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Learn Your Lawyer · Army · Defense and Trial Counsel

Alana B. Goycochea

Counsel of record in 22 courts-martial in the Military Trial Results data
(20 as defense counsel, 2 as trial counsel)
Nov 2022 to May 2026

22Cases
20As defense counsel
2As trial counsel
11Contested (not guilty or mixed plea)

As Defense Counsel (Defending)

Average Contests Per Year: 3.6

20Cases
9Contested
33%Acquitted, contested cases (3 of 9)
44%Partial acquittal, contested cases (4 of 9)

Pleas When Defending

  • Guilty11 (55%)
  • Not Guilty6 (30%)
  • Mixed Plea2 (10%)
  • Mixed Plea*1 (5%)

Plea Agreements

  • Plea agreement11 (55%)
  • No plea agreement6 (30%)
  • Not reported3 (15%)

Who Decided the Case

  • Judge Alone12 (60%)
  • Enlisted Panel5 (25%)
  • Officer Panel3 (15%)

Contested Panel Cases: 8 of 9

  • Enlisted Panel5 of 9
  • Officer Panel3 of 9

Findings When Defending, All Cases

  • Convicted13 (65%)
  • Partial Acquittal4 (20%)
  • Acquitted3 (15%)

Contested Findings (Defending)

Decided ByCasesConvictedPartialAcquitted
Judge Alone1100
Enlisted Panel5122
Officer Panel3021

Sentences When Defending

Enlisted (16 Convictions)

  • BCD7 of 16
  • DD5 of 16
  • No Punitive Discharge4 of 16

Officers and Warrant Officers (1 Conviction)

  • No Dismissal1 of 1

No Punitive Discharge

4 of 16 Enlisted Convictions

  • Plea agreement2 of 4
  • No plea agreement1 of 4
  • Not reported1 of 4

Member Retained: 1 of 1 Officer Conviction

  • Plea agreement0 of 1
  • No plea agreement1 of 1
75%Punitive discharge, enlisted (12 of 16)
94%Confinement (16 of 17 convictions)
8 moMedian confinement
3.0 yrsLongest confinement

UCMJ Articles When Defending

ArticleCasesContestedConvictedAcquitted
Art. 80 Attempts6352
Art. 128b Domestic violence5342
Art. 128 Assault4341
Art. 115 Communicating threats2211
Art. 120b Rape and sexual assault of a child2121
Art. 134 General article2020
Art. 92 Failure to obey order or regulation2020
Art. 107 False official statements1010
Art. 112a Wrongful use, possession of controlled substances1010
Art. 113 Drunken or reckless operation of vehicle1101

As Trial Counsel (Prosecuting)

Average Contests Per Year: 2

2Cases
2Contested
0%Acquitted, contested cases (0 of 2)
100%Partial acquittal, contested cases (2 of 2)

Pleas When Prosecuting

  • Not Guilty1 (50%)
  • Mixed Plea1 (50%)

Plea Agreements

  • Plea agreement0 (0%)
  • No plea agreement1 (50%)
  • Not reported1 (50%)

Who Decided the Case

  • Judge Alone1 (50%)
  • Enlisted Panel1 (50%)

Contested Panel Cases: 1 of 2

  • Enlisted Panel1 of 2
  • Officer Panel0 of 2

Findings When Prosecuting, All Cases

  • Partial Acquittal2 (100%)

Contested Findings (Prosecuting)

Decided ByCasesConvictedPartialAcquitted
Judge Alone1010
Enlisted Panel1010

Sentences When Prosecuting

Enlisted (1 Conviction)

  • DD1 of 1

Officers and Warrant Officers (1 Conviction)

  • No Dismissal1 of 1

No Punitive Discharge

0 of 1 Enlisted Conviction

  • No punitive discharge0 of 1

Member Retained: 1 of 1 Officer Conviction

  • Plea agreement0 of 1
  • No plea agreement0 of 1
  • Not reported1 of 1
100%Punitive discharge, enlisted (1 of 1)
50%Confinement (1 of 2 convictions)
2.7 yrsMedian confinement
2.7 yrsLongest confinement

UCMJ Articles When Prosecuting

ArticleCasesContestedConvictedAcquitted
Art. 120 Rape and sexual assault1111
Art. 133 Conduct unbecoming an officer1101
Art. 134 General article1101
Art. 86 AWOL1110
Art. 90 Willfully disobeying superior officer1110
Art. 92 Failure to obey order or regulation1101

Opposing Counsel, Most Cases

Where

  • Wheeler Army Airfield 19
  • Fort Hood 2
  • Camp Humphreys 1

More Army Lawyers

Know Your Judge

Counsel of record means this lawyer is listed as defense counsel or trial counsel in the public record of the case. Most cases list more than one lawyer on each side, and the records do not say who led or who argued, so the numbers describe cases this lawyer was counsel on, not individual wins or losses. Pages cover military counsel only; civilian counsel appear in lists by name. Percentages are shown for every count, however small, so check the number of cases behind each one. The Army records say whether there was a plea agreement, not what it said; Air Force records do not report plea agreements, and many Air Force records from 2016 to 2020 do not list the plea. In the article tables one case counts under each article charged, and Air Force records rarely list the charges in cases that ended in acquittal (those show as Charges not listed in the record). Member Retained means the sentence did not include a punitive discharge; it does not rule out a later administrative separation. Mixed Plea* means the record lists a guilty plea but the case ended in a partial acquittal, so at least one charge was contested (a mixed plea, or a guilty plea to a lesser offense). Contested cases are those with a not guilty or mixed plea, plus any case that ended in an acquittal or partial acquittal even when the record does not list the plea.

Source: public records of trial published by each service under Article 140a, UCMJ, as collected for the Military Trial Results page (data updated October 29, 2026). Counts reflect only the cases in this data and may be incomplete. Names are shown as published in the source records.

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