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Learn Your Lawyer · Army · Defense and Trial Counsel

Robert H. Smith

Counsel of record in 16 courts-martial in the Military Trial Results data
(1 as defense counsel, 15 as trial counsel)
Mar 2023 to Mar 2025

16Cases
1As defense counsel
15As trial counsel
3Contested (not guilty or mixed plea)

As Defense Counsel (Defending)

Average Contests Per Year: 0

1Cases
0Contested
—Acquitted, contested cases (none)
—Partial acquittal, contested cases (none)

Pleas When Defending

  • Guilty1 (100%)

Plea Agreements

  • Plea agreement1 (100%)
  • No plea agreement0 (0%)

Who Decided the Case

  • Judge Alone1 (100%)

Findings When Defending, All Cases

  • Convicted1 (100%)

Contested Findings (Defending)

No contested cases

Sentences When Defending

Enlisted (1 Conviction)

  • DD1 of 1

No Punitive Discharge

0 of 1 Enlisted Conviction

  • No punitive discharge0 of 1
100%Punitive discharge, enlisted (1 of 1)
100%Confinement (1 of 1 convictions)
31.0 yrsMedian confinement
31.0 yrsLongest confinement

UCMJ Articles When Defending

ArticleCasesContestedConvictedAcquitted
Art. 120b Rape and sexual assault of a child1010
Art. 127 Extortion1010
Art. 134 General article1010
Art. 80 Attempts1010
Art. 85 Desertion1010

As Trial Counsel (Prosecuting)

Average Contests Per Year: 1.5

15Cases
3Contested
0%Acquitted, contested cases (0 of 3)
67%Partial acquittal, contested cases (2 of 3)

Pleas When Prosecuting

  • Guilty12 (80%)
  • Not Guilty2 (13%)
  • Mixed Plea*1 (7%)

Plea Agreements

  • Plea agreement12 (80%)
  • No plea agreement2 (13%)
  • Not reported1 (7%)

Who Decided the Case

  • Judge Alone14 (93%)
  • Officer Panel1 (7%)

Contested Panel Cases: 1 of 3

  • Enlisted Panel0 of 3
  • Officer Panel1 of 3

Findings When Prosecuting, All Cases

  • Convicted13 (87%)
  • Partial Acquittal2 (13%)

Contested Findings (Prosecuting)

Decided ByCasesConvictedPartialAcquitted
Judge Alone2110
Officer Panel1010

Sentences When Prosecuting

Enlisted (13 Convictions)

  • BCD8 of 13
  • No Punitive Discharge5 of 13

Officers and Warrant Officers (2 Convictions)

  • Dismissal1 of 2
  • No Dismissal1 of 2

No Punitive Discharge

5 of 13 Enlisted Convictions

  • Plea agreement5 of 5
  • No plea agreement0 of 5

Member Retained: 1 of 2 Officer Convictions

  • Plea agreement0 of 1
  • No plea agreement1 of 1
62%Punitive discharge, enlisted (8 of 13)
87%Confinement (13 of 15 convictions)
2 moMedian confinement
10 moLongest confinement

UCMJ Articles When Prosecuting

ArticleCasesContestedConvictedAcquitted
Art. 134 General article7270
Art. 128 Assault6060
Art. 128b Domestic violence3221
Art. 112a Wrongful use, possession of controlled substances2020
Art. 119b Child endangerment2111
Art. 107 False official statements1010
Art. 109 Property other than military; waste, spoilage, destruction1010
Art. 115 Communicating threats1010
Art. 117a Wrongful broadcast of intimate visual images1010
Art. 121 Larceny1010

Opposing Counsel, Most Cases

Where

  • Fort Leonard Wood 16

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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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