Drug-related court-martial delayed by pre-trial hearings

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Drug-related court-martial delayed by pre-trial hearings
Stars and Stripes
European edition, Wednesday, March 26, 2008

RAF ALCONBURY, England — Closed-door pretrial hearings on Tuesday delayed the court-martial of an airman accused of not only failing a drug test but also tampering with the urine sample and falsifying related documents.

Senior Airman Heather Brewster, of the 423rd Medical Squadron at RAF Upwood, faces three charges related to the June 20, 2007, incident: dereliction of duty, making false official statements and wrongful use of a controlled substance.

Brewster tested positive for morphine, oxymorphone and oxycodone, according to Air Force court records.

Closed-door “discussions” — known as an “802” — between the judge and attorneys for the defense and prosecution delayed the trial, which was supposed to begin Tuesday morning. In general, 802 discussions can include, for example, pretrial motions, the number of witnesses to be called and the anticipated length of the trial.

Details of the 802 and the issues discussed are confidential before the trial starts but will become part of the public record when the court-martial convenes, said Maj. Paul Connolly, staff judge advocate for the 423rd Air Base Group.


Rest of article at: http://www.stripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=53602