How Air Force Domestic Violence Cases Ended in 2023
In 2023, 22 Air Force courts-martial charged Article 128b (domestic violence). The median confinement was 6 months, close to the 5 months for all Air Force cases in 2023, and 45% of the cases were contested, compared with 53%.
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Trends › By Offense › Article 128b › Air Force, 2023
Short answer: In 2023, 22 Air Force courts-martial charged Article 128b (domestic violence). The median confinement was 6 months, close to the 5 months for all Air Force cases in 2023, and 45% of the cases were contested, compared with 53%. 64% of convicted enlisted members received a punitive discharge, compared with 58%.
Confinement Close to the Air Force Median
20 of the 22 sentences included confinement (91%). The median was 6 months, close to the 5-month median for all Air Force cases in 2023. A quarter of the terms were 2.5 years or longer.
Each of these is an adjudged sentence: what the court imposed at trial, before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal. It covers every charge in the case.
Sentence Lengths by Band
Under 6 months was the most common band, with 8 convictions (36%), compared with 49% Air Force-wide. 5 convictions (23%) were sentenced to 6 months to 1 year, and 7 (32%) to more than 1 year but under 5 years. 0 were sentenced to 5 years or more, and 2 (9%) had no confinement.
7 of 22 convictions (32%) were sentenced to more than one year, compared with 23% of all Air Force cases in 2023.
| Adjudged confinement | Convictions | Share here | Share, all Air Force cases in 2023 |
|---|---|---|---|
| No confinement | 2 | 9% | 9% |
| Under 6 months | 8 | 36% | 49% |
| 6 months to 1 year | 5 | 23% | 18% |
| More than 1 year, under 5 years | 7 | 32% | 21% |
| 5 years or more | 0 | 0% | 3% |
Pleas and Partial Acquittals
12 accused pleaded guilty and 10 entered a not-guilty or mixed plea, which makes a case contested. The contested share was 45%, compared with 53% across all Air Force cases in 2023.
6 of the 10 contested cases (60%) ended in a partial acquittal: not guilty of at least one charge or specification, but guilty of another.
Members Heard Most Contested Cases
A military judge alone decided 14 cases. Enlisted panels decided 7 and an officer panel decided 1. Members heard 36% of all the cases, compared with 40% Air Force-wide, but 8 of the 10 contested cases (80%). The accused usually chooses between a military judge alone and members.
Discharges
14 of 22 convicted enlisted members (64%) received a bad-conduct or dishonorable discharge, and 5 of those were dishonorable. Across all Air Force cases in 2023, the rate was 58%. Without a punitive discharge, a member can still be separated later by administrative action.
Other Charges in These Cases
Article 128b was the only charge in 6 of the 22 cases. Article 115 (communicating threats) was added in 6. Article 134 (general article) was added in 4, and Article 90 (disobeying an officer), Article 120 (sexual assault), and Article 128 (assault) in 3 each.
Rank, Court Level, and Installations
The accused were 15 junior enlisted members (E-1 to E-4) and 7 NCOs (E-5 to E-9), with 0 officers or warrant officers. Across all Air Force cases in 2023, 62% were junior enlisted, so this group was more junior. 13 of the 22 cases were general courts-martial (59%), the same share as Air Force-wide.
Minot AFB, North Dakota, Offutt AFB, Nebraska, and JB Andrews, Maryland, each tried 2 cases. Scott AFB, Illinois, and Tinker AFB, Oklahoma, each tried 1. These five account for 36% of the 22 cases.
A Newer Article and Gaps in the Records
Article 128b covers offenses on or after January 1, 2019. Earlier conduct of this kind was charged under other articles. The records give trial dates, not offense dates.
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 allegations handled outside a court-martial are not in the records.
For what the offense covers and how it is defended, see Article 128b on the law firm's website. Dates and sources for the law changes: UCMJ change timeline.
How We Counted
Air Force courts-martial with a trial date in 2023 that charged Article 128b (22 cases), compared with all Air Force cases that year and with 2022.
Source: public court-martial records (Article 140a, UCMJ) in Military Trial Results, data updated October 24, 2026. Definitions, sources, and known gaps: how this data was built. Errors: content@bodiesburied.com.
Related Analysis
- Article 128b (Domestic Violence, Numbered Since 2019): Court-Martial Data and Trends (hub)
- By Year (hub)
- Domestic Violence at Air Force Courts-Martial, 2024: The Year in Numbers (previous / next)
- Air Force Article 128b Cases by the Numbers, 2016–2025 (the full trend)
- Domestic Violence at Air Force Courts-Martial, 2025: The Year in Numbers
- Army Article 128b Cases in 2022
- Domestic Violence at Army Courts-Martial, 2021: The Year in Numbers
- Domestic Violence at Army Courts-Martial, 2025: The Year in Numbers
- Article 128b Sentences in the Air Force: Confinement and Discharges, 2016–2025
- Article 128b explained on the law firm's website
- Search every case in Military Trial Results (members)
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.