(a) The Adjutant General or his designee shall appoint each military judge. A military judge shall be detailed to each general court-martial. Subject to regulations of the Adjutant General, a military judge may be detailed to any special court-martial. The Adjutant General shall prescribe regulations providing for the manner in which military judges are detailed for such courts-martial and for the persons who are authorized to detail military judges for such courts-martial. The military judge shall preside over each open session of the court-martial to which he has been detailed.

(b) Unless the court-martial was convened by the Governor or the Adjutant General, neither the convening authority nor any member of his staff shall prepare or review any report concerning the effectiveness, fitness, or efficiency of the military judge so detailed, which relates to his performance of duty as a military judge.

(c) No person shall act as military judge in a case if he is the accuser or a witness for the prosecution or has acted as investigating officer or as counsel in the same case.

(d) The military judge shall not consult with the members of the court, other than on the form of the findings as provided in section 27-181, except in the presence of the accused, trial counsel, and defense counsel, nor shall he vote with the members of the court.

(1967, P.A. 717, S. 27; P.A. 77-295, S. 2; P.A. 89-221, S. 5.)

History: P.A. 77-295 substituted “appoint” for “detail” and “military judge” for “law officer” where appearing; P.A. 89-221 amended Subsec. (a) to replace provision requiring the authority convening a general court martial to appoint as military judge thereof a commissioned officer and specifying the qualifications of such officer with provisions re the appointment of military judges, the detailing of military judges to general and special courts-martial and the presiding of military judges over open sessions of courts-martial, added a new Subsec. (b) re the preparation and review of a report re the effectiveness, fitness or efficiency of the military judge, designated the last sentence of Subsec. (a) as Subsec. (c) and replaced “law officer” with “military judge”, and redesignated Subsec. (b) as Subsec. (d).