2-6 explains  the  rights  of  the  accused.  The  legal  office personnel will complete the remainder of the form. The next step in the processing of a report chit is for the  commanding  officer  to  assign  a  junior  officer  or senior petty officer to conduct a preliminary inquiry of the  alleged  offense(s).  The  results  of  the  preliminary inquiry then go to the executive officer’s inquiry (XOI), also   known   as   a   screening   mast.   At   the   XOI,   the executive officer will either  dismiss  the  report  chit  or forward it to the commanding officer for captain’s mast. At captain’s mast, the commanding officer will review the report chit, the results of the preliminary inquiry, the statements  of  the  witnesses  and  the  accused,  and  any evidence  connected  with  the  case.  The  commanding officer  then  will  dismiss  the  case,  award  nonjudicial punishment, or refer the case to a court-martial. If the preliminary inquiry, XOI, or captain’s mast involves you in any way, your participation will be as a witness. The reverse side of the form concerns disposition of the case, preliminary investigation results and recommendations,     actions     of     the     executive     and commanding  officers,  and  final  administrative  action (appeal, service record entry, etc.). Rights of the Accused One area deserves special caution: preservation of the subject’s rights. Under article 31, UCMJ, an official must inform all suspects of the charges against them and of their right to remain silent. That official must advise suspects that anything they say may be used as evidence against  them  at  a  trial  by  court-martial.  Under  other provisions of law, a  suspect  also  may  have  a  right  to legal  counsel  before  and  during  any   interview.   The official must advise suspects of those rights and provide them with the opportunity to exercise those rights before questioning them. Failure to do so could prevent the use of  self-incriminating  statements  made  by  suspects  in disciplinary pro-ceedings. That could result in the loss of the entire case. You  should  not  question  any  suspect,  but  should leave that task to personnel with proper training, such as legal   or   law   enforcement   personnel.   In   some   cases though, you may have to  question  the  person  you  are placing on report about the offense(s) he or she allegedly committed. If this situation does occur, make sure you properly advise that person  of  his  or  her  rights  under article 31 of the UCMJ. Remember that the report chit you start—the act of placing someone on report for violating the UCMJ— could eventually lead to a court-martial of that person. Courts-Martial Based on article 16 of the UCMJ, courts-martial are of  three  types—summary,  special,  and  general.  The captain decides the type of court-martial to award based on the nature, time, and place of the offense. A  summary  court-martial  (SCM)  consists  of  one commissioned officer. If there is only one commissioned officer  with  the  command,  that  officer  acts  as  the summary court officer. A summary court can award any sentence that may be given at mast. It also can award the additional punishments of confinement for 1 month, hard labor without confinement for 45 days, restriction for 2 months, or forfeiture of two-thirds pay per month for 1 month. A special court-martial (SPCM) consists of not less than  three  members.  The  accused  can  request  that enlisted  personnel  serve  on  the  court.  In  that  event, enlisted personnel make up at least one third of the court membership. The accused has the right to consult with a defense counsel and to request that the court consist of only the  military  judge.  A  SPCM  may  award  a  more severe  punishment  than  a  SCM.  For  example,  it  can award  a  bad-conduct   discharge,   confinement   for   6 months, loss of two-thirds pay per month for 6 months, and hard labor without confinement for 3 months. A   general   court-martial   (GCM)   consists   of   a military judge and not less than five members. As in a special  court-martial,  the  accused  may  request  that enlisted   personnel   serve   on   the   court.   Under   the conditions  described  for  a  SPCM,  the  accused  may request that the court consist of only a military judge. A GCM can award any punishment not forbidden by the UCMJ, including death when specifically authorized for the offense. All accused persons have the right to be represented before  special  and  general  courts-martial  by  defense counsel. This counsel may be a civilian attorney, at the expense of the accused, or a military attorney detailed to represent the accused.