Court Martial Lawyer – General Court Martial to try Koboko soldiers over killings
By Frank Mugabi
The three UPDF soldiers who shot and killed two boda boda cyclists in Koboko town on March 6, will be tried by the General Court Martial and not the Field Court Martial.
Speaking at a meeting between the Commissioner General of Uganda Revenue Authority, Allen Kagina and local leaders in Koboko district on Monday, the Arua-based UPDF 409 Brigade commander, Lt. Col. David Kabangira, said they could not convene a Field Court Martial because its authority was challenged in the Constitutional Court.
“A Field Court Martial means a person found guilty can be placed tied on a tree and shot dead without appeal. The Uganda Law Society petitioned the Constitutional Court challenging such powers,” Kabangira said.
He explained that they would, however, seat the division General Court Martial which allows convicts to appeal.
Kagina said investigations into the incident that sparked riots, were going on. “I can assure you that justice will take its course once the investigations are done,” she said.
Kagina disclosed that a wider investigation would be commissioned to dig into the behaviour of URA staff in the region after hearing from the LC5 chairman, William Dada, that URA officials misbehaved while on duty.
Dada cited Biraro and Julius whom he accused of using guns to intimidate residents. He also appealed to the Government to streamline fuel prices across the country. Dada noted that fuel in West Nile was being sold sh2,000 above the price in Kampala.
The chairman of the business community, Hassan Menya, accused URA agents of encouraging smuggling by taking money without issuing receipts and reselling impounded commodities.
He suggested that the UPDF soldiers seconded to URA be given a different uniform for easier identification. Kagina promised to meet the business community to design a compatible mode of taxation.
Meanwhile, the families of the deceased refuted claims that their sons were killed in a fire exchange. Relatives of Cosmas Data said he was hit by the bullet as he took school fees for his brother. They described it as cold blood murder.
URA contributed sh1m to the two families’ burial expenses.
Michael Waddington is a court martial lawyer – court martial attorney that defends military personnel worldwide as well as deployed civilian contractors subject to the UCMJ. He defends Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine, Coast Guard, and civilian contractor court martial cases. He has successfully defended military personnel as a court martial lawyer Army Navy Marine & Air Force court martials in Germany, England, Italy, Iraq, Kuwait, Korea, Okinawa, Japan, Yokota, and throughout the United States. military-defense-lawyer-recentcases.htm.
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