> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.bodiesburied.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Air Force Courts-Martial, February 2018: The Month in Review - URL: https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/air-force-courts-martial-february-2018/ - Published: 2026-10-28T06:53:10.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-30T05:19:14.000Z - Description: The Air Force tried 28 courts-martial in February 2018. The median confinement was 3 months, compared with 6 months in February 2017. Of 22 convictions, 5 (23%) included no confinement. - Author: Jocelyn C. Stewart - Tags: Understanding Trends, Air Force [Trends](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/) › [By Year](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/by-year/) › February 2018 **Short answer:** The Air Force tried 28 courts-martial in February 2018\. The median confinement was 3 months, compared with 6 months in February 2017\. Of 22 convictions, 5 (23%) included no confinement. Based on 28 cases · February 2018 · Air Force records · data updated October 24, 2026 ## Compared With February 2017 February 2017 had 30 cases, and February 2018 had 28\. The median adjudged confinement went from 6 months to 3 months. The share of convictions that included any confinement went from 92% to 77%. Punitive discharges for convicted enlisted members went from 52% to 55%. General courts-martial went from 50% of the month's cases to 46%. Each month has a small number of cases, so a single outcome can change these numbers. The records cannot show what caused any change. These comparisons show direction, not a firm trend. | | February 2017 | February 2018 | | ----------------------------- | ------------- | ------------- | | Cases | 30 | 28 | | Contested (of pleas recorded) | — | — | | Convictions with confinement | 92% | 77% | | Median confinement | 6 months | 3 months | | Punitive discharge (enlisted) | 52% | 55% | | General courts-martial | 50% | 46% | ## The Range of Sentences Of 22 convictions, 17 included confinement. The median confinement was 3 months, about the same as the 4-month median for the Air Force across 2018\. A quarter of the terms were 9 months or longer. No confinement: 5 convictions (23%, compared with 18% for the year). Under 6 months: 11 (50%). From 6 months to 1 year: 3 (14%). Terms longer than one year came in 3 of 22 convictions (14%), lower than the 20% Air Force share. Only 1 conviction had a term of 5 years or more. Each figure is the sentence adjudged at trial, before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal. Each covers every charge of conviction. | Adjudged confinement | Convictions | Share here | Share, the Air Force for all of 2018 | | ------------------------------- | ----------- | ---------- | ------------------------------------ | | No confinement | 5 | 23% | 18% | | Under 6 months | 11 | 50% | 48% | | 6 months to 1 year | 3 | 14% | 13% | | More than 1 year, under 5 years | 2 | 9% | 12% | | 5 years or more | 1 | 5% | 8% | ## Sentences at Each Court Level There were 13 general and 15 special courts-martial. General courts-martial were 46% of the month's cases, compared with 50% across the Air Force in 2018. The median confinement was 2.1 years at general courts-martial and 35 days at special courts-martial. A special court-martial cannot adjudge more than one year of confinement or a dishonorable discharge. A general court-martial can impose any lawful sentence. ## Which Articles Were Charged The shares use the 22 cases with charge lists, and a case with several articles appears under each. Article 112a, wrongful use or possession of controlled substances, appeared in 50% of them, compared with 47% across the Air Force. Article 134, the general article, appeared in 18% of cases, lower than the 27% for the year. Article 92 (failure to obey an order or regulation) appeared in 9%, compared with 15%. Article 120 (rape and sexual assault) and Article 120b (rape and sexual assault of a child) each appeared in 14%. Article 133, conduct unbecoming an officer, appeared in 2 cases (9%), compared with 2% for the year. Article 111, drunken or reckless driving, also appeared in 2 cases. Article 109 (property other than military; waste, spoilage, destruction) appeared in 1. | UCMJ Article | Cases | Share here | Share, the Air Force for all of 2018 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ----- | ---------- | ------------------------------------ | | [Art. 112a](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/ucmj/article-112a-drug-offenses/?ref=bodiesburied.com) Wrongful use, possession of controlled substances | 11 | 50% | 47% | | [Art. 134](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/practice-areas/court-martial/article-134/?ref=bodiesburied.com) General article | 4 | 18% | 27% | | [Art. 120b](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/practice-areas/court-martial/article-120b/?ref=bodiesburied.com) Rape and sexual assault of a child | 3 | 14% | 12% | | [Art. 120](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/ucmj/article-120-sexual-assault/?ref=bodiesburied.com) Rape and sexual assault | 3 | 14% | 12% | | Art. 111 Drunken or reckless driving | 2 | 9% | 5% | | [Art. 92](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/practice-areas/court-martial/article-92/?ref=bodiesburied.com) Failure to obey order or regulation | 2 | 9% | 15% | | Art. 133 Conduct unbecoming an officer | 2 | 9% | 2% | | Art. 109 Property other than military; waste, spoilage, destruction | 1 | 5% | 0% | ## Full Acquittals Across All Cases Of the 28 cases, 6 ended in a full acquittal (21%), about the same as the 22% for the Air Force in 2018\. A full acquittal is a finding of not guilty on every charge. Air Force records from 2016 to 2019 rarely note guilty pleas. This rate therefore uses all cases as its base, not only contested cases. ## Punitive Discharges and Dismissals Of 20 convicted enlisted members, 11 received a bad-conduct or dishonorable discharge (55%), slightly lower than the 58% across the Air Force. Of the 11, 5 were dishonorable. Officers cannot receive those discharges. The officer equivalent is dismissal. Of the 2 convicted officers or warrant officers, 1 was dismissed. A sentence without a punitive discharge does not rule out a later administrative separation, which is outside these records. ## Rank and Forum Of the accused, 23 were junior enlisted (E-1 to E-4), 3 were NCOs (E-5 to E-9), and 2 were officers or warrant officers. That is a more junior group than the Air Force overall, where 63% were junior enlisted in 2018. A military judge alone decided guilt in 17 cases. Members decided the other 39%: 4 with enlisted panels and 7 with officer panels. The accused usually makes that choice. For this period, the records do not show how many contested cases each forum heard. ## Bases, Rules, and Limits of the Records Buckley SFB, Colorado, Tyndall AFB, Florida, Andersen AFB, Guam, JBSA - Lackland, Texas, and Hill AFB, Utah, each tried 2 cases. Together these 5 installations account for 36% of the 28 cases. Larger bases try more cases of every type. These trials took place before the Military Justice Act of 2016 took effect on January 1, 2019\. That law created judge-alone special courts-martial and written plea agreements. The records give trial dates, not offense dates. They do not include nonjudicial punishment and do not describe the evidence or plea terms. Dates and sources for the law changes mentioned here: [UCMJ change timeline](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/ucmj-change-timeline/). ### How We Counted Air Force courts-martial with a trial date in February 2018 (28 cases), compared with the whole year. Source: public court-martial records (Article 140a, UCMJ) in [Military Trial Results](https://www.bodiesburied.com/military-trial-results/), data updated October 24, 2026\. Definitions, sources, and known gaps: [how this data was built](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/how-the-military-trial-results-data-was-built/). Errors: content@bodiesburied.com. ## Related Analysis - [Air Force Courts-Martial: Data and Trends](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/air-force-courts-martial/) (hub) - [By Year](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/by-year/) (hub) - [Air Force Courts-Martial, January 2018: The Month in Review](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/air-force-courts-martial-january-2018/) (previous / next) - [Air Force Courts-Martial, March 2018: The Month in Review](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/air-force-courts-martial-march-2018/) (previous / next) - [Air Force Courts-Martial in 2018: Year in Review](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/air-force-courts-martial-2018-year-in-review/) (the whole year) - [Air Force Courts-Martial, April 2018: The Month in Review](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/air-force-courts-martial-april-2018/) - [Air Force Courts-Martial, April 2019: The Month in Review](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/air-force-courts-martial-april-2019/) - [Air Force Courts-Martial, August 2018: The Month in Review](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/air-force-courts-martial-august-2018/) - [Air Force Courts-Martial, August 2020: The Month in Review](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/air-force-courts-martial-august-2020/) - [Search every case in Military Trial Results](https://www.bodiesburied.com/military-trial-results/) (members) ← Previous: [Air Force Courts-Martial, January 2018: The Month in Review](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/air-force-courts-martial-january-2018/)Next: [Air Force Courts-Martial, March 2018: The Month in Review](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/air-force-courts-martial-march-2018/) → **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](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/?ref=bodiesburied.com). This analysis is for education and information only. It is not legal advice, and every case is different.