Rules of Procedure (Defence Forces) 2019

• Jurisdiction: Ireland
• Citation: IR SI 555/2019

Notice of the making of this Statutory Instrument was published in

“Iris Oifigiúil” of 12th November, 2019.

CONTENTS

Rules of Procedure (Defence Forces) 2019 Part 1 — Preliminary and General 1. Citation and commencement 2. Interpretation Part 2 — Chief Military Judge and Military Judge 3. Form of oath 4. Duties and functions of Chief Military Judge and military judges Part 3 — Appeals to summary court-martial 5. Appointment of prosecutor 6. Forwarding of documents to prosecutor 7. Listing of appeal for hearing 8. Abandonment of appeal Part 4 — Summary or abstract of evidence 9. Trial pursuant to section 181 of the Act 10 Summary or abstract of evidence Part 5 — Charges and charge-sheets 11. Charge-sheets 12. Commencement of charge-sheets 13. Contents of charge 14. Validity of charge-sheet 15. Joint trial Part 6 — Pre-trial stage 16. Application to the Director for directions where person remanded or electing for trial by court-martial 17. Prosecution file to be submitted to the Director 18. Matters of which Director must be satisfied 19. Direction to convene court-martial 20. Direction to refer to summary court-martial 21. Withdrawal of charge 22. Referral back of charge 23. Reasons 24. Preparation of defence 25. Selection and appointment of members of court-martial board 26. Order convening court-martial 27. Dissolution by Court-Martial Administrator Part 7 — Post-trial stage 28. Promulgation — court-martial finding 29. Promulgation — appeal to summary court-martial 30. Appeal from court-martial finding 31. Execution of sentences and punishments 32. Effective date of certain sentences 33. Orders for committal, transfer and release 34. Re-trial 35. Suspension of sentence 36. Notice of application to revoke suspension of sentence 37. Retention and supply of proceedings 38. Supply of copy of record of proceedings Part 8 — Depositions (preliminary investigation in charge of an offence for which a person would be required on conviction to be sentenced to imprisonment for life) 39. Application of this Part 40. Preparation of defence for a preliminary investigation 41. Preliminary investigation 42. Materials to be considered 43. Non-application of provisions as to recording 44. Service of list of further witnesses, statements and list of exhibits 45. Use of deposition at trial Part 9 — Courts of inquiry and Boards 46. Court of inquiry 47. Convening authorities 48. Composition 49. Appointment and functions of assessors 50. Convening of courts of inquiry 51. Attendance of and production of documents by witnesses subject to military law 52. Attendance of witnesses not subject to military law 53. Further witnesses 54. Appointment of new members 55. Court to continue, unless reduced below legal minimum 56. Procedure at court of inquiry 57. Procedure where reputation is adversely affected 58. Signature of proceedings or findings 59. Transmission of proceedings 60. Re-assembly 61. When proceedings of court of inquiry admissible in evidence 62. Findings not admissible in evidence 63. When copy of proceedings and findings to be furnished 64. Absence without leave — additional matters 65. Boards 66. Convening authorities for Boards 67. Composition of Board 68. Procedure of Board Part 10 — Prescription and Declarations of Prescribed Officers, Prescribed Authorities and Prescribed Persons for the Purposes of Part V (Except Chapters IV and X) of the Act 69. Prescribed officer 70. Prescribed authority 71. Prescribed person Part 11 — Miscellaneous 72. Service or delivery of documents 73. Revocation and saver 74. Delay report 75. Where no rule provided 76. Exercise of powers vested in holder of military office 77. Forms Schedule 1— Statutory Instruments Revoked Schedule 2— Form of oath Schedule 3— Forms

I, PAUL KEHOE, Minister of State at the Department of Defence, in exercise of the powers conferred on me by section 240 of the Defence Act 1954 (No. 18 of 1954) and the Defence (Delegation of Ministerial Functions) Order 2017 (S.I. No. 299 of 2017), hereby make the following rules:

Part 1 — Preliminary and General

Citation and commencement

1. (1) These Rules may be cited as the Rules of Procedure (Defence Forces) 2019.

(2) These Rules shall come into operation on 2 December 2019.

Interpretation

2. (1) In these Rules—

“Act” means the Defence Act 1954 (No. 18 of 1954);

“abstract of evidence” means—

(a) any statement in writing, prepared in accordance with these Rules of Procedure, of the evidence of witnesses proposed to be called at the trial by court-martial of an accused person, or

(b) where the context so admits or requires, any statement or record of evidence of a witness, (including that, if any, of the person charged) given or prepared to be given, or heard, at an investigation of a charge before a commanding officer (pursuant to section 177, 177A or 178C of the Act), or an authorised officer (pursuant to section 177C of the Act), or an officer appointed for that purpose by the Deputy Chief of Staff (Support) (pursuant to section 177 of the Act), as the case may be;

“authorised officer” means an officer in whom powers and duties are vested pursuant to section 184 of the Act;

“Board” means an assembly of members of the Defence Forces appointed by a convening authority authorised by rule 47 or 66 and convened for the purpose of examining and, if so directed, reporting upon any service subject which may be referred to them by a convening authority;

“charge” means an accusation contained in a charge-sheet that a person amenable to military law has been guilty of an offence;

“Chief Military Judge” means the person for the time being appointed in accordance with section 184N(1) of the Act to be the Chief Military Judge and, where the context so admits or requires, includes the military judge where there is only one appointed and any military judge to whom functions of the Chief Military Judge have been delegated by the Chief Military Judge in accordance with section 184N(3) of the Act;

“counsel” has the meaning ascribed to it by section 196(6) of the Act;

“court of inquiry” means an assembly of officers convened for the purpose of inquiring into any matter which may be referred to it by a convening authority authorised by rule 47, and to make such finding or declaration as may be required;

“investigating officer” means a commanding officer or an officer appointed by, and on the direction of, the Deputy Chief of Staff (Support) in accordance with section 177(1) of the Act;

“oath” and “swear” and cognate expressions, include affirmation or declaration, affirm or declare, in cases where an affirmation or declaration is by law allowed instead of an oath;

“person in waiting” means a person who is qualified to be a member of a court-martial board and who is specified by the Court-Martial Administrator in an order convening a general court-martial or a limited court-martial, as the case may be, to be a reserve member to be available for appointment to that particular court-martial;

“proper military authority” when used in relation to any jurisdiction, power, duty, act or other matter, means such military authority as exercises or performs that jurisdiction, power or duty or is concerned with that act or matter pursuant to regulations made under the Act, or the custom of the service;

“prosecutor” means the Director and includes any prosecuting officer appointed in accordance with section 184F(1) of the Act and counsel instructed by or representing either;

“subordinate officer” means an officer to whom power is delegated under section 179(1) of the Act;

“summary of evidence” means the evidence in relation to a charge against an accused, taken down in writing in accordance with these Rules, and includes any statement made by the accused and taken down in accordance with these Rules and any further statement of evidence included in the summary of evidence in accordance with these Rules.

(2) Time for the purpose of any proceedings or other matter under these Rules shall be reckoned exclusive of Sunday, Good Friday, Christmas Day and St. Patrick’s Day. Time reckoned for the purposes of arrest, custody, punishment or forfeiture or deduction of pay shall include those days.

(3) In these Rules a reference to a Form by number is a reference to a Form bearing that number in Schedule 3.

Part 2 — Chief Military Judge and Military Judge

Form of oath

3. The form of the oath to be sworn, or the solemn declaration to be made, by an officer appointed as a military judge is, in the Irish language, set out in Part 1 of Schedule 2 and, in the English language, set out in Part 2 of Schedule 2.

Duties and functions of Chief Military Judge and military judges

4. (1) The Chief Military Judge shall assign military judges to preside at courts-martial and shall perform the judicial duties conferred on him or her and on a military judge under the Act.

(2) Military judges shall preside at courts-martial and shall perform other judicial functions under the Act, these Rules and any court-martial rules for the time being in force that are required to be performed by military judges.

Part 3 — Appeals to summary court-martial

Appointment of prosecutor

5. The...