Military Justice Week 2007

Explore the area of military justice from all angles during Indiana Law's first-ever Military Justice Week. Students will learn about ethics and practice in the military from experienced attorneys and practitioners in residence Nick Lancaster, JD'99, and Neal Puckett, JD'84. To close the week, we welcome the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces to hear oral arguments in the case of U.S. v. Daniel Pack.

In addition to public events, alumni and members of the Court will visit many of Indiana Law's classrooms and meet with student groups.

Events

Tuesday, Oct. 23

"Handling High-profile Cases," Neal Puckett, JD'84
noon–1 p.m., Moot Court Room
A former military judge and current defense attorney specializing in military cases, Puckett has received public attention for his work in defense of Brig. Gen. Janis Karpinski in the Abu Ghraib case as well as the marines accused in the Haditha killings in Iraq. Before working as a trial judge, he served as both a military prosecutor and a defense attorney in the service.
Career Panel: U.S. Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces
4:45 p.m., Moot Court Room
COAAF judges and staff host a question-and-answer session and talk to student about their career paths.

Wednesday, Oct. 24

Major Nicholas F. Lancaster, JD'99
Major Lancaster meets with 11 Indiana Law students who are headed for careers as Judge Advocate General officers. They include nine Funded Legal Education Program (FLEP) officers, a U.S. Marine Corps officer, and a U.S. Air Force officer.

Thursday, Oct. 25

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces Oral Argument
U.S. v. Daniel Pack presents an important and controversial question about the accused's right to confrontation under the Sixth Amendment. The child, M.P., testified via one-way closed circuit television. The Court certified the following question: In light of Crawford v. Washington 541 U.S. 36 (2004), appellant was denied his Sixth Amendment right to confront his accuser when the military judge allowed M.P. to testify from a remote location via one-way closed circuit television. To understand the issues in this case you need to know three U.S. Supreme Court cases.

Indiana Law students Susan Castorina (for the defense) and Paul Threat (for the prosecution) will argue as amici. They were ably assisted on their briefs by Manoli Boulukos and Aravon McCalla. Professors Seth Lahn and Aviva Orenstein were admitted pro hac vice to the CAAF to supervise the student's work.

Learn more about the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces.

Friday, Oct. 26

Lunch with a Lawyer
Major Nicholas F. Lancaster, JD'99, presents "Lunch with a Lawyer" in conjunction with Indiana Law's Career Services Office. Interested students should R.S.V.P. through Career Services.

Lancaster is an active-duty Judge Advocate currently teaching Criminal Law at the JAG school in Charlottesville, Va. He spent five months in Afghanistan in 2002 and 11 months in Iraq while assigned to the 101st Airborne Division. He is the son of Col. Stephen Lancaster, JD'70, a retired Army JAG officer and current administrator of the Indiana Court of Appeals.