Judge: Fitz CO court-martial invalid

WASHINGTON - The court-martial of Cmdr. Bryce Benson, commanding officer of USS Fitzgerald (DDG 62) has had a dramatic turn after a military judge disqualified Adm. Frank Caldwell from serving as the convening authority. Benson was aboard the ship when it collided with a merchant ship in June 2017 while on routine operations in Sagami Bay, about 56 nautical miles southwest of Yokosuka, Japan. The collision resulted in the deaths of seven sailors. The judge’s ruling puts a hold on legal action against Benson and raising the possibility that charges could be dismissed. As a result, the court-martial of Benson is no longer valid, and it narrows the pool of remaining Navy authorities who could pursue the charges: Chief of Naval Operations and the Vice CNO. "I would say that it is highly improbable that either (CNO or the VCNO) could act as convening authorities in these cases. It's highly improbable," Lawrence B. Brennan, a law professor at Fordham University and a retired Navy Judge Advocate General, told Stars and Stripes. (Source: Stars and Stripes 01/23/19) Gulf Coast Note: USS Fitzgerald has been under repair at Ingalls Shipbuilding in Pascagoula, Miss., for more than a year.