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Learn Your Lawyer · Air Force · Defense and Trial Counsel

Joshua F. Joyce

Counsel of record in 39 courts-martial in the Military Trial Results data
(16 as defense counsel, 23 as trial counsel)
Jul 2016 to Apr 2026

39Cases
16As defense counsel
23As trial counsel
19Contested (not guilty or mixed plea)

As Defense Counsel (Defending)*

Average Contests Per Year: 0.7

16Cases
6Contested
67%Acquitted, contested cases (4 of 6)
—Partial acquittal, contested cases (none)

* Lawyer contacted site on 10/30/2026 to report absence of data. Site reflects available public data. Air Force data reports partial acquittals as convictions, and site continues to seek available data from appellate records and OCR of Results of Trial.

Pleas When Defending

  • Guilty1 (6%)
  • Not Guilty3 (19%)
  • Not Reported12 (75%)

Who Decided the Case

  • Judge Alone12 (75%)
  • Enlisted Panel1 (6%)
  • Officer Panel2 (12%)
  • Not Reported1 (6%)

Contested Panel Cases: 3 of 6

  • Enlisted Panel1 of 6
  • Officer Panel2 of 6

Findings When Defending, All Cases

  • Convicted12 (75%)
  • Acquitted4 (25%)

Contested Findings (Defending)

Decided ByCasesConvictedPartialAcquitted
Judge Alone3003
Enlisted Panel1001
Officer Panel2200

Sentences When Defending

Enlisted (12 Convictions)

  • BCD5 of 12
  • DD2 of 12
  • No Punitive Discharge5 of 12

No Punitive Discharge

5 of 12 Enlisted Convictions

  • No punitive discharge5 of 12
58%Punitive discharge, enlisted (7 of 12)
83%Confinement (10 of 12 convictions)
4 moMedian confinement
7.0 yrsLongest confinement

UCMJ Articles When Defending

ArticleCasesContestedConvictedAcquitted
Art. 112a Wrongful use, possession of controlled substances6160
Art. 134 General article2020
Art. 92 Failure to obey order or regulation2020
Art. 111 (former: Drunken or reckless driving)1110
Art. 120 Rape and sexual assault1010
Art. 120b Rape and sexual assault of a child1010
Art. 128 Assault1010
Art. 82 Soliciting1010
Art. 86 AWOL1110
Charges not listed in the record4404

As Trial Counsel (Prosecuting)

Average Contests Per Year: 1.9

23Cases
13Contested
62%Acquitted, contested cases (8 of 13)
8%Partial acquittal, contested cases (1 of 13)

Pleas When Prosecuting

  • Guilty7 (30%)
  • Not Guilty10 (43%)
  • Not Reported6 (26%)

Who Decided the Case

  • Judge Alone15 (65%)
  • Enlisted Panel6 (26%)
  • Officer Panel2 (9%)

Contested Panel Cases: 8 of 13

  • Enlisted Panel6 of 13
  • Officer Panel2 of 13

Findings When Prosecuting, All Cases

  • Convicted14 (61%)
  • Partial Acquittal1 (4%)
  • Acquitted8 (35%)

Contested Findings (Prosecuting)

Decided ByCasesConvictedPartialAcquitted
Judge Alone5113
Enlisted Panel6204
Officer Panel2101

Sentences When Prosecuting

Enlisted (14 Convictions)

  • BCD6 of 14
  • DD4 of 14
  • No Punitive Discharge4 of 14

Officers and Warrant Officers (1 Conviction)

  • Dismissal1 of 1

No Punitive Discharge

4 of 14 Enlisted Convictions

  • No punitive discharge4 of 14

Member Retained: 0 of 1 Officer Conviction

  • No dismissal0 of 1
71%Punitive discharge, enlisted (10 of 14)
93%Confinement (14 of 15 convictions)
12 moMedian confinement
12.0 yrsLongest confinement

UCMJ Articles When Prosecuting

ArticleCasesContestedConvictedAcquitted
Art. 134 General article7470
Art. 112a Wrongful use, possession of controlled substances4241
Art. 128 Assault4140
Art. 120b Rape and sexual assault of a child3130
Art. 92 Failure to obey order or regulation3030
Art. 131b Obstructing justice2120
Art. 86 AWOL2120
Art. 107 False official statements1010
Art. 113 Drunken or reckless operation of vehicle1110
Art. 115 Communicating threats1110
Charges not listed in the record8808

Where

  • Shaw AFB, South Carolina 14
  • JB Langley-Eustis, Virginia 6
  • Scott AFB, Illinois 2
  • Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio 2
  • Tinker AFB, Oklahoma 2
  • Eglin AFB, Florida 1
  • Davis-Monthan AFB, Arizona 1
  • Hurlburt Field, Florida 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. The records also write this name as Joshua Francis Joyce, Joshua Joyce; those cases are counted here.

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