Air Force Article 120 Cases in 2018

Trends › By Offense › Article 120 › Air Force, 2018

Based on 34 cases · 2018 · Air Force records · data updated October 24, 2026

Confinement Was Measured in Years

29 of the 34 sentences included confinement (85%). The median confinement was 3.2 years. The median for all Air Force courts-martial that year was 4 months. A quarter of the sentences were 7 years or longer, and 1 was a life sentence.

These are adjudged sentences: the punishment announced at trial, before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal. Each covers every charge in the case. A sentence in a case with other offenses includes punishment for all of them.

How Long Were the Sentences?

24 of 34 convictions (71%) were sentenced to more than one year, compared with 20% for all Air Force cases. 15 convictions (44%) were sentenced to between 1 and 5 years. 9 (26%) were sentenced to 5 years or more, compared with 8% across the Air Force.

Only 1 conviction (3%) was sentenced to under 6 months, compared with 48% Air Force-wide. 4 (12%) were sentenced to 6 months to 1 year. 5 convictions (15%) had no confinement, close to the 18% across the Air Force.

Every Case Was a General Court-Martial

A general court-martial can impose any lawful sentence, including long confinement, a dishonorable discharge, or dismissal. A special court-martial caps confinement at one year and cannot impose a dishonorable discharge. In 2018, 100% of these Article 120 cases were general courts-martial, compared with 95% in 2017.

Only a general court-martial can adjudge more than one year of confinement. All of the sentences longer than one year described above were therefore adjudged by general courts-martial.

Almost Every Enlisted Conviction Included a Punitive Discharge

A punitive discharge is a bad-conduct or dishonorable discharge for enlisted members and a dismissal for officers. 28 of 29 convicted enlisted members received one. 24 of those were dishonorable discharges, the most severe type, and 4 were bad-conduct discharges.

All 5 convicted officers or warrant officers were dismissed. Across all Air Force cases in 2018, 58% of convicted enlisted members received a punitive discharge.

A sentence without a punitive discharge does not rule out a later administrative separation. For this offense in 2018, only 1 convicted enlisted member was sentenced without a punitive discharge.

How 2018 Compared With 2017

There were 21 cases in 2017 and 34 in 2018. The median confinement was 3 years in 2017 and 3.2 years in 2018. The share of convictions with confinement was 95% in 2017 and 85% in 2018. Punitive discharges for enlisted members were 100% in 2017 and 97% in 2018. In groups this small, a few cases can change every figure.

Members Decided Most Cases

The accused usually chooses whether a military judge alone or a panel of members decides guilt. Members heard 22 of 31 cases with the forum listed: 15 officer panels and 7 enlisted panels. A military judge alone decided 9 cases (29%).

Air Force records from 2016 to 2019 rarely list a guilty plea, so the number of contested cases in 2018 cannot be measured from these records.

Rank of the Accused and Other Charges

The 34 accused were 15 junior enlisted members, 14 NCOs, and 5 officers. This group is more senior than all Air Force cases in 2018.

In 17 of the 34 cases, at least one other article was charged with Article 120. The most common were Article 128 (assault) in 6 cases, Article 134 (general article) and Article 120b (child sexual abuse) in 5 each, Article 120c (indecent recording and exposure) in 3, and Article 92 (orders violation) in 2.

JBSA - Lackland, Texas, tried 5 cases and Tyndall AFB, Florida, tried 3. Osan AB, South Korea, Barksdale AFB, Louisiana, and Minot AFB, North Dakota, each tried 2. Together they had 41% of the total. Larger installations try more cases of every kind.

Before the 2019 Changes

These trials were held before the Military Justice Act of 2016 took effect on January 1, 2019. Its fixed panel sizes, judge-alone special courts-martial, and written plea agreements did not apply. Article 120 was rewritten in 2012 and amended again for offenses on or after January 1, 2019. Each case is charged under the version in force when the offense happened.

Air Force records rarely list the charges in a case that ends in a full acquittal, so this page gives no acquittal rate. The records give no offense dates, do not describe the evidence, and never report plea agreements. Allegations handled by administrative separation, nonjudicial punishment, or no action do not appear.

For what the offense covers and how it is defended, see Article 120 on the law firm's website. Dates and sources for the law changes: UCMJ change timeline.

Compare: federal court. Sexual Abuse of an Adult: Federal Sentences vs. Air Force Courts-Martial, 2016–2025

About the author. Jocelyn C. Stewart is a retired Army JAG with more than 24 years of trying courts-martial and more than 200 jury trials. She hosts Where All The Bodies Are Buried and runs the Law Office of Jocelyn C. Stewart. This analysis is for education and information only. It is not legal advice, and every case is different.