Military Legal Resources

The U.S. Army Judge Advocate General's Legal Center & School Library in Charlottesville, VA, holds extensive collections of primary source materials and publications in the field of military law. Selections from these collections are now being made accessible in full text PDF versions via the Library of Congress Federal Research Division (FRD) Web site. As more materials are converted to digital formats, they will be added to this page. Samples of the currently available, downloadable, documents are: Operational Law Handbook, 2007; Geneva Conventions; The Army Lawyer (1971-2007); War Crimes Trials Materials; Army JAG Corps Historical Monographs; Military Law Review (1958-2007); Manuals for Courts-Martial; UCMJ Legislative History; U.S. Army TJAGLCS: Selected Theses; U.S. Army Field Manuals; Ethics Handbook for Army Leaders; Army Regulations; and, Military Law Historical Monographs, Studies, Texts and Treatises.

You can access this material at:
http://www.loc.gov/rr/frd/Military_Law/military-legal-resources-home.html

Iraqi Police Training

By Gerry J. Gilmore
American Forces Press Service


July 30, 2007 - Iraq's national police are in the second portion of a four-phase program to help them become a proficient, loyal law enforcement organization that serves all of Iraq's citizens, a senior U.S. military officer said today. The 25,000-plus-member national police organization falls under the Iraqi government's Interior Ministry as a "bridge force" between regular police and the Iraqi army, Army Col. Mark R. French, deputy commander for professional development and police training for the Civilian Police Assistance Team, told online journalists and "bloggers."

"Many of these forces have fought bravely; thousands have died in fighting the insurgents," French said.

Iraq's regular police perform routine municipal duties, while its armed forces are focused on external threats, French explained. The national police, he continued, serve as an auxiliary law enforcement agency that could be engaged to address internal threats to the nation, such as militia-generated violence against the central government and its citizens.

Today, most national police officers are stationed in Baghdad, helping U.S. troops during surge-related, anti-insurgent operations, French said. Smaller contingents are serving in Samarra and Balad.

The Iraqi Interior Ministry merged commando, emergency-response and other units to create the national police in March 2006, French said.

In summer 2006, U.S. Army Gen. George W. Casey Jr., then-commander of Multinational Force Iraq, decided the national police weren't performing properly and needed an overhaul.

"At that time, General Casey directed a four-phase transformation program be initiated for the national police," French said. The first phase, he said, included an overall look at operations, including personnel and supply practices.

The second phase, being conducted now, is a month-long police training program for each national police brigade, French said. About 75 percent of the curriculum teaches students how to perform law enforcement duties in a democracy, he said, while the other 25 percent focuses on tactical skills such as patrolling, cordon-and-search operations, and conducting checkpoints. The program is slated to conclude about Oct. 10.

Phase Three consists of "Carabinieri-like" police training scheduled to start around Oct. 15, French said. The Carabinieri are Italy's famed paramilitary police force.

"Right now, this training is envisioned to last about 90 days," French said. "It's a leader-centric, train-the-trainer focus." The curriculum includes public order response, advanced investigation techniques, forensics, special weapons and tactics, and urban operations, he said.

The fourth phase, which has no start date planned, will consist of distributing newly trained national police officers to posts across Iraq, French said.

In the past, the national police have been accused of having anti-government militia members within their ranks, French acknowledged. Today, however, each national police member attending phase-two police training is vetted, he pointed out.

"They're checked against a Ministry of the Interior data base for criminal records or any history of sectarian militia activity," French explained. "We've culled out quite a few."

600 POLICE OFFICERS

June 28, 2007 (San Dimas, CA) Police-Writers.com is a website that lists state and local police officers who have written books. With the addition of police officers George Seibel, Robert Girod and Trent Ruble, Police-Writers.com now lists 600 state and local police officers who have written books.

George Seibel is a former Chicago Police Department homicide detective and the Director of the Morton College Institute for Cold Case Solutions (Cicero, Illinois). George Seibel is also the author of Insider's Guide to Policing: What You Need to Know About Becoming a Cop; Violent Crimes Investigation: Cases and Materials; Enlightened Police Questioning, Interviewing, Investigation, and Interrogation; and, Cold Case Investigation: Cases and Materials.

Dr. Robert J. Girod, Sr. earned a Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in Criminology and Public Administration from The Union Institute and University and a post-doctoral certificate in Leadership from Harvard University. Dr. Robert Girod is a supervisor in the Detective Bureau with the Fort Wayne Police Department (Indiana), a member of the FBI’s Federal Bank Robbery Task Force and a part-time “special deputy” for the U.S. Marshal’s Service.

Dr. Robert J. Girod has served as a Major in the U.S. Army Reserve and the Indiana Guard Reserve. He is an adjunct professor and associate faculty member at seven universities. Dr. Robert J. Girod is the author of Profiling The Criminal Mind: Behavioral Science and Criminal Investigative Analysis.

According to the book description, “Profiling the Criminal Mind is, as the subtitle indicates, is a text and reference on behavioral science and criminal investigative analysis for investigators, forensic scientists, prosecutors, behavioral scientists, and academics. This compilation combines crime scene forensics and experience with behavioral science to get into the criminal's mind and interpret crime scenes.

A practical guide to applied criminology, the author brings together his years of experience as a detective/investigator and professor of criminology and criminal justice to outline an inter-disciplinary approach to analyzing crime scenes and crime scene behavior. Multi-discipline sleuths and researchers into the criminal mind will find this combined approach to analysis a valuable strategic approach to the study of violent criminal behavior.”

In 1985, Trent Ruble joined the Huntington Police Department (Indiana). He is also a member of the Huntington College Police Department. He is a former board member of the Huntington County Crime Stoppers and the Police Athletic League. Trent Ruble has been Republican Precinct Committeeman for his precinct and a member of the Jackson Township Board.

Trent Ruble is the author of the fictional novel Harrison Davis: Proof Beyond a Reasonable Doubt. According to the book description, “Harrison Davis, the Lakewood Police Department’s lone detective, is nearing the end of his police career. He is looking forward to a relaxing retirement with his wife, Julianne, and is even planning a surprise cruise for the two of them. However, his retirement planning is interrupted when he is faced with the most serious crimes he’s seen. While the people of Lakewood, as well as the media, question the qualifications of their detective, the investigations cause Harrison to question the very essence of life and death. He soon must make a decision that will change his life forever.”

Police-Writers.com now hosts 600 police officers (representing 256 police departments) and their 1255 books in six categories, there are also listings of United States federal law enforcement employees turned authors, international police officers who have written books and civilian police personnel who have written books.

Personal Protective Equipment Surveys for First Responders

The U.S. Army Natick Soldier Research, Development & Engineering Center (NSRDEC) is a leader in Human-Centered Research, Development and Engineering of personal protective equipment and integrated systems, addressing the needs across all DoD services.

Through its National Protection Center (NPC), NSRDEC serves a broader customer base assessing technology, concepts, and standards with dual-use applications to meet military needs as well as those of Federal, State, Local, and Tribal emergency response practitioners.

Members of the public safety community are invited to participate in the NPC's latest personal protective equipment surveys focusing on protective headgear, chemical/biological protective equipment, and basic duty uniforms. Your input is valuable to on-going research, standards, and technology transfer efforts; so please answer each question carefully and completely. Each of the three surveys will take approximately 15-20 minutes.

Surveys will close September 14, 2007.

Headgear Survey - www.helmetsurvey.com
Chemical/Biological Protective Equipment Survey - www.chembiosurvey.org
Duty Uniform Survey - www.dutyuniformsurvey.org

Headgear Survey for Public Safety Practitioners

The U.S. Army Natick Soldier Research, Development & Engineering Center (NSRDEC) is a leader in Human-Centered Research, Development and Engineering of personal protective equipment and integrated systems, addressing the needs across all DoD services.

Through its National Protection Center (NPC), NSRDEC serves a broader customer base assessing technologies, concepts and standards with dual-use applications to meet military needs as well as those of Federal, State, Local and Tribal emergency response practitioners. Members of the public safety community are invited to participate in the NPC's latest personal protective equipment survey focusing on protective headgear. Your input is valuable to on-going research, standards and technology transfer efforts; so please answer each question carefully and completely.

Please visit www.helmetsurvey.com to take the survey online. The survey consists of approximately 50 questions and should take between 15 and 20 minutes to complete.

Article sponsored by Criminal Justice online leadership; and, law enforcement personnel who have written books.

Three Police Officers Added

Police-Writers.com is a website dedicated to listing state and local police officers who have authored books. Police-Writers.com added Alan Caddell, Ralph Landre and Francis Connelly.

Alan Caddell is a Commander with the Santa Ana Police Department. He holds a Master of Arts in Education from Pepperdine University and is a graduate of the POST Master Instructor Development Program. A trainer for over 15 years, Alan has extensive experience and expertise in the area of instruction design and technology. Alan has taught advanced PowerPoint and on-line training for POST and other law enforcement presenters and is currently teaching a variety of programs.

Alan Caddell is the Co-author of Crime Scene Investigation. According to the book description, “Focusing on the basics of crime scene investigation as it should be done by professionals, this book shows how to do a perfect job; its emphasis is on proven evidence, collection, and analysis. It provides a high level of relevant and realistic information needed to process crime scenes in today's environment. Generously illustrated with photographs, the book clearly demonstrates techniques used by field and lab personnel to preserve, process, and analyze a wide variety of evidence. Career profiles of working professionals in the field and actual case histories document how crime scene investigation is successfully used to solve crimes. For professionals in a variety of forensic science fields, including firearms examiners, fingerprint examiners, serologists, toxicologists, photographers, journalists, crime scene investigators, and others in the field of law and law enforcement.”

According to one reader/reviewer, “As a former police reserve officer, I spent years requesting CSI with little understanding of just what they do. This book goes well beyond lifting fingerprints and other routine tasks that police officers are typically limited to. I now have a better awareness of the capabilities of CSI and considerations about how to protect a scene and how CSI can be used to investigate certain crimes. I also have a greater appreciation for CSI personnel and the difficult job they have. I liked the book and believe it would be helpful to anyone in law enforcement.”

Ralph W. Landre, Jr., has published several articles in The California Highway Patrolman magazine, including: “The Day Fresno Burned,” “Motorcycle Theft Rings,” “Training Pays Off.” The U.S. Army has published his police training bulletins at training centers in Santa Cruz, San Jose and during Annual Active Duty training with the Military Police at Camp Roberts and Fort Ord, California. The bulletins focused on preservation of evidence at crime scenes and interrogations and interviews of suspects and witnesses. He served as temporary Chief of Police for the new city of Capitola and at the same time was deputized by the Santa Cruz Sheriff's Office due to the police district the newly formed city was geographically located in. He then served as patrolman for the Santa Cruz PD before serving on the California Highway Patrol for over 29 years, retiring as a sergeant.

Ralph Landre is the author of The Broken Center-Line. Ralph Landre’s book is a memoir of the “incidents occurring to a California Highway Patrol officer during approximately 30 years of traffic law enforcement while following The Broken Center-line around and over highways and freeways in different parts of our great state of California. This is somewhat like following the yellow brick road through the Land of OZ.”

In 1955, after serving in Korea with the U.S. Army, Francis J Connelly joined the New York Police Department. He worked a variety of assignment on NYPD and retired in 1975 as a lieutenant. He is the author of two books: By Reason of Childhood; and, the sequel, Beyond By Reason of Childhood.

According to the book description, “Beyond by Reason of Childhood begins with Connelly en route to the U.S. Army induction center on Whitehall Street. From there, it’s merely a series of hops, skips, and jumps to Fort Dix, New Jersey, for basic training; Carlisle Barracks, Pennsylvania, for Morse Code Intercept Operator training; and on to the mountains, valleys, and rice paddies of South Korea. Fourteen months later, after an honorable discharge from the military, Frank meets Anne Marie Fleming. The couple marries, and, as time slips away, they find themselves being compared to a five-and-dime (for their five children and ten grandchildren).

Along the way, Francis Connelly works at various jobs: hauling cable for Western Electric, growing hair for Wybrandt Hair and Scalp Specialists, and spending twenty years on the New York Police Department. Near the end of his career in law enforcement, mental and physical difficulties and the debilitating effects of hypoglycemia take their toll on Connelly. Will his story have a happy ending?”

Police-Writers.com now hosts 539 police officers (representing 220 police departments) and their 1147 books in six categories, there are also listings of United States federal law enforcement employees turned authors, international police officers who have written books and civilian police personnel who have written books.

1000 Pages of Cop Information

Police-Writers.com is a website dedicated to listing state and local police officers who have authored books. With the addition of three police officers turned authors, Ray Biondi, William Delaney and Grady Morrison, the website now contains over 1000 pages of information on 463 police officers, their 968 books and their nearly 200 departments.

Ray Biondi retired from the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Department as Lieutenant. During his career he headed up the homicide bureau. He is the author of two crime books: All his father's sins: The trail of terrifying horror that led to Gerald & Charlene Gallego and Dracula Killer. Publisher’s Weekly said of Dracula Killer, “when he graduated to murder, he not only shot his victims but sexually mutilated them. Former Sacramento homicide detective Biondi supplies inside information on the investigation, such as a television crew's discovery of evidence overlooked by police. In addition, he and Hecox produce crime bulletins issued by police and the surprisingly accurate psychological profile detectives prepared of the killer. Luck combined with old-fashioned detective work flushed out Chase, who initially would admit only to killing dogs. But Chase told a fellow prisoner that he drank victims' blood, and after he took the stand in his own defense, jurors decided not to find him insane.”

William Delaney is a former military policeman, San Francisco City College Campus Police Officer, San Francisco Police Department police officer, and candidate for Sheriff of Adams County in Colorado. A graduate of San Francisco City College, San Francisco State University, and attended The University of Texas at Arlington's Graduate School of Criminal Justice, and Urban Affairs, Chabot College in Hayward, California, The University of Maryland Overseas Extension, and The University of California Berkeley's San Francisco Extension.

He has held a California Community College Instructors Certificate since 1972, did extensive undergraduate research in behavior modification, and social learning theory, and has taught at The Community College of Denver, Arapahoe Community College, AT&T, ARCO Coal Company, The U.S. Army Reserve School, and for Evelyn Wood Reading Dynamics. He is the author of three books: How to Avoid being a Chicken Head; Black N Blue; and, his most recent Counterfeit Democracy.

Grady Morrison was a Baltimore Police Department police officer for eleven years. According to the book description of his book, Understanding Police Officers and Staying Out of Trouble, “Reading this book takes the reader up close and personal with understanding the police officer and why it is worth the extra effort to avoid trouble. The author brings this understanding to the reader through facts, discussions, and personal examples from his eleven-year police officer experience. Open the book and read why learning to understand the police officer is much better than fearing and fighting him. The author explains this through strong facts and analogies such as, “having more common sense than to light a match while pumping gas into your vehicle.” This book also serves as a reminder to the reader that learning to stay out of trouble should be a personal goal just like any other worthwhile adventure.”

Police-Writers.com now hosts 463 police officers (representing 195 police departments) and their 968 books in six categories, there are also listings of United States federal law enforcement employees turned authors, international police officers who have written books and civilian police personnel who have written books.

Soldier, Cop and Author

Police-Writers.com, a website dedicated to listing state and local police officers who have authored books and Military-Writers.com, a website dedicated to military personnel who have written books, added a prolific author who has served our country both as a soldier and police officer.

After completing military service in Viet Nam, Cherokee Paul McDonald joined the Fort Lauderdale Police Department in 1970. Rising to the rank of sergeant, he left the department in 1980, becoming a full-time writer. In addition to his fiction novels, Cherokee Paul McDonald has written two books about his life experiences. One reader comments on Paul’s In Blue Truth: Walking the Thin Blue Line-One Cop's Story of Life in the Streets, “I was about sixteen years old when I first read this book. Twelve years later, I am a cop myself, and have read and re-read this book at least twenty times since then. This book is the real deal...it doesn't glorify our job like other books have done...just the real and the raw. It gets to the bottom of what cops have to put up with every day.”

Cherokee Paul McDonald explores his military service in, Into the Green: A Reconnaissance by Fire. In 1968, he arrived in Vietnam a U.S. Army second lieutenant, assigned as an artillery forward observer. After a year service, he fell victim to malaria and was evacuated. According to the Library Journal, Into the Green: A Reconnaissance by Fire, “speaks volumes about the stress and terror of war while also reminding the reader of the touching humanity of the erstwhile civilians called upon for military service. In place of an exhaustive, day-by-day account of the war, McDonald introduces Vietnam through a series of vignettes on life in and out of the firing line. This is Vietnam as it has rarely been described, and each short narrative offers an eloquent testimonial to the conflict.”

In addition to his autobiographical accounts, Cherokee Paul McDonald has written one true crime novel, Under Contract: The True Account of a Cop Hired to Kill. This work is the tale of Al Smith, a Fort Lauderdale Police Department detective who posed as a hit man. According to Kirkus reviews, “What terrifies here is the repeated verification of the old saw about the banality of evil. In one memorable case, a sweet, petite, under-20 blond, answering an ad placed in the personals by a love-hungry bachelor, makes a request for the murder of her husband; short of cash, she wants to finance the crime on the installment plan.”

Cherokee Paul McDonald’s fictional works include Summer’s Reason, Gulf Stream and The Patch.

Police-Writers.com now hosts 390 police officers (representing 163 police departments) and their 844 books in six categories, there are also listings of United States federal law enforcement employees turned authors, international police officers who have written books and civilian police personnel who have written books. Military-Writers.com lists 10 former, active or retired military personnel and their 18 books.

Chicago: the reality and the fiction

January 14, 2007 (San Dimas, CA) Police-Writers.com added three Chicago police officers to the listing of state and local police officers who have authored books. Added were William O’Shea, C.M. Russell and Daniel Schrager.

William O’Shea began his public service career in 1968 when, as a Chicago Police Cadet, he was assigned to the infamous Democratic National Convention. In the ensuing decades as a Chicago Police Officer he had many adventures, some of which are chronicled in his first novel, “The Foot Post.”

In 1992, Bill moved to southern Illinois with his wife, Susan, and established a detective agency under his private investigator’s license. In recent years, he has been active as a Court Appointed Special Advocate, working with children who find themselves mired in the court system. His experiences as a CASA volunteer moved him to write “The Advocate” and create the advocacy project.

Bill is now a relentless advocate for the rights of abused and sexually exploited children and fears that it will be a life long endeavor.

C. M. Russell was born and raised in Chicago, IL. After graduating from the University of Illinois/Chicago Campus, he began his career with the Chicago Police Department. He has drawn upon numerous real-life experiences from this urban city to depict the situations officers face on a daily basis. This, his first book, takes the reader on a virtual ride-a-long with the officers. His account is action packed, suspenseful, and keeps the adrenaline pumping right to the very end.

According to his book, Thin Blue Line is about power and control in the city of Chicago. The drama asks, “who is really running the streets of Chicago? A high-ranking gang member’s trial is less than a week away. Determined not to go back to the penitentiary, he decides to “tie up some loose ends”. An officer, on patrol in the area, interrupts those plans and pays the ultimate price. Now, two veteran police officers lead the manhunt to bring this killer to justice. There’s only one problem; too much red tape! Ultimately, they must choose between what is legally right and morally right.”

Daniel Schrager was a member of the Chicago Police Department for twenty-eight years, retiring at the rank of Lieutenant in 1998. During his career, he worked as a patrol officer in the Cabrini-Green housing project; spent eight years as a vice officer in the Rush Street entertainment area; three years as a sergeant in a special unit created by then-mayor Jane Byrne to investigate misconduct in the Chicago Transit Authority; and, several years as a patrol sergeant. During his last five years on the Chicago Police Department, he was the Acting Watch Commander in the 24th Patrol District.

For eighteen months, in an unofficial capacity, he assisted as a bodyguard and driver for a mayoral candidate during a re-election bid.

Prior to joining the Chicago Police Department, he served fourteen months in Vietnam assigned to the U.S. Army First Infantry Division, including the period of the Tet offensive in 1968.

His book “The Code” is the story of a Chicago cop, Jake Harmon, who stumbles across an unidentified man carrying $250,000. While struggling to adhere to the "Cop Code of Behavior," he attempts to uncover the source of the money. Aided by his girlfriend and fellow officer, Aranda Gonzalez, he makes a shocking discovery that pushes him to the limits of the Code. His second book, “On The Edge” is the story of two Chicago cops, the investigative reporter they've teamed up with, and their investigation into the seamy world of drugs, politics and corruption.

While Police-Writers.com hosts 253 police officers (representing over 70 police departments) and their 647 books in six categories, there are also listings of United States federal law enforcement employees turned authors and international police officers who have written books.