What Does An Army Prosecutor Do In Iraq? Tim Griffin Question

[ThomWV]

I was reading a piece about Tim Griffin's resignation, and you can find out who he is and what's going on with him elsewhere, when I noticed this tidbit at the end:

"Griffin, who previously was a special assistant U.S. attorney in Arkansas in 2001-2002, is a major in the Army Reserve and serves in the Judge Advocate General's Corps, or JAG. He also has served a year on active duty as an Army prosecutor in Iraq."

At first it struck me as odd than any insider had spent any time at all in the military but then another bell rang and I asked myself, what in hell does an Army Prosecutor actually prosecute in Iraq? Interesting question, might lead to an interesting answer.

[madinmaryland]

1. There are crimes committed by army personnel.

I would assume that was what he was doing. Like the guy that murdered the iraqi family so that he could do something to the daughter.

[rickrok66]

2. What an Army lawyer would do in Iraq:

The Army has several law divisions as much as any local government or corporation. An army prosecutor is called the Trial Counsel and is akin to a commander's district attorney. If a commander filed charges against a service member for violating the UCMJ. The Trial Counsel would give advice to the commander and then bring it to court martial of necessary. Most infractions in the military are resolved through non-judicial punishment (Article 15). The soldier receives confinement to the barracks or has his pay docked.

The Trial Defense is like the Public Defender. They help the accused and or a separate command from the local JAG.

Other lawyers include Legal Assistance (Wills, etc), Operational Law (rules of engagement, Geneva Conventions, etc) and Admin Law (reviewing contracts).