{"id":353841,"date":"2016-04-04T10:47:07","date_gmt":"2016-04-04T15:47:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/content.findlaw-admin.com\/ability-law\/military\/administrative-issues-benefits\/what-is-non-judicial-punishment.html"},"modified":"2016-06-20T20:25:06","modified_gmt":"2016-06-21T01:25:06","slug":"what-is-non-judicial-punishment","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.findlaw.com\/military\/administrative-issues-benefits\/what-is-non-judicial-punishment.html","title":{"rendered":"What is Non-Judicial Punishment?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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What is Non-Judicial Punishment?<\/h1>\n
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In the Air Force and Army, a non-judicial punishment ("NJP") can only be carried out by a commanding officer. This means that only an officer on actual orders designating him or her as a commander can impose a NJP. <\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n\n

If you’re a Marine, you may know non-judicial punishments as "office hours." For sailors, they use the terms "captain’s mast" or just "mast." Those in the Army or Air Force refer to non-judicial punishments as an "Article 15." No matter what branch of service you\u2019re in, you likely know that a commanding officer may administratively discipline troops for minor offenses.<\/p>\r\n

The "Article 15" moniker used by soldiers and airmen is the most specific, as it alludes to Article 15 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice<\/a>. Article 15, combined with the Manual for Courts-Martial<\/a>, is the law that empowers commanding officers to carry out a non-judicial punishment in lieu of a court-martial.<\/p>\r\n

Who Can Impose a Non-Judicial Punishment?<\/h2>\r\n

In the Marine Corps and Navy, a NJP may be imposed by an "officer in charge." The naval term "officer in charge" means a specific officer who has been designated as such by an officer with general court-martial authority.<\/p>\r\n

What is a Non-Judicial Punishment?<\/h2>\r\n

A NJP is a procedure in which the commanding officer or officer in charge may:<\/p>\r\n