{"data":{"id":"us-ky/krs-35.120","jurisdiction":"us-ky","citation":"KRS 35.120","heading":"Who may serve on courts-martial.","body":"(1) Any commissioned officer of the state military forces is eligible to serve on all\ncourts-martial for the trial of any person subject to this code.\n(2) Any warrant officer of the state military forces is eligible to serve on general and\nspecial courts-martial for the trial of any person subject to this code, other than a\ncommissioned officer.\n(3) Any enlisted member of the state military forces who is not a member of the same\nunit as the accused is eligible to serve on general and special courts -martial for the\ntrial of any enlisted member subject to this code, but that member shall serve as a\nmember of a court only if, before the conclusion of a session called by the military\njudge under KRS 35.195 prior to trial or, in the absence of such a session, before\nthe court is assembled for the trial of the accused, the accused personally has\nrequested orally on the record or in writing that enlisted members serve on it. After\nsuch request the accused shall not be tried by a general or special court -martial the\nmembership of which does not include enlisted persons in a number comprising at\nleast one -third (1/3) of the total membership of the court, unless eligible enlisted\nmembers cannot be obtained on account of physical conditions or military\nexigencies. If enlisted members cannot be obtained, the court may be assembled and\nthe trial held without them, but the convening authority shall make a detailed\nwritten statement, to be appended to the record, stating why they could not be\nobtained. For the purposes of this se ction, the word \"unit\" means any regularly\norganized body of the state military forces not larger than a company, a squadron, a\ndivision of the naval militia, or a body corresponding to one (1) of them.\n(4) When it can be avoided, no person subject to this  code may be tried by a court -\nmartial any member of which is junior to the accused in rank or grade.\n(5) When convening a court -martial, the convening authority shall detail as members\nthereof such members of the state military forces as, in the convening authority's\nopinion, are best qualified for the duty by reason of age, education, training,\nexperience, length of service, and judicial temperament. No member of the state\nmilitary forces is eligible to serve as a member of a general or special court -martial\nwhen that member is the accuser, a witness, or has acted as investigating officer or\nas counsel in the same case.","path":["KRS Chapter 35"],"source_url":"https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/law/statutes/statute.aspx?id=41900","current_through":"Includes enactments through the 2026 Regular Session","vintage":"09/05/2026","retrieved_at":"2026-09-05T20:48:52Z","sha256":"481a21a432b82c00d6483169c168a5386921242f4b40324315556b3c92b61907","source_id":"us-ky","stale":false,"prev":"us-ky/krs-35.115","next":"us-ky/krs-35.125"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}