The U.S. Naval Institute on Military Justice

Justice and discipline have shaped the U.S. Navy since the inception of the American Republic. In the early Navy, sailors were mostly drawn from the lowest socioeconomic classes and often brutally disciplined through sheer physical domination by upper-class officers. By the 1970s, naval officers were wondering in public forums if discipline should be managed through non-coercive measures, arguing that sailors should be treated like lawyers or other members of a professional guild.

In readings selected from Navy and Marine Corps leaders with direct experience in the naval justice system, this book shows how the Navy court-martial has changed over the decades, and how it hasn't, revealing the purpose and meaning of justice and discipline in the American sea services.