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Learn Your Lawyer · Army · Defense Counsel

Cody E. Harnish

Counsel of record in 15 courts-martial in the Military Trial Results data
(15 as defense counsel, 0 as trial counsel)
Oct 2020 to Apr 2026

15Cases
15As defense counsel
0As trial counsel
7Contested (not guilty or mixed plea)

As Defense Counsel (Defending)

Average Contests Per Year: 1.3

15Cases
7Contested
29%Acquitted, contested cases (2 of 7)
57%Partial acquittal, contested cases (4 of 7)

Pleas When Defending

  • Guilty8 (53%)
  • Not Guilty6 (40%)
  • Mixed Plea*1 (7%)

Plea Agreements

  • Plea agreement7 (47%)
  • No plea agreement6 (40%)
  • Not reported2 (13%)

Who Decided the Case

  • Judge Alone9 (60%)
  • Enlisted Panel6 (40%)

Contested Panel Cases: 6 of 7

  • Enlisted Panel6 of 7
  • Officer Panel0 of 7

Findings When Defending, All Cases

  • Convicted8 (53%)
  • Partial Acquittal4 (27%)
  • Acquitted2 (13%)
  • No Result Posted1 (7%)

Contested Findings (Defending)

Decided ByCasesConvictedPartialAcquitted
Judge Alone1100
Enlisted Panel6042

Sentences When Defending

Enlisted (12 Convictions)

  • BCD8 of 12
  • DD2 of 12
  • No Punitive Discharge2 of 12

No Punitive Discharge

2 of 12 Enlisted Convictions

  • Plea agreement1 of 2
  • No plea agreement1 of 2
83%Punitive discharge, enlisted (10 of 12)
92%Confinement (11 of 12 convictions)
8 moMedian confinement
10.0 yrsLongest confinement

UCMJ Articles When Defending

ArticleCasesContestedConvictedAcquitted
Art. 128 Assault6251
Art. 120 Rape and sexual assault5525
Art. 134 General article3232
Art. 128b Domestic violence2020
Art. 90 Willfully disobeying superior officer2020
Art. 92 Failure to obey order or regulation2120
Art. 113 Drunken or reckless operation of vehicle1010
Art. 115 Communicating threats1010
Art. 120b Rape and sexual assault of a child1111
Art. 120c Other sexual misconduct1101
Charges not listed in the record1000

Opposing Counsel, Most Cases

Where

  • Joint Base Lewis-McChord 12
  • Fort Campbell 2
  • Fort Sill 1

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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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