General Article at Air Force Courts-Martial, 2020: The Year in Numbers
The Air Force tried 40 courts-martial charging Article 134 (general article) in 2020. Of those with a recorded plea, 33% were contested, compared with 48% for all Air Force cases.
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Trends › By Offense › Article 134 › Air Force, 2020
Short answer: The Air Force tried 40 courts-martial charging Article 134 (general article) in 2020. Of those with a recorded plea, 33% were contested, compared with 48% for all Air Force cases. The median confinement was 10 months, compared with 4 months service-wide, and 16 of 40 convictions (40%) included more than one year.
Most Recorded Pleas Were Guilty Pleas
Air Force records list pleas more often from 2020 on. Before then, they rarely noted a guilty plea. Of the 40 general article cases, 33 list the plea: 22 guilty pleas and 11 not-guilty or mixed pleas. A case is contested when the accused pleads not guilty to at least one charge.
The contested share was 33%, lower than the 48% for all Air Force cases in 2020. These cases were contested less often than the typical Air Force case.
Of the 11 contested cases, 7 ended in a partial acquittal (64%): the accused was found not guilty of at least one charge or specification and guilty of another.
Military Judges and Panels
The accused usually chooses whether a military judge alone or a panel of members decides guilt. A military judge alone decided 34 of the 40 cases (85%). Members heard 6: 2 enlisted panels and 4 officer panels.
All 6 panel cases were among the 11 contested cases, so members heard 55% of the contested cases. Judge-alone cases are mostly guilty pleas, so the forum figures mostly follow how many cases were contested.
Longer Terms Than the Service Average
Of 40 convictions, 38 included confinement. The median was 10 months, compared with 4 months across the Air Force. These figures are adjudged sentences, announced at trial before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal, and they cover every charge in a case.
Terms under 6 months made up 30% of these convictions, compared with 60% across the service. Terms of 6 months to 1 year made up 25%, compared with 13%. Only 2 convictions (5%) included no confinement, compared with 7% service-wide.
| Adjudged confinement | Convictions | Share here | Share, all Air Force cases in 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|
| No confinement | 2 | 5% | 7% |
| Under 6 months | 12 | 30% | 60% |
| 6 months to 1 year | 10 | 25% | 13% |
| More than 1 year, under 5 years | 12 | 30% | 15% |
| 5 years or more | 4 | 10% | 5% |
Sentences Above One Year
Confinement longer than one year was imposed in 16 of 40 convictions. That is 40%, compared with 20% Air Force-wide. Of those, 12 were between 1 and 5 years and 4 were 5 years or more. Those 4 make up 10% of convictions here, compared with 5% for the Air Force.
Only a general court-martial can adjudge confinement of more than one year or a dishonorable discharge. A special court-martial is capped at one year. General courts-martial made up 80% of these cases (32 of 40). Special courts-martial tried the rest.
Drug Charges Were the Most Common Additional Charge
Article 134 was the only charge in 12 of 40 cases. The most common additional charge was Article 112a (drug), in 14 cases. Article 120 (sexual assault), Article 120b (child sexual abuse), Article 128 (assault), and Article 92 (orders violation) each appeared in 4.
A sentence covers the whole case, so another charge can affect the term as much as the general article does. The records give no breakdown by charge.
Discharges for Most Enlisted Members
Of 37 convicted enlisted members, 28 received a punitive discharge: 12 bad-conduct and 16 dishonorable. Across all Air Force cases in 2020, the share was 50%. All 3 convicted officers or warrant officers were dismissed. Dismissal is the officer form of a punitive discharge.
Members who receive no punitive discharge can still face administrative separation later. These records do not show that step.
Change From 2019
The number of general article cases went from 62 to 40. The median confinement went from 1.4 years to 10 months. The enlisted punitive discharge rate went from 81% to 76%. Convictions with confinement went from 89% to 95%, and the general court-martial share from 76% to 80%. In small groups, a few cases can change these figures. The 2019 records rarely noted a guilty plea, so the table has no 2019 contested share.
| 2019 | 2020 | |
|---|---|---|
| Cases | 62 | 40 |
| Contested (of pleas recorded) | — | 33% |
| Convictions with confinement | 89% | 95% |
| Median confinement | 1.4 years | 10 months |
| Punitive discharge (enlisted) | 81% | 76% |
| General courts-martial | 76% | 80% |
Rank and Installations
Junior enlisted members (E-1 to E-4) made up 65% of the accused, NCOs 28%, and officers 8%. That is about the same as the 66% junior enlisted share across the Air Force. The rank makeup is similar to the service. The court level and sentence lengths are where these cases differ.
JBSA - Lackland, Texas and JB Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii tried 4 cases each. Eielson AFB, Alaska and Nellis AFB, Nevada tried 3 each, and Holloman AFB, New Mexico tried 2. Together they account for 40% of the 40 cases. Larger installations try more cases of all kinds.
What the Records Do Not Show
Air Force records rarely list the charges in a case that ends in full acquittal, so this page reports no acquittal rate for Article 134. The records also lack offense dates, plea agreement terms, and evidence. They leave out nonjudicial punishment and administrative separations.
For what the offense covers and how it is defended, see Article 134 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 2020 that charged Article 134 (40 cases), compared with all Air Force cases that year and with 2019.
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 134 (General Article): Court-Martial Data and Trends (hub)
- By Year (hub)
- How Air Force General Article Cases Ended in 2019 (previous / next)
- Air Force Article 134 Cases in 2021 (previous / next)
- Air Force Article 134 Cases by the Numbers, 2016–2025 (the full trend)
- Air Force Article 134 Cases in 2016
- Air Force Article 134 Cases in 2018
- Air Force Article 134 Cases in 2022
- What Sentence Follows an Air Force General Article Conviction?
- Article 134 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.