{"id":353855,"date":"2016-04-04T10:47:07","date_gmt":"2016-04-04T15:47:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/content.findlaw-admin.com\/ability-law\/military\/criminal-law\/what-is-insubordination.html"},"modified":"2016-06-20T20:25:07","modified_gmt":"2016-06-21T01:25:07","slug":"what-is-insubordination","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.findlaw.com\/military\/criminal-law\/what-is-insubordination.html","title":{"rendered":"What is Insubordination?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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What is Insubordination?<\/h1>\n
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Created by FindLaw’s team<\/a> of legal writers and editors<\/i><\/p>\n\n | Last updated\n

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A commander who issues an unlawful order is essentially ordering his subordinate to commit a crime, and the subordinate who obeys the unlawful order is just as guilty of the crime as the commander. <\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n\n

The chain of command is the primary way the military maintains order and performs its duties in the most efficient way possible. If a service member behaves in a way that disrupts the chain of command, she could be reprimanded for insubordination<\/a>. The precise definitions of different types of insubordination are contained in Articles 89-92 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ)<\/a>. In general, a service member is guilty of insubordination against a superior officer (commissioned, warrant, or non-commissioned) if he assaults, disobeys, or disrespectfully treats that officer, regardless of whether that officer is in the same branch of the military or even within that service member’s direct chain of command.<\/p>\r\n

Assaulting a Superior Officer<\/h2>\r\n

Article 90 prohibits a service member from "offering violence" to a superior officer. Article 91 extends this conduct to noncommissioned officers, warrant officers, and petty officers. "Offering violence" is similar to the civilian crimes of assault and battery<\/a>, and includes any threatening words or gestures, such as drawing or brandishing a weapon or holding one’s hands in a physically threatening manner. Striking a superior officer is also prohibited, where "striking" includes any intentional, offensive touching, regardless of whether actual injury was inflicted upon the officer.<\/p>\r\n

However, in order to be found guilty of assaulting a superior officer under Article 90<\/a>, the service member must have known that the person she assaulted was a superior officer. If the service member doesn\u2019t have this knowledge, she may still be guilty of assault as defined in Article 128<\/a>, but won\u2019t  be considered insubordinate. Additionally, the superior officer must be acting in the execution of her duty at the time of the assault in order for the action to be insubordinate. A commander of a unit in the field or on a ship at sea is considered to be acting "in the execution of their duty" at all times, but a commander of a unit in the U.S. during peacetime may not.<\/p>\r\n

Disobeying a Lawful Order<\/h2>\r\n

A service member may not disobey a lawful order given by a superior officer. This includes specific orders given to a service member by his direct superior officer (under Article 90 of the UCMJ) as well as general orders or regulations that govern the service member’s unit (Article 92 of the UCMJ<\/a>).<\/p>\r\n

An instruction from a superior officer is considered an "order" which must be obeyed when:<\/p>\r\n