service. If they find no "service-connection," the military has
no jurisdiction, even if the offender is on active duty in the
military. Offenses that are not service connected are legal
issues that must be referred to the staff judge advocate on a
case-by-case basis. The more closely related the crime is to
the base, military authority, or military duties, the more apt
the courts are to find it a service-connection issue and thus
under military jurisdiction. This service-connection
jurisdiction problem does not exist when the crime is committed
aboard ship or overseas. In addition, even if no court-martial
jurisdiction exists because of a lack of service connection, the
crime may still be under the jurisdiction of nonjudicial
punishment or of local, federal, or state civilian courts.
(d) Jurisdiction Over Federal Offenses. Title 18 of
the United States Code delineates the majority of federal
crimes. These crimes are generally major felonies. They apply
to both civilians and military personnel and are prosecuted in
the federal district courts. Offenses prohibited involve a wide
range of serious activities, such as mail fraud, kidnapping, and
theft of U.S. property.
(e) Investigative Jurisdiction. Base commanding
officers, in addition to having the duty of maintaining good
order and discipline, have the responsibility of ensuring that
neither military nor civilian personnel on base violate federal
civilian laws. The Secretary of Defense and the U.S. Attorney
General recognize that certain offenses against federal civilian
law are also violations against military law. They recognize
that the military offender should be prosecuted by a military
tribunal after the military investigation. They also recognize
that other offenses committed by military personnel or civilians
should be investigated by other federal agencies and prosecuted
in federal criminal courts. The Manual for Courts-Martial,
appendix 3, details investigative jurisdiction.
1. Major Crimes. The Federal Bureau of
Investigation is the chief investigative agency tasked with the
enforcement of federal criminal laws. Other agencies, such as
the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Treasury Department,
have investigative jurisdiction over specific crimes. Incidents
of actual, suspected or alleged major criminal offenses should
be referred to the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS),
which will decide whether the case should be referred to outside
federal agencies. If the federal agency does not assume
investigative jurisdiction, NCIS will, in most instances,
conduct the investigation.
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