How Much Confinement for an Article 120 Conviction in the Air Force?

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Based on 195 cases · 2016–2025 · Air Force records · data updated October 24, 2026

Sentences Were Much Longer Than the Air Force Average

This post covers only Air Force cases that ended in a conviction where Article 120 was among the charges. Sentences in this group were much longer than for Air Force convictions as a whole. The median confinement was 2.7 years, compared with 4 months Air Force-wide. A quarter of sentences here were 6 years or longer.

173 of the 195 convictions included confinement (89%). These are adjudged sentences, as announced at trial before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal. Each one covers every charge in the case.

How Long Were the Sentences?

126 of 195 convictions (65%) were sentenced to more than one year, compared with 23% across Air Force convictions. 37% of this group were sentenced to more than 1 year but under 5 years, compared with 16%. 27% were sentenced to 5 years or more, compared with 7%.

Short sentences were uncommon. 12% of convictions here were sentenced to under 6 months, compared with 48% Air Force-wide. 11% had no confinement, compared with 15%.

Most Enlisted Convictions Included a Dishonorable Discharge

158 of 176 convicted enlisted members (90%) received a bad-conduct or dishonorable discharge, more often than across all Air Force convictions (56%). 141 of those were dishonorable discharges. A dishonorable discharge is the most severe punitive discharge, and only a general court-martial can impose it.

The group includes 19 convicted officers or warrant officers, and 16 of them were dismissed. A dismissal is the officer equivalent of a punitive discharge. A sentence without a punitive discharge does not rule out a later administrative separation.

Most Convictions Followed a Contested Case

105 records list a plea. 81 were contested and 24 were guilty pleas. The contested share was 77%, compared with 31% across all Air Force convictions. A case is contested when the accused pleads not guilty to at least one charge.

Of the 81 contested cases, 46 ended in a partial acquittal (57%): the accused was found not guilty of at least one charge or specification and guilty of another.

Air Force records from 2016 to 2019 rarely list a guilty plea, so the plea counts are based only on the records that list one.

Members Decided Most of These Cases

Members heard 63% of these cases, compared with 28% across Air Force convictions. The records show 72 enlisted panels, 49 officer panels, and 71 cases decided by a military judge alone. Members heard 63 of the 81 contested cases (78%).

The accused usually chooses whether a military judge alone or a panel decides guilt. Most judge-alone cases are guilty pleas, so the split between judge and members follows the number of contested cases.

Court Level and Other Charges

General courts-martial were 96% of these cases (187 of 195). A general court-martial can impose any lawful sentence, including long confinement and a dishonorable discharge. A special court-martial caps confinement at one year.

93 of the 195 cases charged at least one other article. The most common were Article 128 (assault) in 38 cases, Article 134 (the general article) in 29, Article 120b (child sexual abuse) in 17, Article 92 (orders violation) in 15, and Article 120c (indecent recording and exposure) in 12.

Rank, Yearly Counts, and Locations

The group included 114 junior enlisted members, 62 NCOs, and 19 officers. This group is more senior than all Air Force convictions. The cases were tried from January 2016 to November 2025. There were 15 convictions in 2016, 19 in 2017, 33 in 2018, 20 in 2019, and 12 in 2020. There were 20 in 2021, 29 in 2022, 21 in 2023, 14 in 2024, and 12 in 2025.

The installations with the most of these convictions were JBSA - Lackland, Texas (8), Nellis AFB, Nevada (7), Scott AFB, Illinois (7), Hurlburt Field, Florida (7), and Hill AFB, Utah (7). Together they account for 18% of the 195. The rest were tried at many other installations.

Why This Page Has No Acquittal Rate

Air Force records rarely list the charges in a case that ends in a full acquittal. An acquittal rate for a single offense would therefore count too few acquittals, so this page does not give one. This page counts only convictions. It does not show how often Article 120 charges ended without a conviction.

Law Changes and What the Records Do Not Show

The Military Justice Act of 2016 took effect on January 1, 2019. 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. Since December 28, 2023, special trial counsel decide whether to prosecute covered offenses such as sexual assault. These rules depend on offense dates, which the records do not give.

The records also do not show the evidence or the plea terms, and Air Force records never report plea agreements. Allegations handled outside a court-martial 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.