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Learn Your Lawyer · Air Force · Trial Counsel

Rachel S. Lyons

Counsel of record in 31 courts-martial in the Military Trial Results data
(0 as defense counsel, 31 as trial counsel)
Jan 2016 to Sep 2021

31Cases
0As defense counsel
31As trial counsel
17Contested (not guilty or mixed plea)

As Trial Counsel (Prosecuting)

Average Contests Per Year: 3

31Cases
17Contested
35%Acquitted, contested cases (6 of 17)
24%Partial acquittal, contested cases (4 of 17)

Pleas When Prosecuting

  • Guilty1 (3%)
  • Not Guilty14 (45%)
  • Not Reported16 (52%)

Who Decided the Case

  • Judge Alone16 (52%)
  • Enlisted Panel3 (10%)
  • Officer Panel11 (35%)
  • Not Reported1 (3%)

Contested Panel Cases: 14 of 17

  • Enlisted Panel3 of 17
  • Officer Panel11 of 17

Findings When Prosecuting, All Cases

  • Convicted21 (68%)
  • Partial Acquittal4 (13%)
  • Acquitted6 (19%)

Contested Findings (Prosecuting)

Decided ByCasesConvictedPartialAcquitted
Judge Alone3021
Enlisted Panel3003
Officer Panel11722

Sentences When Prosecuting

Enlisted (22 Convictions)

  • BCD7 of 22
  • DD11 of 22
  • No Punitive Discharge4 of 22

Officers and Warrant Officers (3 Convictions)

  • Dismissal3 of 3

No Punitive Discharge

4 of 22 Enlisted Convictions

  • No punitive discharge4 of 22

Member Retained: 0 of 3 Officer Convictions

  • No dismissal0 of 3
82%Punitive discharge, enlisted (18 of 22)
92%Confinement (23 of 25 convictions)
1.2 yrsMedian confinement
16.0 yrsLongest confinement

UCMJ Articles When Prosecuting

ArticleCasesContestedConvictedAcquitted
Art. 134 General article122120
Art. 112a Wrongful use, possession of controlled substances7470
Art. 128 Assault6260
Art. 120b Rape and sexual assault of a child5150
Art. 120 Rape and sexual assault4431
Art. 92 Failure to obey order or regulation4141
Art. 111 (former: Drunken or reckless driving)3130
Art. 121 Larceny3130
Art. 86 AWOL2120
Art. 120c Other sexual misconduct1110
Charges not listed in the record6606

Opposing Counsel, Most Cases

Where

  • Shaw AFB, South Carolina 3
  • JB Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii 2
  • Mountain Home AFB, Idaho 2
  • Kadena AB, Japan 2
  • JB Andrews, Maryland 2
  • Hill AFB, Utah 2
  • Davis-Monthan AFB, Arizona 1
  • Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio 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 Rachael S. Lyons; those cases are counted here.

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