statement, codified it, align it with a a and just they codify it. Align it with a law, and according you just want justice. However Luc it may be, and those are the charges they'll bring to you. It doesn't always come down to court martial. Court martial could be something that's laid out as far as showing the card, but it could be something as simple as an article 15, which is not it's non-judicial punishment. Okay. Something as simple as taking it. And punch you through non judicially, which means that you don't have no rights as far as court systems, as far as the UCMJ. It just doesn't happen. It just, it's not there. You don't have those protections. And if I'm rambling on, I, forgive me if I'm cutting and pasting in and out. Forgive me the, but what I do want you to know is that any small thing can return into a big thing. Uniform court, military justice as far as Article 15, which is non-judicial punishment, allows punishment without the, without legal rights. Okay. Regardless of what military says, so the intent of Article 31 is to protect you from kid, from self-incriminating, regardless of how small it is. But the actual. The actual carrying it out, exercising of the article 13 is rarely followed by commanders. Rarely. The in the way they get around it is that they lead. You believe that this isn't going on, that you're not in trouble, and they open up and they got you. And if you're an enlisted person, if you're, I'm sorry, I don't care if you're from E one to EE nine, you don't have enough money to fight these things. So the punishment will stand. Okay. And that's the nature piece. So the question you have here is, I guess what I want you to take away from this is the military has a legal system. They have a code. Also known as the laws. Okay? But those laws, those codes are in place to prosecute you, not to protect you. Regardless what anybody says, regardless of what anybody says, I don't care. That's what is. That's what if you understand that part, if that is enough, that you understand that and that keeps you from do making decisions. By enlisting, then I've done my job and you've done yourself a favor. What a lot of people don't realize is that the carry that the military dangles single carry, that they're dangling in front of you, they're luring away from a bushel of carrots, and I don't if you like carrots or not, but they're luring away from a ton of options. That's gonna be better for you. I've seen this article 31 in action. The, in my last my last podcast I talked about this, colonel, that was what lemme see here. Lieutenant Colonel Nelson, United States versus Nelson s n number two, one. Dash 2 1 16 slash that's, that was a 2 20 20. It happened 2018 adjudicated in 2022. They didn't, the rights, they didn't follow. And just like I said before, they made him believe that nothing was wrong. They did not read his rights. They, and in the end, they convicted him. He had to go through a extensive P extensive appeals process to clear his name, which meant he, they also took$6,000 from him for four months in the National Guard with Brett Dockery, Robin Davis, Palmer Shaw, Lieutenant Leitz. They didn't dockery, Dockery didn't read this person that their rights before he questioned them. Even though in his torn statements he had suspicion the soldier just a very honest mistake just sharing what he, what that, so what they were told in order to give the incriminating evidence, William Palmer Shaw, the executive officer, induced the person who actually did the crime to confess to location. Of some of the equipment that he had stored on the base. It's nothing. Nothing has left the base. It was on the base. Those are two examples. Two examples about what I've been talking about, the Article 31. So that's it. I just want to keep it short to under for you to understand is when you're dealing with the military. Don't say anything, but also know that UCMJ and JAG is there for prosecution. Okay. That's, that's it. That's what you need to understand. And so far we're talked about that. Did the we talked about the Farris doctrine. It was actually made up of three cases, but I'll put in the, I'll put down in the transcripts. One a website you can check out. It really explains it right. He, Lieutenant Ru Ferris was killed in the barracks. Fire killed negligence. Military acknowledged it, but they would not make his family whole. They would not provide the relief that the widow with the child was seeking. They kicked her. Okay. That's the government you're dealing with. So that's why this happened in 1953. That's why I don't really expect my friend to get any Justice Ferris get their justice. Okay. That allows the Ferris doctrine, allows the military to run without interference from other agencies and from accountability. That's the second thing. Third thing you, we always talked about was all the benefits that the military shares they have aren't really benefits at all. There's a string attached to'em and they're sugar sugarcoated. And the thing, I think the biggest one that I, we talked about was they paying for college, which they don't it's, they don't pay for college. As you would say, they're paying for college. Everything is sugarcoated. So as you're thinking about the military, think about the, everything is sugarcoated. You're only getting half the story. And the question is, would the other half of the story change your mind if you knew about it? That is what here at Military Illumination we're all about. Okay. That's what we're about. So just keep listening. Appreciate it. It's probably awkward, bumpy, but I'm just getting started and just wanna share you have a good day. And that's it for now. Turn the lights off. And next time we're gonna be looking at is probably you're gonna start looking at the benefits that their military talks about, mainly the education benefits that they pay for college. Okay, but understand the judge advocates their JAG system. Understand that and the fairest doctrine, understand that your congressional leaders will not come to help you understand that the courts are not there to protect you. It's awkward if you think about the military from that standpoint that you know you really have no rights. You can serve, but serve because you want to serve, not because what they can give you, but knowing that if you ever get locked, if you ever get in trouble with the military, you're done. Whenever you, they put you in play, you're done. There's not gonna be someone to help you. All right? Until next time, I'll talk to you later. Just remember, until next time, just remember when you only get one side of the story. You don't have the complete story. Resources United Sate v. Nelson, No. 21-0216/NA Judgment of the Court Appendix 2: Uniform Code of Military Justice Effective December 2, 2019 Includes Updates From FY 18,19, and 20 NDAA Feres Doctrine: https://saveourservicemembers.org/feres-doctrine/ Legowik, Barlow, Brett Daugherty, Robin Davis, Criston, Gregory Guedel, Dewight Williams, William P. Shaw, Donald Bennett, Jonathon McCoy