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16. General principles of military court
 
  Article 97-Rights of the accused  
  The following are considered the fundamental rights of the accused:  
97.1 Lawful arrest  
  An accused is entitled to a lawful arrest. While an unlawful arrest may never exonerate and/or cause for an indictment to itself be unlawful, it may result in any evidence gathered under such an unlawful arrest being inadmissible as evidence.  
97.2 Innocence until proven guilty  
  Everyone charged with a military offence will be presumed innocent until proved guilty by a legally valid verdict.  
97.3 Being charged and stand trial for the same offence twice  
  No one shall be liable to be tried or punished again for an offence for which they have already been tried and a final legally valid verdict has already been brought, unless medical forensic evidence of a verifiable nature is presented as grounds for a new trial.  
97.4 Maximum period of detention under accusation  
  The maximum period a member of the Armed Forces may be held without charge on accusation of one or more military offences is forty-eight (48) hours at which time either a charge is made against the person, or else they must be released from custody. The breach of this rule itself shall be considered a military offence under Article 73 (False Reporting) of the military Code.
 
  The maximum period a non member of the Armed Forces, including persons captured in combat or non combat, may be held without charge on accusation of one or more military offences is thirty (30) days at which time either a charge is made against the person, or else they must be released from custody. The breach of this rule itself shall be considered a military offence under Article 52 (Unlawful restraint) of the military Code.  
97.5 Maximum period of detention under charge  
  The maximum period a person may be held on charge without formal indictment from time of arrest is dependent upon the seriousness of the level of the charge and whether they are a member of the Armed Forces or not.  
  For level 4 and below offences, the maximum period of custody on charge without indictment for a member of the armed forces is seventy-two hours (72) at which time they must be either formally indicted, or released. For a non member of the Armed Forces, including persons captured in combat or non combat the maximum period of custody on charge without indictment is sixty (60) days.  
  For level 5 and above offences, the maximum period of custody on charge without indictment for a member of the armed forces is seven (7) days at which time they must be either formally indicted, or released. For a non member of the Armed Forces, including persons captured in combat or non combat the maximum period of custody on charge without indictment for a level 5 or above charge is ninety (90) days.  
  The breach of this rule itself shall be considered a military offence under Article 73 (False Reporting) or Article 52 (Unlawful restraint) of the military Code.  
97.6 Maximum period of detention under indictment before conditional arrest hearing  
  The maximum period a person may be held in custody from the day of indictment to the day being brought before a magistrate to hear any conditional release application is dependent upon the seriousness of the level of the charge.  
  For level 4 and below offences, the maximum period of custody under indictment of a member of the Armed Forces is three (3) days at which time they must be either formally refused bail, or bail shall be automatically granted and they shall be released. For a non-member of the Armed Forces, including prisoners it is sixty (60) days.
 
  For level 5 and above offences, the maximum period of custody under indictment is ten (10) days at which time they must be either formally refused conditional release, or conditional release shall be automatically granted and they shall be released. For a non-member of the Armed Forces, including prisoners it is sixty (60) days.  
97.7 General rights of person upon arrest  
  The following are the general rights of an accused upon arrest:  
  Non-torture  
  The accused has the right of being kept safe from physical torture, by means of inflicting pain, deprivation of essential food, water and/or shelter or direct threats against themselves or their family/friends.  
  Attendance to any major life threatening wounds/illness  
  The accused has the right to medical attention to halt any major life threatening wounds/illness.  
  Adequate food, water and shelter  
  The accused has the right to adequate food, water and shelter during their custody including access to toilet facilities and washing facilities.  
  Safety from harm  
  The accused has the right to be kept safe from harm or the threat of harm by other inmates and/or accused.  
97.8 General rights of interview upon arrest  
  The following are the general rights of person of an accused upon arrest:  
  Silence on 2nd and subsequent interviews  
  The accused has the right to silence upon the 2nd interview and any subsequent interview. However, the accused does not have the right to silence for the 1st interview ("interview of facts") and if being so silent in a level 4 or above case may automatically be liable to the charge of obstruction of justice.  
  Right to two phone calls  
  The accused member of the armed forces has the right to two national phone calls, which individually do not exceed five minutes. A prisoner and non-member of the armed forces shall not have this right.  
  Right to an interpreter  
  The accused has rights to a competent interpreter service should they be unfamiliar with comprehension of the Official Language.The court provides the person a free assistance of an interpreter.  
  Right to legal representation  
  The accused has right to have legal representation present at the 2nd and any subsequent interviews and/or formal proceedings of indictment and for the legal representative to speak on their behalf, excluding matters before the court where the accused must answer in their own voice and/or acknowledgment.  
97.9 General rights of legal defense upon arrest  
  The following are the general rights of legal defense of an accused upon arrest:  
  Right of copy of indictment against them  
  The accused has right to a copy of the indictment against them, in a language which they understand, of the specific offence(s) and military Code offences for which they are charged;  
  Right of copy of all interview statements, and evidence to be presented to the court with the indictment  
  The accused has right to a copy of all the interview statements and evidence to be presented to the court with the indictment at their arraignment.  
  Right of preparation before arraignment  
  The accused has right to have adequate time and facilities for the preparation of their defense and to communicate with a counsel of his own choosing. The minimum time shall not be less than four (4) days and not be greater than twenty (20) days, unless lawful extension is granted under exceptional circumstances.  
  Right of trial  
  The accused has right to be tried in their presence and to defend themselves in person or by legal assistance of their own choosing and to have legal assistance assigned to them, in any case where the interests of justice so require, and without payment by them in any such case if they do not have sufficient means to pay for it;  
     
 
 

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