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Learn Your Lawyer · Army · Trial Counsel

Sophia Chua-Rubenfeld

Counsel of record in 17 courts-martial in the Military Trial Results data
(0 as defense counsel, 17 as trial counsel)
Sep 2022 to Oct 2024

17Cases
0As defense counsel
17As trial counsel
8Contested (not guilty or mixed plea)

As Trial Counsel (Prosecuting)

Average Contests Per Year: 3.9

17Cases
8Contested
25%Acquitted, contested cases (2 of 8)
38%Partial acquittal, contested cases (3 of 8)

Pleas When Prosecuting

  • Guilty9 (53%)
  • Not Guilty5 (29%)
  • Mixed Plea2 (12%)
  • Mixed Plea*1 (6%)

Plea Agreements

  • Plea agreement10 (59%)
  • No plea agreement5 (29%)
  • Not reported2 (12%)

Who Decided the Case

  • Judge Alone14 (82%)
  • Enlisted Panel2 (12%)
  • Officer Panel1 (6%)

Contested Panel Cases: 3 of 8

  • Enlisted Panel2 of 8
  • Officer Panel1 of 8

Findings When Prosecuting, All Cases

  • Convicted12 (71%)
  • Partial Acquittal3 (18%)
  • Acquitted2 (12%)

Contested Findings (Prosecuting)

Decided ByCasesConvictedPartialAcquitted
Judge Alone5032
Enlisted Panel2200
Officer Panel1100

Sentences When Prosecuting

Enlisted (15 Convictions)

  • BCD9 of 15
  • DD2 of 15
  • No Punitive Discharge4 of 15

No Punitive Discharge

4 of 15 Enlisted Convictions

  • Plea agreement2 of 4
  • No plea agreement1 of 4
  • Not reported1 of 4
73%Punitive discharge, enlisted (11 of 15)
93%Confinement (14 of 15 convictions)
8 moMedian confinement
36.0 yrsLongest confinement

UCMJ Articles When Prosecuting

ArticleCasesContestedConvictedAcquitted
Art. 120 Rape and sexual assault6333
Art. 120b Rape and sexual assault of a child4240
Art. 134 General article3121
Art. 120c Other sexual misconduct2120
Art. 121 Larceny2120
Art. 128 Assault2211
Art. 108 Military property; loss, damage, destruction1010
Art. 112a Wrongful use, possession of controlled substances1110
Art. 128b Domestic violence1010
Art. 80 Attempts1101

Opposing Counsel, Most Cases

Where

  • Joint Base Lewis-McChord 17

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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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