Due Process Ruling for Military Courts-martial [2009-11-15]
According to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit in Sanford v. U.S., due process in a military court-martial does not require “no-fewer than 6 persons on the jury” as decided by the U.S. Supreme Court in Ballew v. Georgia. General courts-martial require 5 panel members and special courts-martial require 3 panel members. Only a 2/3 vote is required for conviction (unlike unanimous in civilian trials). Servicemembers have no right to a jury trial for courts-martial, as in civilian trials. This is one of several differences in military courts-martial.