The Defense Services Organization, Hawaii Branch office is located on the 2nd Deck, Room 217, of Building 215, next to the Base flag pole. Walk-in counseling hours are Tuesday and Thursday from 1300 to 1500 on a first-come, first-served basis. Exceptions to this rule will be addressed on a case-by-case basis. Commands and/or servicemembers may contact the branch office to request alternative meeting times when extenuating circumstances prevent servicemembers from attending regular walk-in hours.
During walk-in counselings, defense attorneys provide confidential and privileged legal information to Marines and Sailors facing non-punitive or administrative corrective actions, such as nonjudicial punishment, summary courts-martial, “fast track” disposition packages, adverse entries into their service record books, notifications of initiation of administrative separation processing, or other similar administrative procedures. Attorneys also provide privileged and confidential legal information to Marines and Sailors who have elected to speak with a defense counsel after having been advised of their Article 31(b) rights.
Unless the defense attorney has been authorized to form an attorney-client relationship with the accused, a defense attorney will not advise the Marine or Sailor being counseled to accept or refuse nonjudicial punishment/summary court-martial, to request an administrative board, or whether or not to make a statement to investigators. To allow the Marine or Sailor to make an independent decision, the defense attorney will, based on the information provided, present the risks and benefits of either accepting or refusing nonjudicial punishment/summary court-martial, requesting an administrative board, or making a statement to investigators.
Before a defense attorney will provide walk-in counseling, the Command must provide copies of the relevant paperwork for the attorney to review. This includes the charge sheet for servicemembers facing a court-martial; administrative separation notification or similar documents; pages 11 and 12 of the Service Record Book; Command Investigations and/or Preliminary Inquiries; etc.. Commands may provide the necessary documents directly to the Defense Services Organization or by providing a copy to the servicemember seeking defense services.
Telephone: 808-496-7088 Email: Hawaii_Defense_Services@usmc.mil
The charge sheet, administrative separation notification or similar documents; pages 11 and 12 of the Service Record Book; and a summary of the evidence that will be used at the hearing, if applicable, must be provided before a defense counsel will be made available to provide walk-in counseling – whether done in-person or remotely. If a Marine or Sailor comes in for walk-in counseling and does not have these materials, a member of the DSO may contact the command in order to obtain those documents. Without these required materials, the SDC or Defense Trial Team Leader may determine that the individual Marine can not be adequately counseled. Please see CDC PM 2-13 for further guidance.