Section 26.05.640. Military Appeals Commission.

   (a) The Military Appeals Commission is established in the Department of Military and Veterans' Affairs. The commission is a quasi-judicial agency.
   (b) The commission has
        (1) jurisdiction to hear appeals from courts-martial by the
             (A) state in accordance with AS 26.05.615; and
             (B) accused regarding sentences, punishments, clearly erroneous findings, and matters of law; and
        (2) the discretion to remand those cases to a competent court-martial.
   (c) The commission consists of three members appointed by the governor and confirmed by a majority of the members of the legislature in joint session. A member shall be a resident of this state and
        (1) be licensed to practice law
             (A) in this state and be a member in good standing of the Alaska Bar Association;
             (B) in another state and be a member in good standing of the bar of that state; or
             (C) as a member of the bar of a federal court;
        (2) have engaged in the active practice of law for at least five years;
        (3) be a former commissioned officer in the armed forces of the United States or the reserve components, or in the militia of a state; and
        (4) have at least five years' experience as an officer in the judge advocate general's corps of the armed forces of the United States or the militia of the state.
   (d) Except as provided in AS 39.05.080(4), an appointee selected to fill a vacancy shall hold office for the unexpired term of the member whose vacancy is filled. A vacancy in the commission does not impair the authority of a quorum of members to exercise the powers and perform the duties of the commission.
   (e) A member may be reappointed if the reappointment complies with this section.
   (f) The members of the commission shall select a chair from among the members of the commission. The selection shall be subject to the approval of the adjutant general.
   (g) The governor may remove a commissioner from office for cause including incompetence, neglect of duty, or misconduct in office. A commissioner, to be removed for cause, shall be given a copy of the charges and offered an opportunity to be publicly heard in person or by counsel in the commissioner's own defense upon not less than 10 days' notice. If a commissioner is removed for cause, the governor shall file with the lieutenant governor a complete statement of all charges made against the commissioner and the governor's finding based on the charges, together with a complete record of the proceedings.
   (h) The adjutant general shall adopt regulations to govern appellate procedure before the Military Appeals Commission. The regulations shall be substantially similar to the provisions for post-trial procedure and review of courts-martial under 10 U.S.C. 801 - 946. The regulations must be approved by the governor. Regulations adopted under this section are exempt from AS 44.62 (Administrative Procedure Act).
   (i) The governor may appoint an alternate member, who will serve temporarily in cases where a Military Appeals Commission member is removed or otherwise unavailable to perform the duties of a commission member. The alternate member must be confirmed by a majority of the members of the legislature in joint session and otherwise meet the qualifications specified in (c) of this section.

Authorities

26.05.615;26.05.650

Notes

References

AS 26.05.615 Appeal by the state.
AS 26.05.650 Appellate and civilian counsel.

History

(Sec. 4 ch 55 SLA 2016)