Provost Court
A Provost Court is a kind of military court operated by military personnel, used to summarily try civilians -- usually for relatively small infractions.
In the American context
In the American context the accused has no right to a defense counsel. There is no prosecutor or pre-trial gathering of evidence, although testimony may be called for.
The officer in charge of a Provost Court is always a commissioned officer. Ideally, they should have some kind of legal background, but they are not required to be a lawyer.
A Provost Court cannot impose a sentence of longer than a year, or a fine greater than $1,000.
A Provost Court is not a Court Martial -- Courts Martial are reserved for military personnel. But it is related to a Court Martial in that any officer who has the Convening Authority to convene a Summary Court Martial to try military personnel has the authority to convene Provost Courts.
External links
- Civil Disturbances and Disasters, Volume 19, Issues 15-968, United States. Dept. of the Army -- Issue 19, Part 15 of Field manual, United States Dept. of the Army -- Its Field manual, FM 19-15 -- U.S. Government Printing Office, 1968]
