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Learn Your Lawyer · Army · Defense and Trial Counsel

Michael J. Brown

Counsel of record in 41 courts-martial in the Military Trial Results data
(28 as defense counsel, 13 as trial counsel)
Aug 2020 to Aug 2025

41Cases
28As defense counsel
13As trial counsel
18Contested (not guilty or mixed plea)

As Defense Counsel (Defending)

Average Contests Per Year: 6.7

28Cases
16Contested
12%Acquitted, contested cases (2 of 16)
69%Partial acquittal, contested cases (11 of 16)

Pleas When Defending

  • Guilty12 (43%)
  • Not Guilty13 (46%)
  • Mixed Plea*3 (11%)

Plea Agreements

  • Plea agreement12 (43%)
  • No plea agreement13 (46%)
  • Not reported3 (11%)

Who Decided the Case

  • Judge Alone20 (71%)
  • Enlisted Panel6 (21%)
  • Officer Panel1 (4%)
  • Not Reported1 (4%)

Contested Panel Cases: 7 of 16

  • Enlisted Panel6 of 16
  • Officer Panel1 of 16

Findings When Defending, All Cases

  • Convicted14 (50%)
  • Partial Acquittal11 (39%)
  • Acquitted2 (7%)
  • No Result Posted1 (4%)

Contested Findings (Defending)

Decided ByCasesConvictedPartialAcquitted
Judge Alone8161
Enlisted Panel6150
Officer Panel1100
Not Reported1001

Sentences When Defending

Enlisted (22 Convictions)

  • BCD7 of 22
  • DD6 of 22
  • No Punitive Discharge9 of 22

Officers and Warrant Officers (3 Convictions)

  • Dismissal1 of 3
  • No Dismissal2 of 3

No Punitive Discharge

9 of 22 Enlisted Convictions

  • Plea agreement4 of 9
  • No plea agreement3 of 9
  • Not reported2 of 9

Member Retained: 2 of 3 Officer Convictions

  • Plea agreement0 of 2
  • No plea agreement2 of 2
59%Punitive discharge, enlisted (13 of 22)
84%Confinement (21 of 25 convictions)
6 moMedian confinement
7.0 yrsLongest confinement

UCMJ Articles When Defending

ArticleCasesContestedConvictedAcquitted
Art. 128 Assault141198
Art. 120 Rape and sexual assault11865
Art. 134 General article8472
Art. 92 Failure to obey order or regulation7561
Art. 120b Rape and sexual assault of a child5241
Art. 90 Willfully disobeying superior officer5341
Art. 128b Domestic violence3130
Art. 112a Wrongful use, possession of controlled substances2121
Art. 115 Communicating threats2211
Art. 119b Child endangerment2211
Charges not listed in the record1000

As Trial Counsel (Prosecuting)

Average Contests Per Year: 0.4

13Cases
2Contested
0%Acquitted, contested cases (0 of 2)
100%Partial acquittal, contested cases (2 of 2)

Pleas When Prosecuting

  • Guilty11 (85%)
  • Mixed Plea*2 (15%)

Plea Agreements

  • Plea agreement13 (100%)
  • No plea agreement0 (0%)

Who Decided the Case

  • Judge Alone13 (100%)

Contested Panel Cases: 0 of 2

  • Enlisted Panel0 of 2
  • Officer Panel0 of 2

Findings When Prosecuting, All Cases

  • Convicted11 (85%)
  • Partial Acquittal2 (15%)

Contested Findings (Prosecuting)

Decided ByCasesConvictedPartialAcquitted
Judge Alone2020

Sentences When Prosecuting

Enlisted (11 Convictions)

  • BCD4 of 11
  • DD2 of 11
  • No Punitive Discharge5 of 11

Officers and Warrant Officers (2 Convictions)

  • No Dismissal2 of 2

No Punitive Discharge

5 of 11 Enlisted Convictions

  • Plea agreement5 of 5
  • No plea agreement0 of 5

Member Retained: 2 of 2 Officer Convictions

  • Plea agreement2 of 2
  • No plea agreement0 of 2
55%Punitive discharge, enlisted (6 of 11)
69%Confinement (9 of 13 convictions)
4 moMedian confinement
9.0 yrsLongest confinement

UCMJ Articles When Prosecuting

ArticleCasesContestedConvictedAcquitted
Art. 128 Assault4140
Art. 128b Domestic violence4040
Art. 80 Attempts4141
Art. 131b Obstructing justice3121
Art. 120 Rape and sexual assault1101
Art. 120b Rape and sexual assault of a child1010
Art. 134 General article1010
Art. 92 Failure to obey order or regulation1010

Opposing Counsel, Most Cases

Where

  • Fort Bragg 28
  • Joint Base San Antonio-Fort Sam Houston 9
  • Fort Huachuca 3
  • Fort Meade 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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