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Learn Your Lawyer · Air Force · Trial Counsel

Christine L. Norton

Counsel of record in 20 courts-martial in the Military Trial Results data
(0 as defense counsel, 20 as trial counsel)
Sep 2016 to Jan 2020

20Cases
0As defense counsel
20As trial counsel
8Contested (not guilty or mixed plea)

As Trial Counsel (Prosecuting)

Average Contests Per Year: 2.4

20Cases
8Contested
50%Acquitted, contested cases (4 of 8)
50%Partial acquittal, contested cases (4 of 8)

Pleas When Prosecuting

  • Not Guilty5 (25%)
  • Not Reported15 (75%)

Who Decided the Case

  • Judge Alone15 (75%)
  • Enlisted Panel3 (15%)
  • Officer Panel2 (10%)

Contested Panel Cases: 5 of 8

  • Enlisted Panel3 of 8
  • Officer Panel2 of 8

Findings When Prosecuting, All Cases

  • Convicted12 (60%)
  • Partial Acquittal4 (20%)
  • Acquitted4 (20%)

Contested Findings (Prosecuting)

Decided ByCasesConvictedPartialAcquitted
Judge Alone3030
Enlisted Panel3003
Officer Panel2011

Sentences When Prosecuting

Enlisted (15 Convictions)

  • BCD2 of 15
  • DD11 of 15
  • No Punitive Discharge2 of 15

Officers and Warrant Officers (1 Conviction)

  • No Dismissal1 of 1

No Punitive Discharge

2 of 15 Enlisted Convictions

  • No punitive discharge2 of 15

Member Retained: 1 of 1 Officer Conviction

  • No dismissal1 of 1
87%Punitive discharge, enlisted (13 of 15)
100%Confinement (16 of 16 convictions)
2.2 yrsMedian confinement
18.0 yrsLongest confinement

UCMJ Articles When Prosecuting

ArticleCasesContestedConvictedAcquitted
Art. 134 General article7270
Art. 120b Rape and sexual assault of a child6360
Art. 128 Assault4140
Art. 92 Failure to obey order or regulation4040
Art. 112a Wrongful use, possession of controlled substances2020
Art. 107 False official statements1010
Art. 109 Property other than military; waste, spoilage, destruction1010
Art. 118 Murder1110
Art. 120 Rape and sexual assault1010
Art. 121 Larceny1010
Charges not listed in the record4404

Opposing Counsel, Most Cases

Where

  • RAF Mildenhall, United Kingdom 3
  • Aviano AB, Italy 2
  • Spangdahlem AB, Germany 2
  • RAF Lakenheath, United Kingdom 2
  • Mountain Home AFB, Idaho 1
  • JB Lewis-McChord, Washington 1
  • Hurlburt Field, Florida 1
  • JB Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii 1

More Air Force Lawyers

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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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