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# What the Air Force Tried in October 2020
- URL: https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/air-force-courts-martial-october-2020/
- Published: 2026-10-28T06:53:30.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-30T05:19:43.000Z
- Description: Of 32 Air Force courts-martial in October 2020, 53% were contested, compared with 48% for the service that year. Of 16 contested cases that reached a verdict, 10 ended in a full acquittal.
- Author: Jocelyn C. Stewart
- Tags: Understanding Trends, Air Force

[Trends](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/) › [By Year](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/by-year/) › October 2020

**Short answer:** Of 32 Air Force courts-martial in October 2020, 53% were contested, compared with 48% for the service that year. Of 16 contested cases that reached a verdict, 10 ended in a full acquittal. The median confinement was 5 months, compared with 4 months for the year, and 33% of convictions included more than one year.

Based on 32 cases · October 2020 · Air Force records · data updated October 24, 2026

## More Contested Cases and More Full Acquittals

A case counts as contested when the accused pleads not guilty to at least one charge. In October 2020, 17 cases were contested and 15 accused pleaded guilty. The contested share was 53%, compared with 48% for the Air Force in 2020.

Among the 16 contested cases that reached a verdict, 10 ended in a full acquittal, meaning not guilty of all charges. That rate of 62% is higher than the 58% for the year. Another 2 were partial acquittals: guilty of some charges and not guilty of others. Air Force results report one verdict per case, so a partial acquittal appears only when an appeals opinion reports it.

## Panels Decided Most Contested Cases

Members decided guilt in 14 of the 32 cases (44%): 6 enlisted panels and 8 officer panels. Among contested cases, the share was higher: members decided 14 of 17 (82%).

There were 18 judge-alone trials. Most judge-alone cases are guilty pleas, so the forum split mostly follows how many cases were contested. The accused usually chooses between a military judge alone and a panel.

## Sentences Above One Year

Of 21 convictions, 7 (33%) included more than one year of confinement, compared with 20% across the Air Force in 2020\. Terms of more than 1 year and under 5 years were part of 24% of convictions, compared with 15%. Terms of 5 years or more were part of 10%, compared with 5%.

Overall, 19 of the 21 convictions included confinement (90%). The median was 5 months. A quarter of the terms were 1.2 years or more. These are adjudged sentences, set 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 2020 |
| ------------------------------- | ----------- | ---------- | ------------------------------------ |
| No confinement                  | 2           | 10%        | 7%                                   |
| Under 6 months                  | 10          | 48%        | 60%                                  |
| 6 months to 1 year              | 2           | 10%        | 13%                                  |
| More than 1 year, under 5 years | 5           | 24%        | 15%                                  |
| 5 years or more                 | 2           | 10%        | 5%                                   |

## Most Cases Were General Courts-Martial

There were 21 general and 11 special courts-martial. The general court-martial share was 66%, compared with 51% for the year. A general court-martial can impose any lawful punishment. A special court-martial is limited to one year of confinement and no dishonorable discharge. Since 2019, a special court-martial can also be tried by a military judge alone, with a cap of six months of confinement and no punitive discharge.

At general courts-martial, 85% of convictions included confinement, and the median was 1.2 years. At special courts-martial, 8 of 8 convictions included confinement, and the median was 52 days.

## Punitive Discharges and Dismissals

Of convicted enlisted members, 56% received a bad-conduct or dishonorable discharge, compared with 50% service-wide. There were 7 bad-conduct discharges and 3 dishonorable discharges. Among 3 convicted officers or warrant officers, 1 was dismissed. Dismissal is the officer equivalent of a punitive discharge.

A sentence without one of these can still be followed by administrative separation, which the court records do not show. The discharge share is based on a small group of convicted enlisted members, so a single case changes it noticeably.

## What Was Charged

Charge lists exist for 21 of the 32 cases, with each article counted once per case. Article 112a, covering wrongful use or possession of controlled substances, was the most common charge, at 57%, compared with 51% for the year. Article 128 (assault) was next, at 19%, compared with 17%.

Article 131b, obstructing justice, appeared in 10% of cases, compared with 3% for the Air Force overall. Article 92 (failure to obey an order or regulation) appeared in only 5%, compared with 16%. Air Force records rarely list charges in full acquittals, so these shares come mostly from cases with a conviction.

| UCMJ Article                                                                                                                                       | Cases | Share here | Share, the Air Force for all of 2020 |
| -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ----- | ---------- | ------------------------------------ |
| [Art. 112a](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/ucmj/article-112a-drug-offenses/?ref=bodiesburied.com) Wrongful use, possession of controlled substances | 12    | 57%        | 51%                                  |
| [Art. 128](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/practice-areas/court-martial/article-128/?ref=bodiesburied.com) Assault                                   | 4     | 19%        | 17%                                  |
| [Art. 134](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/practice-areas/court-martial/article-134/?ref=bodiesburied.com) General article                           | 3     | 14%        | 22%                                  |
| Art. 131b Obstructing justice                                                                                                                      | 2     | 10%        | 3%                                   |
| [Art. 86](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/practice-areas/court-martial/article-86/?ref=bodiesburied.com) AWOL                                        | 2     | 10%        | 8%                                   |
| Art. 133 Conduct unbecoming an officer                                                                                                             | 1     | 5%         | 2%                                   |
| [Art. 120c](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/practice-areas/court-martial/article-120c/?ref=bodiesburied.com) Other sexual misconduct                 | 1     | 5%         | 2%                                   |
| [Art. 92](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/practice-areas/court-martial/article-92/?ref=bodiesburied.com) Failure to obey order or regulation         | 1     | 5%         | 16%                                  |

## Change From October 2019

October 2019 and October 2020 each had 32 cases. Median confinement went from 3 months to 5 months. Punitive discharges for convicted enlisted members went from 46% to 56%. The general court-martial share went from 50% to 66%.

There is no contested share for October 2019, because Air Force records from that period rarely list guilty pleas. With so few cases, each figure shows direction, not a measured trend.

|                               | October 2019 | October 2020 |
| ----------------------------- | ------------ | ------------ |
| Cases                         | 32           | 32           |
| Contested (of pleas recorded) | —            | 53%          |
| Convictions with confinement  | 88%          | 90%          |
| Median confinement            | 3 months     | 5 months     |
| Punitive discharge (enlisted) | 46%          | 56%          |
| General courts-martial        | 50%          | 66%          |

## Rank, Location, and the Limits

The accused were 19 junior enlisted members, 8 NCOs, and 5 officers. That mix is more senior than the Air Force overall in 2020.

JB Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii, tried 3 cases. Dyess AFB, Texas, and JB Charleston, South Carolina, tried 2 each. Little Rock AFB, Arkansas, and Fairchild AFB, Washington, tried 1 each. Those five accounted for 28% of the month's cases. Larger bases try more cases of every kind.

The records cover only courts-martial. They give no offense dates, evidence, or plea terms. They do not include nonjudicial punishment or administrative separations.

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 October 2020 (32 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)
- [September 2020 at Air Force Courts-Martial: 26 Cases](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/air-force-courts-martial-september-2020/) (previous / next)
- [November 2020 at Air Force Courts-Martial: 25 Cases](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/air-force-courts-martial-november-2020/) (previous / next)
- [Air Force Courts-Martial in 2020: Year in Review](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/air-force-courts-martial-2020-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: [September 2020 at Air Force Courts-Martial: 26 Cases](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/air-force-courts-martial-september-2020/)Next: [November 2020 at Air Force Courts-Martial: 25 Cases](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/air-force-courts-martial-november-2020/) →

**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.