Summary. Twelve sequences covering discipline, civil protections, employment rights, records, and transition.

1. The moment an investigator appears

  • Say: "I want to speak with a lawyer, and I am not going to make a statement."
  • Say nothing further — not to the investigator, supervisor, roommate, or family.
  • Note that Article 31 warnings are required without custody — broader than civilian Miranda.
  • Distinguish a demand for a statement from a lawful order (exemplar, document, authorized search). Comply with lawful orders and object; do not refuse.
  • Contact free defense counsel (TDS / DSO / ADC) the same day.
  • Preserve texts, emails, photographs, logs, schedules, and witness names. Delete nothing.
  • Do not contact the complainant or any witness.

2. The Article 15 decision

  • Do not sign before consulting free defense counsel.
  • Weigh: strength of the evidence · likely punishment on each path · whether separation follows either way · proximity to promotion or retention decisions · sympathetic facts.
  • Understand: accepting = lower standard, commander decides, no federal conviction, but a record affecting promotion, assignment, retention.
  • Understand: demanding court-martial = proof beyond reasonable doubt and counsel, but greater exposure and a federal conviction if convicted.
  • If accepting: present extenuation and mitigation — statement, letters, evaluations, awards, corrective steps.
  • If punished: appeal to the next superior authority within the deadline.

3. Court-martial

  • Accept detailed military defense counsel; you may request a specific counsel by name.
  • You may additionally retain civilian counsel without losing detailed counsel.
  • Use the Article 32 preliminary hearing for a general court-martial.
  • Speak to no one but counsel; assume barracks conversations create witnesses.
  • No social media, no texts about the case.
  • Gather evidence early — witnesses transfer, deploy, and separate.
  • Build the mitigation package from day one.
  • Understand appellate review includes factual sufficiency at the service Court of Criminal Appeals.

4. Administrative separation

  • Elect the board if entitled (other-than-honorable proposed, or six or more years of service).
  • Do not waive it "to get it over with."
  • Use free defense counsel.
  • Assemble evaluations, awards, letters, training records.
  • Document any connected behavioral health condition with records.
  • Argue characterization separately from retention — honorable characterization is worth more long-term than the retention fight.
  • Check collateral effects: bonus and education-assistance recoupment; transferability of education benefits; separation and reenlistment codes.

5. Security clearance

  • Respond to the statement of reasons in writing, on time, addressing each concern.
  • Address mitigation: time elapsed · isolated or recurrent · circumstances · rehabilitation · whether the vulnerability is removed (debt paid, treatment completed).
  • Request the hearing.
  • Obtain counsel if the career is at stake.

6. SCRA — the interest cap

  • Confirm the obligation was incurred before entering service.
  • Send written notice with a copy of the orders.
  • Request: reduction to six percent, forgiveness (not deferral) of the excess, recalculation, and retroactive application to the service start date.
  • Send to every pre-service creditor: cards, auto, personal, mortgage, student loans.
  • Require written confirmation with a deadline; keep proof of delivery.

7. SCRA — court proceedings

  • If sued while serving, request a stay of at least 90 days, in writing, stating how service affects your ability to appear and when you will be available; include a communication about leave.
  • If a default judgment was entered during service, move to reopen — no affidavit of military status, no appointed counsel, no stay.
  • Show a meritorious defense and that service materially affected your ability to defend.
  • Note the statutory window after service ends.

8. SCRA — housing, vehicles, and other protections

  • Residential lease termination on entry into service or qualifying PCS/deployment orders — written notice with orders.
  • Motor vehicle lease termination where eligible.
  • Eviction requires a court order within the statutory rent threshold.
  • Foreclosure on a pre-service obligation generally requires a court order.
  • Repossession of a vehicle securing a pre-service obligation generally requires a court order.
  • Tolling of statutes of limitations during service.
  • Waivers are effective only in writing, in a separate instrument, in the specified type size, executed during or after service.

9. USERRA — before, during, after

Before

  • Give written notice to the employer; keep a copy and the orders.
  • Do not resign.
  • Elect whether to use accrued vacation — the employer may not require it.

During

  • You are treated as on furlough or leave; non-seniority benefits of that status apply.
  • Elect health coverage continuation if needed.

After

  • Report or apply within the deadline: next shift (under 31 days) · 14 days (31–180) · 90 days (over 180).
  • Claim the escalator position — the job you would have attained, with promotions and seniority.
  • Note the protection against discharge without cause: 1 year (service over 180 days) · 180 days (31–180 days).

If refused

  • Gather: notice given · orders · discharge document · dated application to return · org charts before and after · comparators' promotions and raises · any remark about the absence (even from a non-decision-maker).
  • File with the Department of Labor at no cost, or sue directly.
  • Note: no statute of limitations, attorney's fees available, double damages for a willful violation.

10. Discharge upgrade and records correction

  • Discharge Review Board — generally within 15 years; grounds are propriety and equity.
  • Board for Correction of Military Records — any error or injustice; the 3-year deadline is routinely waived.
  • Assemble: the complete service record · evidence of a connected behavioral health condition (diagnosis, treatment, clinician opinion, lay statements) · post-service employment, education, treatment, community involvement · specific letters from people who know you now.
  • State the relief precisely — the characterization, the narrative reason, the separation code.
  • Tell the truth about the conduct; boards respond to accountability.
  • Organize with a cover application, a short statement, and a tabbed exhibit index.
  • Get free help: veterans service organizations, law school clinics, bar pro bono programs. Do not pay a company.

11. Deployment package

  • General power of attorney plus special powers (vehicle, housing, banking, children's medical and school). Prepare a second set.
  • Will and advance medical directive.
  • Review beneficiary designations — a stale designation pays the wrong person regardless of the will.
  • Family care plan and caregiver authorizations.
  • Send SCRA interest-cap letters; terminate leases if eligible.
  • Automate payments; give someone authority and information to fix problems.
  • Notify creditors of a service-of-process address.
  • Freeze credit for member and dependents.
  • Confirm any custody order addresses deployment.
  • Photograph household goods before a government move; note the short claim deadline.
  • One-page contact sheet: unit, rear detachment, legal assistance, family readiness.
  • Send any legal mail to legal assistance immediately.

12. Transition (last 180 days)

  • Document every medical condition, however minor — the highest-value action of the entire transition.
  • Obtain complete medical and personnel records.
  • File the VA claim in the pre-discharge window where available.
  • Read the DD-214 before signing: characterization · narrative reason · separation code · reenlistment code · awards · education · deployments. Fix errors now.
  • Transfer education benefits to dependents while still serving — it cannot be done afterward.
  • Plan health coverage continuity; note transitional program windows.
  • Ask about licensure and credentialing in the destination state, for member and spouse.
  • Use legal assistance for wills, powers of attorney, and consumer questions before it ends.

Related documents

Educational only, not legal advice. Military law and service regulations change frequently. Free defense counsel and legal assistance are available — use them before signing anything.