The Supreme Court has addressed it on only a handful of occasions, and the Court’s reasoning in these decisions is inconsistent and vague. The Constitution does not mention martial law, and no act of Congress defines it. Yet the concept has never been well understood. footnote5_l4k0x5c 5 Joseph Nunn, Guide to Declarations of Martial Law in the United States, Brennan Center for Justice, August 20, 2020. Indeed, federal and state officials have declared martial law at least 68 times over the course of U.S. 1945).Īs White’s story illustrates, martial law - a term that generally refers to the displacement of civilian authorities by the military - can be and has been employed in the United States. Instead, just five days after being arrested, White was tried without a jury, convicted, and sentenced to five years in prison. But Major Murrell, the presiding military officer, rejected these motions. His attorney objected to the court’s jurisdiction, requested a jury trial, and asked for time to prepare a defense. White was brought before a military provost court. Scheiber, Bayonets in Paradise: Martial Law in Hawai’i during World War II (Honolulu: University of Hawai’i Press, 2016). The army controlled every aspect of life in the islands, from criminal justice to parking zones and curbside trash removal. The rules governing everyday life were set not by an elected legislature but by the military governor. Its courts were closed and replaced with military tribunals. footnote2_07aahdb 2 Although Hawaii was an incorporated territory, not a state, in 1942, the Supreme Court found that the Constitution applied there in full and that the legality of martial law must be analyzed as though it were a state. It had been under martial law since the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941. Even his alleged crime - embezzlement of funds from a client - was a violation of civilian, not military, law. He was a stockbroker, not a soldier, and neither he nor his business had any connection with the armed forces. military would not have been involved in his case. On August 20, 1942, military police in Honolulu, Hawaii, arrested a man named Harry White. Attend the Brennan Legacy Awards Dinner.Advance Constitutional Change Show / hide.National Task Force on Democracy Reform & the Rule of Law.Government Targeting of Minority Communities Show / hide.Campaign Finance in the Courts Show / hide.Gerrymandering & Fair Representation Show / hide.Ensure Every American Can Vote Show / hide.
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