Chapter 2 Military Justice and Bearing

CHAPTER 2 MILITARY JUSTICE AND BEARING Every state and city in the United States has laws against murder, robbery, and assault. There also are laws for safety, traffic safety, fire prevention, and the good order of the populace. To discourage lawbreakers, federal, state, and local governments set up penalties that are proportionate to the crimes committed. The penalties range from fines for minor infractions of the law, to long-term jail sentences for offenses such as robbery, assault, or manslaughter, to execution for murder. The Navy is no different. We have laws and regulations to govern us in much the same way as the governments mentioned above govern civilians. For example, we punish crimes of theft, assault, and murder as severely as the civilian community. In addition to those regulations, the Navy has laws that are peculiar only to the military establishment. The laws and regulations that govern us in the Navy exist to help, not hinder, us. In any organization, discipline and justice are essential. In this chapter, you will be presented with material about proper military conduct, discipline, punishment, justice, and uniform regulations in the United States Navy. PETTY OFFICER’S AUTHORITY Learning Objectives: Recognize the difference between general authority and organizational authority. Recall nonpunitive measures available to supervisors. Authority is a necessary leadership tool. However, it can never take the place of strong, positive leadership. When you make petty officer third class and later when you advance in rate as a petty officer (PO), you often will need to consider your authority and the effect your use of it will have on the people for whom you are responsible. Authority ties directly to your duties and responsibilities. The exercise of authority links to your acceptance of responsibility. You are given authority only to support you in carrying out your assigned duties and responsibilities. You have “general authority” as a petty officer by virtue of your position in the Navy organization, and you have “organizational authority” by virtue of the particular billet you are holding. GENERAL AUTHORITY Your general authority as a PO stems from article 1037 of U.S. Navy Regulations (Authority of Warrant Officers, Non-Commissioned Officers and Petty Officers). Article 1020 (Exercise of Authority) gives you the right to exercise authority over all persons subordinate to you. Article 1132 (Compliance with Lawful Orders) charges subordinates to obey their superiors. ORGANIZATIONAL AUTHORITY Petty officers derive their organizational authority from their assigned billets within a particular command. This command organizational structure comes from Standard Organization and Regulations of the U.S. Navy. That Navy instruction provides regulations and guidance governing the conduct of all members of the Navy. It also specifies the individual duties and responsibilities of personnel within a unit organization from the commanding officer down to the messenger of the watch. Articles 1020 and 1037 of U.S. Navy Regulations grant officers, warrant officers, and petty officers the authority needed to perform their duties. Authority includes the right to require action of others. We direct the actions of others by oral or written orders that are subject to general limitations. Orders must be lawful since subordinates are required to obey lawful orders only (article 1132, U.S. Navy Regulations). We must not characterize orders with tyrannical or capricious conduct (an erratic change in behavior) or by abusive language (article 1023, U.S. Navy Regulations). Since authority is given only to fulfill duties and responsibilities, we need to delegate only as much organizational authority as necessary to 2-1 Ever since the beginning of navies, there have been laws peculiarly applicable to the sea and seafaring people. —Rear Admiral Albert E. Jarrell, USN