March 2025 at Air Force Courts-Martial: 19 Cases
The records show 19 Air Force courts-martial tried in March 2025. A military judge alone decided 17 of them, and members heard 11%, compared with 26% across the Air Force in 2025. Article 112a (drug offenses) appeared in 37% of cases, compared with 21% for the year.
Understanding Trends in Military Practice · 4 min read
Short answer: The records show 19 Air Force courts-martial tried in March 2025. A military judge alone decided 17 of them, and members heard 11%, compared with 26% across the Air Force in 2025. Article 112a (drug offenses) appeared in 37% of cases, compared with 21% for the year.
Judge-Alone Trials in 17 Cases
A military judge alone decided guilt in 17 cases. Members heard 2, both with enlisted panels, and no case went to an officer panel. Members heard 11% of the month's cases, lower than the 26% for the Air Force in all of 2025.
The accused usually chooses whether a military judge alone or members decide guilt.
More Guilty Pleas Than the Year
16 of the 19 records list the plea. 11 accused pleaded guilty and 5 contested at least one charge. The contested share was 31%, compared with 41% for the year. A contested case is a not-guilty or mixed plea.
Drug and Orders Charges
All 19 records list the charges, and a case with several articles counts under each. Article 112a (drug offenses) was the most common article, in 7 cases (37%). Article 92 (orders violation) appeared in 6 cases (32%), compared with 17% across the Air Force in 2025.
Article 128 (assault) and Article 134 (general article) appeared in 3 cases each. Article 113 (drunken or reckless operation of vehicle) and Article 120 (rape and sexual assault) appeared in 2 each. Article 86 (AWOL) and Article 89 (disrespect toward superior officer; assault of superior officer) appeared in 1 each.
| UCMJ Article | Cases | Share here | Share, the Air Force for all of 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Art. 112a Wrongful use, possession of controlled substances | 7 | 37% | 21% |
| Art. 92 Failure to obey order or regulation | 6 | 32% | 17% |
| Art. 128 Assault | 3 | 16% | 12% |
| Art. 134 General article | 3 | 16% | 23% |
| Art. 113 Drunken or reckless operation of vehicle | 2 | 11% | 6% |
| Art. 120 Rape and sexual assault | 2 | 11% | 14% |
| Art. 86 AWOL | 1 | 5% | 4% |
| Art. 89 Disrespect toward superior officer; assault of superior officer | 1 | 5% | 1% |
Sentences After Conviction
16 cases ended in a conviction on at least one charge, and 12 of those sentences included confinement (75%). The median confinement was 4 months, shorter than the 6-month median for the Air Force in 2025. A quarter of the confinement terms were 6 months or longer.
6 of 14 convicted enlisted members received a punitive discharge: 3 bad-conduct and 3 dishonorable. The Air Force share for the year was 60%. Of 2 convicted officers or warrant officers, 1 was dismissed.
These are adjudged sentences, before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal. A sentence without a punitive discharge does not rule out a later administrative separation.
A Junior Group of Accused
13 accused were junior enlisted members (E-1 to E-4), 4 were NCOs (E-5 to E-9), and 2 were officers or warrant officers. Across the Air Force in 2025, 60% of the accused were junior enlisted, so this month had a more junior group.
General courts-martial made up 37% of the cases (7 of 19), and special courts-martial made up the rest. A general court-martial can impose any lawful sentence. A special court-martial is limited to one year of confinement and cannot impose a dishonorable discharge.
What the Records Leave Out
Trial records show the charges, pleas, findings, and sentence. They do not show offense dates, the evidence, the plea terms, or conduct handled outside a court-martial. Air Force records rarely list charges in full acquittals and never 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 March 2025 (19 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)
- What the Air Force Tried in February 2025 (previous / next)
- April 2025 at Air Force Courts-Martial: 13 Cases (previous / next)
- How 2025 Went at Air Force Courts-Martial (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.