Larceny at Air Force Courts-Martial, 2024: The Year in Numbers

Trends › By Offense › Article 121 › Air Force, 2024

Based on 16 cases · 2024 · Air Force records · data updated October 24, 2026

Most Accused Pleaded Guilty

15 of the 16 records list the plea. 12 were guilty pleas and 3 were not-guilty or mixed pleas. A not-guilty or mixed plea makes a case contested. The contested share was 20%, compared with 45% across all Air Force cases in 2024.

Few Cases Went to Members

A military judge alone decided 14 of the cases. Members decided 2, both with enlisted panels, which is 12% of the cases with the forum listed. There were 0 officer panels. The accused usually chooses between a military judge alone and members.

Short Terms of Confinement

10 of 15 convictions included confinement. The median term was 3 months, and a quarter of the terms were 6 months or longer. Across all Air Force cases in 2024, the median was 5 months.

These are adjudged sentences. They are the terms announced at trial, before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal, and they cover every charge in the case.

Every Discharge Was a Bad-Conduct Discharge

10 of 14 convicted enlisted members received a punitive discharge. All 10 were bad-conduct discharges, and 0 were dishonorable. Across all Air Force cases in 2024, 62% of convicted enlisted members received a punitive discharge.

The 1 convicted officer or warrant officer was not dismissed. A sentence without a punitive discharge does not rule out a later administrative separation.

Court Level and Rank

General courts-martial made up 31% of these cases (5 of 16), and special courts-martial made up the rest. A special court-martial caps confinement at one year and cannot impose a dishonorable discharge.

Junior enlisted members (E-1 to E-4) were 62% of the accused, NCOs 31%, and officers 6%. Across all Air Force cases in 2024, junior enlisted members were 54%.

Other Charges

Article 121 was the only charge in 8 of the 16 cases. Article 128 (assault), Article 128b (domestic violence), and Article 124 (frauds against the United States) were each added in 2. Article 134 (general article) and Article 121a (fraudulent use of credit cards, debit cards) were each added in 1.

Law Changes and Limits

When every guilty finding in a case is for an offense after December 27, 2023, the military judge sets the sentence within new sentencing parameters. That rule turns on the offense date, which the records do not give, so 2024 trials mix cases under old and new rules.

Air Force records rarely list the charges in a full acquittal, so no acquittal rate is given, and they never report plea agreements. The evidence and cases handled outside a court-martial are not in the records.

For what the offense covers and how it is defended, see Article 121 on the law firm's website. Dates and sources for the law changes: UCMJ change timeline.

Compare: federal court. Theft and Fraud: 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.