Kahn v. Anderson
Headline: Court upholds court-martial convictions of imprisoned soldiers, rejects challenges to court composition and jurisdiction, and allows murder trials unless full official peace is declared, affecting military prisoners and commanders.
Holding: The Court affirmed the denial of release, holding that the court-martial was lawfully constituted and had jurisdiction over imprisoned soldiers’ murder charges, and that Article 92 bars such trials only after a formal declaration of peace.
- Military prisoners can be tried for crimes committed while confined.
- Retired officers and U.S. Guards may serve legally on courts-martial.
- Commanders’ choices about court size are not subject to judicial review.
Summary
Background
Several men confined in the United States Disciplinary Barracks at Leavenworth were tried by a general court-martial in November 1918 for conspiracy to murder a fellow prisoner and for murder. They were convicted and given long prison terms, and in April 1920 they filed petitions asking for release. They argued the court was illegally formed, that they were not subject to military law, that military trials denied their constitutional rights, and that the court lacked power to try murder because the country was at peace.
Reasoning
The Court addressed whether the trial and the court’s makeup were lawful. It found that commanders have executive discretion to set the number of officers on a court-martial within prescribed limits, and that retired officers and officers of the United States Guards were lawful members under existing statutes. The Court held that men confined as military prisoners remain subject to military law for offenses committed during imprisonment. It also rejected the claim that ordinary constitutional guarantees barred military trials, noting long-standing congressional power to govern military courts. Finally, the Court interpreted the rule barring murder trials “in time of peace” to mean only when full, formal peace has been officially declared, not merely after an armistice or temporary cessation of hostilities.
Real world impact
The result is that the convictions and sentences stand and the habeas petitions were denied. The ruling makes clear that military prisoners can be tried by courts-martial for crimes committed in confinement, that commanders’ choices about court size and assignment of certain officers are valid, and that murder prosecutions by military courts remain possible until peace is formally proclaimed.
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