The White Falcon - 06.08.1971, Blaðsíða 5

YN1 John Taylor and Marsha Burmeister look over Lt. Cdr. Bill Kirkpatrick is fully engrossed in
the files. his latest case.
NavSta legal: Where the answers are
m
^PTe )
It's a small 1 office complex
:ed into a corner not fair from
e naval station's quarterdeck.
Every day numerous questions are
asked and many are answered there.
It is the naval station's legal
office and it evokes a different
thought in almost everyone. Per-
haps it is just one of a dozen
stops when selling your car, may-
be a place you'd like to stay out
Herbert Heinz confers with
Force Capt. Kenneth Murray.
of altogether or perhaps a place
to have a nagging back-in-the-
mind question answered.
This judicial enclave is com-
prised of three officers led by
Lt. Cdr. Bill Kirkpatrick who is
the staff judge advocate. Under
him is his assistant, Lt. Rod
Eshelman. The newly arrived Air
Force Capt. Kenneth Murray, actu-
ally assigned to IDF, is on loan
to AFI as the staff judge advo-
cate for the Air Force. Although 1
his duties are primarily related
to the Air Force, Captain Murray
does help his Navy counterparts
with legal matters.
The functions handled by this
office are many and some are par-
ticular to the defense force.
Most of the more routine duties
include household goods claims,
claims of thefts, accidents and
power of attorneys. Their other
functions include counseling in
which complex divorce questions
or simple procedural questions
are involved.
Many matters involving state
laws cannot be answered totally
because of their varying and ever-
changing nature. These problems
however are referred to JAG in
Washington or to the state in-
volved. Another means of getting
legal information is through a
new computerized operation called
LITE (Legal Information Thru Elec-
tronics). This is an Air Force
system which allows inquiries
which once took hours or days to
be done in minutes.
Helping the JAG Corps officers
are YN1 John Taylor, the court
reporter; secretaries Marsha Bur-
meister and Erla Gudmundsdottir
and SSgt. Herbert Heinz.
The legal officer advises that
all legal matters shouldbe brought
tothe office's attention and that
personnel should never depend on
the word of a friend or count on
a rumor for legal advice.
Lt. Rod Eshelman answers one of
numerous daily questions.
WHITE FALCON