Downloaded from https://www.everyspec.com will not conduct, review, evaluate, assist with, or maintain on file the collateral investigation. However, safety personnel can use and shall be given access to any information in a collateral legal/administrative investigation. (3) This type of investigation will be prepared— (a) On all Class A accidents. Note that a line of duty investigation will satisfy this requirement for off-duty fatalities. (b) As directed by the command’s staff judge advocate (SJA) or legal counsel in accordance with the claims regulation (AR 27–20).
(c) On those accidents where there is a potential claim or litigation for or against the Government or a Government contractor. (d) On accidents with a high degree of public interest or anticipated disciplinary or adverse administrative action. (4) A legal accident investigation may be conducted on any other accident at the direction of the commander whose personnel, equipment, or operations were involved in the accident. The investigation will usually use the procedures in AR 27–20 because most will involve potential claims. If that regulation is not applicable, the procedures in AR 15–6 for informal investigations will be followed. 3–11. Actions when criminal activity is determined a.
If evidence of intentional criminal activity is discovered during the initial investigation by either MP/Criminal Investigation Division (CID) or the accident board, the board president will be notified immediately. After notification/ consultation with the commander, USACR/SC and the local commander, the board president will discontinue the investigation if no further need is present. If the accident investigation does continue, it will be secondary to MP or CID investigations insofar as access to witnesses, accident scene, and evidence is concerned. b.
If, during the investigation, the board discovers evidence of intentional criminal activity (other than negligence, d e r e l i c t i o n o f d u t y , o r d i s o b e d i e n c e o f a n o r d e r ) , t h e b o a r d p r e s i d e n t w i l l p r o v i d e t h e f o l l o w i n g t o M P / C I D investigators— (1) If the evidence is physical or is a common source item, MP/CID investigators will be notified. The evidence will be surrendered to MP/CID personnel, and the board members will provide the documents necessary to establish the chain of custody.
(2) If the evidence is based upon witness statements obtained on a promise that the information would be used within DOD only for accident prevention purposes, the board president will provide a list of personnel interviewed and copies of all common source materials. The board president will not discuss individual statements or specific comments that led to the board’s suspicion of criminal activity. 3–12. Accident Investigation Board appointing authority a. The commander having general court-martial jurisdiction over the installation or unit responsible for the opera- tion, personnel, or materiel involved in an accident, or the Commander, U.S. Army Reserve Command (USARC), for U.S.
Army Reserve (USAR) units assigned to USARC, or the Commander, USACE for personnel assigned to the USACE, or the appropriate state adjutant general in the case of ARNG accidents, is responsible for appointing accident investigation boards as required by this regulation. Exception to the General Court-Martial Convening Authority (GCMCA) requirement of this paragraph may only be granted by HQDA (DACS–SF) upon request. (1) When personnel or materiel involved in an accident are from units under the command of different GCMCAs, the convening authorities concerned should agree on who will appoint the board.
Their decision should be based on their relative degrees of involvement as well as considerations of administrative convenience. If an agreement cannot be reached, the decision will be made by the first general officer in both chains of command or by the respective Army Headquarters commanders. (2) When an accident occurs away from the responsible unit’s home station, the officer who would normally appoint the board may request the GCMCA for the installation closest to the accident or upon which the accident occurred to conduct the investigation. Coordination for such a transfer of authority should include specific agreement on funding the cost of the investigation.
(3) For accidents involving USAR personnel on active duty for training status, assigned or attached to a command other than USARC, the officer who exercises GCMCA over the accident site will appoint accident investigation boards. (4) In some cases, the unit or installation that is responsible for the personnel, equipment, or operation involved in the accident may be under the command of a different Army Headquarters office than the GCMCA who would normally appoint the board. In this case, the two Army Headquarters commanders may enter into supplemental agreements that provide for a different appointing authority. b.
The appointing authority will— (1) Appoint on orders, for Class A and Class B accidents, the president and other members of the board from units or organizations other than the accountable organization. Individuals from the accountable organization may be designated as advisers (nonvoting) to enhance the investigation and reporting of the accident. (2) Request support from higher headquarters when investigation requirements are beyond the unit’s capability. 28 AR 385–10 • 23 August 2007/RAR 14 June 2010