What the Air Force Tried in August 2017
The Air Force tried 26 courts-martial in August 2017. The median confinement was 2 months, lower than the 4 months for the Air Force in 2017. The general article, Article 134, appeared in 30% of cases with a charge list, compared with 21% for the year.
Understanding Trends in Military Practice · 6 min read
Trends › By Year › August 2017
Short answer: The Air Force tried 26 courts-martial in August 2017. The median confinement was 2 months, lower than the 4 months for the Air Force in 2017. The general article, Article 134, appeared in 30% of cases with a charge list, compared with 21% for the year.
Shorter Confinement, and More Convictions Without It
August 2017 had 20 convictions, and 13 of them (65%) included confinement. The median confinement was 2 months, compared with 4 months across the Air Force in 2017. A quarter of the terms were 1.2 years or longer.
Convictions with no confinement were 35% of the month, compared with 21% for the year. No conviction had a term between 6 months and 1 year. Across 2017, 11% of convictions had a term in that range. These are adjudged sentences, recorded at trial before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal, and they cover every charge in a case.
| Adjudged confinement | Convictions | Share here | Share, the Air Force for all of 2017 |
|---|---|---|---|
| No confinement | 7 | 35% | 21% |
| Under 6 months | 9 | 45% | 46% |
| 6 months to 1 year | 0 | 0% | 11% |
| More than 1 year, under 5 years | 3 | 15% | 14% |
| 5 years or more | 1 | 5% | 8% |
Terms Over 1 Year Were About as Common
Terms longer than one year came in 4 of 20 convictions (20%), about the same as the 23% for the year. Terms from 1 year to under 5 years came in 3 convictions (15%), compared with 14%. Terms of 5 years or more came in 1 conviction (5%), compared with 8%.
Only a general court-martial can adjudge more than one year of confinement. The month had 8 general courts-martial, 31% of its cases, lower than the 45% for the year. The rest were special courts-martial, which are capped at one year and cannot impose a dishonorable discharge.
The General Article and Assault Were Charged More Often
Charges are listed for 20 of the 26 cases, and one case can appear under several articles. Drug offenses under Article 112a were the most common charge, in 10 cases (50%). That is about the same as the 52% for the year.
Article 134, the general article, appeared in 6 cases (30%), compared with 21% for the year. Assault under Article 128 appeared in 4 cases (20%), compared with 11%. Article 108, which covers loss, damage, or destruction of military property, appeared in 2 cases (10%), compared with 1%.
Article 92, failure to obey an order or regulation, appeared in 3 cases (15%), compared with 17%. Article 120b, rape and sexual assault of a child, appeared in 2 cases (10%), compared with 8%. Larceny under Article 121 appeared in 1 case (5%), compared with 6%.
| UCMJ Article | Cases | Share here | Share, the Air Force for all of 2017 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Art. 112a Wrongful use, possession of controlled substances | 10 | 50% | 52% |
| Art. 134 General article | 6 | 30% | 21% |
| Art. 128 Assault | 4 | 20% | 11% |
| Art. 92 Failure to obey order or regulation | 3 | 15% | 17% |
| Art. 108 Military property; loss, damage, destruction | 2 | 10% | 1% |
| Art. 120b Rape and sexual assault of a child | 2 | 10% | 8% |
| Art. 121 Larceny | 1 | 5% | 6% |
More Punitive Discharges Than the Year
Of 19 convicted enlisted members, 11 received a bad-conduct or dishonorable discharge (58%). That is higher than the 51% for the year. Of the 11 discharges, 2 were dishonorable.
The month's 1 convicted officer or warrant officer was dismissed. Dismissal is the officer equivalent of a punitive discharge. A sentence without a punitive discharge does not rule out a later administrative separation.
Full Acquittals
Of the 26 cases, 6 ended in a full acquittal (23%). That is about the same as the 21% for the Air Force in 2017.
This rate is measured against all cases, not only contested cases. Air Force records from 2016 to 2019 rarely show a guilty plea, so the number of contested cases in this month cannot be counted.
Officer Panels Outnumbered Enlisted Panels
The accused usually chooses whether a military judge alone or a panel of members decides guilt. A military judge alone decided 14 cases, officer panels 9, and enlisted panels 3. Members heard 46% of the cases, compared with 42% for the year.
An enlisted accused may ask for enlisted members on the panel, and 3 cases had enlisted panels this month. Guilty pleas are rarely recorded for this period, so the forum figures cannot be compared with the number of contested cases.
Compared With August 2016
August 2016 had 22 cases, and August 2017 had 26. The median confinement went from 4 months to 2 months. Convictions with confinement went from 93% to 65%.
Punitive discharges for enlisted members went from 38% to 58%. The general court-martial share went from 50% to 31%. A few cases can change monthly figures in either direction, so these comparisons show direction rather than precise change.
| August 2016 | August 2017 | |
|---|---|---|
| Cases | 22 | 26 |
| Contested (of pleas recorded) | — | — |
| Convictions with confinement | 93% | 65% |
| Median confinement | 4 months | 2 months |
| Punitive discharge (enlisted) | 38% | 58% |
| General courts-martial | 50% | 31% |
Rank and Bases
The accused were 15 junior enlisted members, 9 NCOs, and 2 officers. That group was more senior than the accused across the Air Force in 2017.
Beale AFB, California, Luke AFB, Arizona, Travis AFB, California, and Peterson SFB, Colorado, each tried 2 cases. Laughlin AFB, Texas, tried 1. Together these bases account for 35% of the month's cases.
Before the 2019 Changes, and Other Limits
The Military Justice Act of 2016 took effect on January 1, 2019. It introduced fixed panel sizes, judge-alone special courts-martial, and written plea agreements. These trials took place under the earlier rules.
The records do not show the evidence, the plea terms, or cases resolved through nonjudicial punishment, administrative separation, or no action. Air Force records rarely list charges in full acquittals and do not report plea agreements.
Dates and sources for the law changes mentioned here: UCMJ change timeline.
How We Counted
Air Force courts-martial with a trial date in August 2017 (26 cases), compared with the whole year.
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
- Air Force Courts-Martial: Data and Trends (hub)
- By Year (hub)
- July 2017 at Air Force Courts-Martial: 18 Cases (previous / next)
- Air Force Courts-Martial, September 2017: The Month in Review (previous / next)
- Air Force Courts-Martial in 2017: Year in Review (the whole year)
- Air Force Courts-Martial, April 2018: The Month in Review
- Air Force Courts-Martial, April 2019: The Month in Review
- Air Force Courts-Martial, August 2018: The Month in Review
- Air Force Courts-Martial, August 2020: The Month in Review
- 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.