Uniform code of military justice

In 1948, in response to the demand for a uniform system of courts-martial for the military services, Secretary of Defense James Forrestal appointed a committee to draft a Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ). Harvard Law Professor Edmund M. Morgan chaired this committee, which also included Gordon Gray (Assistant Secretary of the Army), W. John Kenney (Under Sectretary of the Navy), Eugene M. Zuckert (Assistant Secretary of the Air Force), and Felix E. Larkin (Assistant General Counsel, Office of the Secretary of Defense). In January 1949, the committee completed the draft and sent it to Secretary Forrestal for review, whereupon it was delivered to Capitol Hill on February 8, 1949. The full text of the "Morgan Draft" with references and commentary is included.