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Learn Your Lawyer · Air Force · Defense and Trial Counsel

William P. Breslin

Counsel of record in 20 courts-martial in the Military Trial Results data
(17 as defense counsel, 3 as trial counsel)
Apr 2016 to Jun 2018

20Cases
17As defense counsel
3As trial counsel
12Contested (not guilty or mixed plea)

As Defense Counsel (Defending)

Average Contests Per Year: 5.6

17Cases
10Contested
40%Acquitted, contested cases (4 of 10)
10%Partial acquittal, contested cases (1 of 10)

Pleas When Defending

  • Not Guilty9 (53%)
  • Not Reported8 (47%)

Who Decided the Case

  • Judge Alone8 (47%)
  • Enlisted Panel2 (12%)
  • Officer Panel7 (41%)

Contested Panel Cases: 9 of 10

  • Enlisted Panel2 of 10
  • Officer Panel7 of 10

Findings When Defending, All Cases

  • Convicted12 (71%)
  • Partial Acquittal1 (6%)
  • Acquitted4 (24%)

Contested Findings (Defending)

Decided ByCasesConvictedPartialAcquitted
Judge Alone1010
Enlisted Panel2101
Officer Panel7403

Sentences When Defending

Enlisted (12 Convictions)

  • BCD8 of 12
  • No Punitive Discharge4 of 12

Officers and Warrant Officers (1 Conviction)

  • No Dismissal1 of 1

No Punitive Discharge

4 of 12 Enlisted Convictions

  • No punitive discharge4 of 12

Member Retained: 1 of 1 Officer Conviction

  • No dismissal1 of 1
67%Punitive discharge, enlisted (8 of 12)
77%Confinement (10 of 13 convictions)
4 moMedian confinement
2.1 yrsLongest confinement

UCMJ Articles When Defending

ArticleCasesContestedConvictedAcquitted
Art. 112a Wrongful use, possession of controlled substances8380
Art. 134 General article5250
Art. 107 False official statements1110
Art. 111 (former: Drunken or reckless driving)1010
Art. 121 Larceny1010
Art. 128 Assault1110
Art. 86 AWOL1010
Charges not listed in the record4404

As Trial Counsel (Prosecuting)

Average Contests Per Year: 2

3Cases
2Contested
50%Acquitted, contested cases (1 of 2)
—Partial acquittal, contested cases (none)

Pleas When Prosecuting

  • Not Guilty2 (67%)
  • Not Reported1 (33%)

Who Decided the Case

  • Judge Alone1 (33%)
  • Enlisted Panel2 (67%)

Contested Panel Cases: 2 of 2

  • Enlisted Panel2 of 2
  • Officer Panel0 of 2

Findings When Prosecuting, All Cases

  • Convicted2 (67%)
  • Acquitted1 (33%)

Contested Findings (Prosecuting)

Decided ByCasesConvictedPartialAcquitted
Enlisted Panel2101

Sentences When Prosecuting

Enlisted (2 Convictions)

  • BCD1 of 2
  • No Punitive Discharge1 of 2

No Punitive Discharge

1 of 2 Enlisted Convictions

  • No punitive discharge1 of 2
50%Punitive discharge, enlisted (1 of 2)
100%Confinement (2 of 2 convictions)
3.0 yrsMedian confinement
6.0 yrsLongest confinement

UCMJ Articles When Prosecuting

ArticleCasesContestedConvictedAcquitted
Art. 120 Rape and sexual assault1110
Art. 128 Assault1010
Art. 134 General article1010
Charges not listed in the record1101

Opposing Counsel, Most Cases

Where

  • Edwards AFB, California 4
  • Nellis AFB, Nevada 4
  • Scott AFB, Illinois 3
  • Luke AFB, Arizona 2
  • Los Angeles Garrison, California 1
  • Beale AFB, California 1
  • Mountain Home AFB, Idaho 1
  • JB Lewis-McChord, Washington 1

More Air Force 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. The records also write this name as William Breslin, William Nmi Breslin; those cases are counted here.

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