October 2023 at Air Force Courts-Martial: 19 Cases
The records show 19 Air Force trials in October 2023. Of 10 contested cases that reached a verdict, 5 ended in a full acquittal (50%), compared with 56% across the Air Force in 2023. Members heard 8 of those 10 contested cases.
Understanding Trends in Military Practice · 5 min read
Trends › By Year › October 2023
Short answer: The records show 19 Air Force trials in October 2023. Of 10 contested cases that reached a verdict, 5 ended in a full acquittal (50%), compared with 56% across the Air Force in 2023. Members heard 8 of those 10 contested cases.
Verdicts in Contested Cases
9 accused pleaded guilty and 10 contested at least one charge. The contested share was 53%, the same as the 53% for the Air Force in all of 2023. A contested case is one with a not-guilty or mixed plea.
Of the 10 contested cases that reached a verdict, 5 ended in a full acquittal (50%) and 1 in a partial acquittal (10%). A partial acquittal means not guilty of at least one charge or specification but guilty of another. The full-acquittal rate was lower than the 56% for the year.
Air Force results give one verdict per case, so a partial acquittal appears only when an appeals opinion reports it.
Members Heard Most Contested Cases
A military judge alone decided 11 cases. Members heard the rest: 5 with enlisted panels and 3 with officer panels. Members heard 42% of all cases, about the same as the 40% for the year.
Among the 10 contested cases, members heard 8 (80%). The accused usually chooses whether a military judge alone or members decide guilt.
Sentences for the 14 Convictions
Confinement was part of 79% of the 14 convictions. The median confinement was 4 months, compared with 5 months for the Air Force in 2023. A quarter of the confinement terms were 1.7 years or longer.
A punitive discharge followed 57% of enlisted convictions: 5 bad-conduct discharges and 3 dishonorable discharges. The rate for the year was 58%. All figures are adjudged sentences, before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal, and a sentence without a punitive discharge does not rule out a later administrative separation.
October 2022 Compared With October 2023
October 2022 had 24 cases and October 2023 had 19. The contested share went from 33% to 53%. Full acquittals in contested cases that reached a verdict went from 3 of 8 to 5 of 10.
The median confinement went from 1 year to 4 months, and convictions with confinement went from 95% to 79%. Punitive discharges for convicted enlisted members went from 78% to 57%. The general court-martial share went from 62% to 53%. Small groups can change with a few cases, so these comparisons show direction only.
| October 2022 | October 2023 | |
|---|---|---|
| Cases | 24 | 19 |
| Contested (of pleas recorded) | 33% | 53% |
| Full acquittals (decided contested) | 3 of 8 | 5 of 10 |
| Convictions with confinement | 95% | 79% |
| Median confinement | 1 year | 4 months |
| Punitive discharge (enlisted) | 78% | 57% |
| General courts-martial | 62% | 53% |
Drug Charges and Other Articles
14 of the 19 records list the charges, and each article counts once per case. Article 112a (drug offenses) appeared in 5 cases (36%), compared with 28% for the year.
Article 134 (general article), Article 120b (rape and sexual assault of a child), and Article 107 (false official statements) appeared in 2 cases each. Article 120 (rape and sexual assault), Article 113 (drunken or reckless operation of vehicle), Article 104a (fraudulent enlistment), and Article 92 (failure to obey order or regulation) appeared in 1 each. Air Force records rarely list charges in a full acquittal.
| UCMJ Article | Cases | Share here | Share, the Air Force for all of 2023 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Art. 112a Wrongful use, possession of controlled substances | 5 | 36% | 28% |
| Art. 134 General article | 2 | 14% | 19% |
| Art. 120b Rape and sexual assault of a child | 2 | 14% | 7% |
| Art. 107 False official statements | 2 | 14% | 5% |
| Art. 120 Rape and sexual assault | 1 | 7% | 16% |
| Art. 113 Drunken or reckless operation of vehicle | 1 | 7% | 5% |
| Art. 104a Fraudulent enlistment | 1 | 7% | 1% |
| Art. 92 Failure to obey order or regulation | 1 | 7% | 18% |
Rank and Court Level
By rank, the accused were 12 junior enlisted members, 4 NCOs, and 3 officers, similar to the Air Force as a whole in 2023. General courts-martial made up 53% of the cases (10 of 19). A special court-martial is limited to one year of confinement and cannot impose a dishonorable discharge.
What the Records Do Not Show
The records give trial dates, not offense dates, and they do not describe the evidence or the plea terms. Nonjudicial punishment and administrative separations are not included. Air Force records 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 October 2023 (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)
- September 2023 at Air Force Courts-Martial: 16 Cases (previous / next)
- What the Air Force Tried in January 2024 (previous / next)
- How 2023 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.