What the Air Force Tried in November 2021
The records show 16 Air Force trials in November 2021. Of the 9 contested cases that reached a verdict, 6 ended in a full acquittal.
Understanding Trends in Military Practice · 5 min read
Trends › By Year › November 2021
Short answer: The records show 16 Air Force trials in November 2021. Of the 9 contested cases that reached a verdict, 6 ended in a full acquittal. The median confinement was 36 days, compared with 4 months across the Air Force in 2021, and 1 of 10 convicted enlisted members received a punitive discharge.
Full Acquittals in 6 of 9 Contested Cases
9 accused contested at least one charge, and 7 pleaded guilty. The contested share was 56%, compared with 51% for the Air Force in all of 2021. A contested case is one with a not-guilty or mixed plea.
Of the 9 contested cases that reached a verdict, 6 ended in a full acquittal, meaning not guilty of all charges. The other 10 cases in the month ended with a conviction on at least one charge.
Short Confinement Terms
8 of the 10 convictions included confinement (80%). The median confinement was 36 days, shorter than the 4-month median for the Air Force in 2021. A quarter of the confinement terms were 3 months or longer.
These are adjudged sentences, set at trial for every charge of conviction, before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal.
1 Punitive Discharge
Among 10 convicted enlisted members, 1 received a punitive discharge (10%). That discharge was a bad-conduct discharge, not a dishonorable discharge. The Air Force rate for 2021 was 56%.
A sentence without a punitive discharge does not rule out a later administrative separation.
Assault Charges Were More Common
The charge lists cover 10 of 16 cases. Article 128 (assault) appeared in 6 of them (60%), compared with 27% for the Air Force in 2021. Article 92 (failure to obey order or regulation) appeared in 3 (30%).
Article 112a (drug offenses) and Article 113 (drunken or reckless operation of vehicle) appeared in 2 cases each. Article 119b (child endangerment), Article 87a (resistance, flight, breach of arrest), and Article 130 (stalking) appeared in 1 each.
Air Force records rarely list charges in a full acquittal. With 6 full acquittals in the month, the charge shares mostly describe the cases that ended in a conviction.
| UCMJ Article | Cases | Share here | Share, the Air Force for all of 2021 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Art. 128 Assault | 6 | 60% | 27% |
| Art. 92 Failure to obey order or regulation | 3 | 30% | 18% |
| Art. 112a Wrongful use, possession of controlled substances | 2 | 20% | 35% |
| Art. 113 Drunken or reckless operation of vehicle | 2 | 20% | 6% |
| Art. 119b Child endangerment | 1 | 10% | 1% |
| Art. 87a Resistance, flight, breach of arrest | 1 | 10% | 2% |
| Art. 130 Stalking | 1 | 10% | 1% |
November 2020 Compared With November 2021
November 2020 had 25 cases, and November 2021 had 16. Full acquittals in contested cases that reached a verdict went from 7 of 15 to 6 of 9. The median confinement went from 4 months to 36 days.
Punitive discharges for convicted enlisted members went from 44% to 10%. The general court-martial share went from 64% to 31%, the contested share from 64% to 56%, and convictions with confinement from 88% to 80%. Small groups like these can change with a few cases.
| November 2020 | November 2021 | |
|---|---|---|
| Cases | 25 | 16 |
| Contested (of pleas recorded) | 64% | 56% |
| Full acquittals (decided contested) | 7 of 15 | 6 of 9 |
| Convictions with confinement | 88% | 80% |
| Median confinement | 4 months | 36 days |
| Punitive discharge (enlisted) | 44% | 10% |
| General courts-martial | 64% | 31% |
Rank, Court Level, and Forum
By rank, the accused were 9 junior enlisted members, 7 NCOs, and 0 officers. That group is more senior than the Air Force as a whole in 2021.
5 of the 16 cases were general courts-martial (31%), compared with 53% for the year. A special court-martial is limited to one year of confinement and cannot impose a dishonorable discharge.
A military judge alone decided guilt in 10 of 16 cases (62%). Members heard 6: 4 with enlisted panels and 2 with officer panels.
Limits of the Records
The records give trial dates, not offense dates. They cover courts-martial only, not nonjudicial punishment or administrative separations, and they do not describe the evidence or plea terms.
Dates and sources for the law changes mentioned here: UCMJ change timeline.
How We Counted
Air Force courts-martial with a trial date in November 2021 (16 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)
- Air Force Courts-Martial, October 2021: The Month in Review (previous / next)
- December 2021 at Air Force Courts-Martial: 13 Cases (previous / next)
- The Air Force Court-Martial Year, 2021 (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.