The Holiday That Does Not Stop the Clock
Across much of the country, Christmas brings a near-total shutdown of courtrooms. In the military justice system, it rarely does. While federal civilian courts officially close on Christmas under the federal holiday schedule established by statute, servicemembers under investigation or in pretrial confinement do not get a legal pause simply because the calendar reaches Dec. 25, and the UCMJ’s core timelines continue to run under the Rules for Courts Martial unless a judge orders otherwise.
Under Rule for Courts Martial 707, the government must generally bring an accused service member to trial within 120 days of preferral of charges or the imposition of pretrial confinement, whichever occurs first. The speedy trial clock under Rule for Courts Martial 707 runs in uninterrupted calendar days and does not automatically pause for weekends, federal holidays, or installation closures unless a military judge grants a delay for good cause.
So, while legal offices may reduce staffing and courts may avoid scheduling full trials over Christmas week, the system itself does not legally shut down.
What Happens to Servicemembers in Pretrial Confinement on Christmas
For service members already in pretrial confinement, Christmas typically looks exactly like any other day behind bars. Pretrial confinement in the military functions much like a civilian jail but is governed by separate legal standards under the UCMJ. A commander may confine a service member before trial only if there is probable cause that an offense was committed, that the accused committed it, and that confinement is necessary to prevent escape, further serious misconduct, or interference with the justice process.
Once ordered into confinement, a neutral officer must review the decision within 48 hours to verify that continued confinement is legally justified. None of that changes because of Christmas. If the review is due on Dec. 25, it still happens.
For confined service members, Christmas typically means a modified meal, limited family phone access depending on facility rules, and few, if any, procedural movements in their case. Judges rarely convene new confinement hearings on Dec. 25 unless constitutional timelines require it, but confinement itself continues uninterrupted.
Why Courts-Martial Rarely Start on Christmas Week
Although the speedy trial clock keeps running, most convening authorities avoid starting contested courts-martial during the Christmas-New Year window unless a deadline is about to expire. The practical reason is staffing. Trial counsel, defense counsel, court reporters, panel members, interpreters, and expert witnesses all rotate through holiday leave cycles.
Judges retain authority to stop the speedy trial clock for specific delays if those delays serve the “interests of justice,” but those pauses must be justified on the record and are subject to appellate review if abused. If the government simply drags its feet because of the holidays, that delay can count against it for dismissal purposes under R.C.M. 707
Put simply, Christmas slows the machinery but it does not legally stop it.
How Speedy Trial Rules Collide With the Holidays
Speedy trial disputes peak in late January for cases that entered confinement or preferral in early fall. Because the 120-day clock continues through Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s, defense counsel often file dismissal motions arguing the government used the holidays improperly to justify delays.
If the government dismisses and later re-prefers charges simply to reset the clock, military judges can treat that as an improper attempt to evade speedy trial protections.
That tension makes the holiday season one of the most legally sensitive periods in the military justice calendar.
Christmas in the Brig: The Emotional Dimension
Beyond procedure, the emotional toll of spending Christmas in pretrial confinement is severe. Service members in confinement remain on active duty, continue receiving pay, and retain the presumption of innocence, but the stigma and isolation are immediate. Legal experts note confinement, even before conviction, can profoundly affect long-term careers.
For many, Christmas becomes a psychological dividing line: before confinement and after confinement. Family visits may be limited by facility space and travel distance. Video calls, when authorized, are often closely supervised. For junior enlisted members, the contrast between holiday time on the outside and detention on base intensifies the sense of irreversible consequence long before any verdict is reached.
Panel Members, Leave, and the Unseen Holiday Disruptions
Even when an accused is not confined, Christmas disrupts courts-martial through the panel system. Unlike civilian juries, court-martial panel members are active duty service members. December brings mass leave blocks, end-of-year training requirements, and PCS movements.
When a trial does begin in December, judges frequently struggle to keep panels intact across holiday breaks. Lost panel members can force reselection, rehearing motions, or even mistrials if the quorum collapses mid-proceeding. Those disruptions can extend cases well into the new year, even though the original trial technically “began” before Christmas.
Christmas Does Not Suspend Military Discipline
Perhaps the most misunderstood aspect of military justice is that discipline continues at full legal force even on Christmas Day. Orders remain lawful. Violations remain punishable. Commanders retain full authority to impose nonjudicial punishment, initiate confinement, or prefer charges on Dec. 25 just as on any other day.
Holiday status may influence discretion, but it does not alter jurisdiction.
That reality surprises many families when arrests, escorts, or duty changes occur on Christmas morning. The military’s commitment to continuous good order and discipline leaves no seasonal exception written into the UCMJ.
Why Christmas Courts-Martial Matter
The collision of Christmas with military justice exposes one of the starkest differences between civilian and military life. In civilian society, Christmas represents pause, closure, and return. In the armed forces, the mission and the law continue uninterrupted.
For servicemembers under investigation, Christmas can mean the difference between a case entering its final resolution window or sliding into months of continued uncertainty. For families, it can be the most isolating day of an already isolating process. For commanders and legal officers, it is one of the few periods of the year when human compassion and procedural obligation sit directly in conflict.
The System After the Decorations Come Down
By early January, court dockets refill, confinement reviews accelerate, and motions delayed for the holiday surge back onto calendars. Cases that drifted through December under reduced staffing often collide in a procedural bottleneck that lasts through February. For many accused servicemembers, the emotional burden of the holiday season inside the justice system lingers long after the legal calendar resets.
Military justice does not observe Christmas in law, only in practice. The consequences of that distinction follow accused service members far beyond the holiday.
