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Installation assistance
VWL will assist victims in contacting agencies or individuals responsible for providing necessary services and relief.
- Command Chaplain.
- Family Advocacy Center/Army Community Service.
- Emergency Relief Funds.
- Legal Assistance, if appropriate.
- American Red Cross.
- If victims are not eligible for military services, or where military services are not available, “the VWL will provide liaison assistance in seeking any available nonmilitary services within the civilian community.”
Pretrial
Agreements – negotiated restitution.
Transportation and shipment of household goods.
- State and local assistance.
- Transitional Compensation. 10 U.S.C. § 1059; DoD Instruction 1342.24, Change 1 (16
January 1997); AR 608-1, Army Community Service, (19 September 2007).
Dependent
Abuse offenses resulting in separation of servicemember from active duty or total forfeiture of all pay and allowances pursuant to court-martial conviction or administrative separation.
- Applies to cases on or after 30 November 1993.
- Applies to voluntary and involuntary separation proceedings (example: discharge in lieu of trial by court-martial UP Chapter 10, AR 635-200).
- Dependent-abuse offenses – conduct by an individual while a member of the armed forces on active duty for a period of more than thirty days that involve abuse of the then-current spouse or dependent child of the member and that is a criminal offense defined by the Uniform Code of Military Justice or other criminal code applicable to the jurisdiction where the act of abuse is committed. Offenses that may qualify as dependent abuse offenses include sexual assault, rape, sodomy, assault, battery, murder, and manslaughter. This is not an exhaustive listing of dependent abuse offenses.
Dependent Child
An unmarried child, including an adopted child or stepchild, who was residing with the member at the time of the dependent abuse offense and who is
- (1) Under 18 years of age;
- (2) Eighteen or older and incapable of self-support because of mental or physical incapacity that existed prior to age 18 and who is dependent on the member for over one-half of the child’s support;
- (3) 18 or older, but less than 23, and is a college student and who is dependent on the member for over one-half of the child’s support.
Compensation.
- Duration of payments dependent upon the unserved portion of the member’s obligated active duty service (no less than 12 months, but no more than 36 months).
- Start-date: date sentence is adjudged if the sentence, as adjudged, includes a dismissal, dishonorable discharge, bad conduct discharge, or forfeiture of all pay and allowances; or
- However, if there is a pretrial agreement that provides for disapproval or suspension of a dismissal, dishonorable discharge, bad conduct discharge, or forfeiture of all pay and allowances, then start date is the date of the approval of the court-martial sentence if the sentence, as approved, includes an unsuspended dismissal, dishonorable discharge, bad conduct discharge, or forfeiture of all pay and allowances; or,
- If pursuant to administrative separation, the date of initiation of separation proceedings.
- Amount of compensation increases with each dependent. See 38 U.S.C. § 1311(a)(1).
- Dependent loses payments if remarries or cohabitates with the abuser, or is an active participant in the abuse.
- Payment stops if administrative separation is disapproved.
- Payment stops if dismissal, dishonorable discharge, or bad-conduct discharge is remitted, set aside, or mitigated to a lesser punishment that does not include any such punishment.
- Application for transitional compensation: individual submits a request through military service of the member.
- Requires annual certification of entitlement to funds by spouse and dependent children.
- Payment is from Operation and Maintenance Funds. Defense Finance and Accounting Service issue the payments, and administrative oversight of the funds (approval of payments and such) is through the Community and Family Support Center (CFSC), a DA level organization.
Other benefits
- Commissary and exchange privileges for a length of time eligible for transitional compensation;
- Medical and dental care for up to one year for injuries related to dependent abuse offense(s). Applies to dependents of a member separated due to dependent abuse offense (includes discharge as a result of conviction as well as administrative separation).
Deferral and waiver of forfeitures.
Deferral.
- Accused may request, in writing, deferment of forfeitures. RCM 1101(c)(2).
- The accused’s burden to show “the interests of the accused and the community in deferral outweigh the community’s interest in imposition of the punishment on its effective date [e.g., forfeitures].” RCM 1101(c)(3).
- Applies to adjudged forfeitures (Article 57(a)(2), UCMJ; RCM 1101(c)) AND automatic forfeitures (Article 58b(a)(1), UCMJ)). United States v. Lundy, 60 M.J. 52 (C.A.A.F. 2004); United States v. Adney, 61 M.J. 554 (A. Ct. Crim. App. 2005).
Waiver of forfeitures.
- Accused may request a waiver of automatic forfeitures (Article 58b, UCMJ) or the CA may waive sua sponte. The request does not have to be made by the accused; may be made by dependents or someone (VWL) on behalf of dependents.
- The accused’s request should be in writing.
- The waiver is allowed for a period not to exceed six months and is for the purpose of providing support to the accused’s dependents, as defined in 37 U.S.C. § 401.
- Factors CA may consider include: “the length of the accused’s confinement, the number and age(s) of the accused’s family members, whether the accused requested waiver, any debts owed by the accused, the ability of the accused’s family members to find employment, and the availability of transitional compensation for abused dependents permitted under 10 U.S.C. 1059.” RCM 1101(d)(2).
- Waiver of forfeitures is authorized as soon as they become effective; need not wait until action.
UCMJ, art. 139.
- Redress of injuries to property.
- Willful damage or theft.
- No conviction is required.