Understanding Trends

2018: Experience of Air Force Defense Counsel of Record

In 2018, 150 different defense counsel of record appeared in 368 Air Force courts-martial, and 14 of them (9%) had no earlier case in this data. In the 367 cases that list a defense counsel, the median prior-case count of the most experienced defense lawyer on the team was 9.

Understanding Trends in Military Practice · 5 min read

Trends › Counsel Experience › Air Force 2018

Short answer: In 2018, 150 different defense counsel of record appeared in 368 Air Force courts-martial, and 14 of them (9%) had no earlier case in this data. In the 367 cases that list a defense counsel, the median prior-case count of the most experienced defense lawyer on the team was 9. The defense had more prior cases than the prosecution in 202 of 366 cases (55%).

Based on 368 cases · 2018 · Air Force records · data updated October 24, 2026

150 Defense Lawyers Across 368 Cases

The Air Force records for 2018 name 150 different defense counsel of record. Most appeared in a small number of cases that year. The largest group, 68 lawyers, appeared in 2 to 4 cases, and another 37 appeared in only 1.

A smaller group carried more cases: 38 lawyers appeared in 5 to 9 cases, and 7 appeared in 10 or more.

Of the 150, 14 (9%) had no earlier case in this data. Being new here means only that the records show no prior court-martial for that lawyer.

Cases as defense counsel in 2018	Lawyers
1 case	37
2 to 4 cases	68
5 to 9 cases	38
10 or more cases	7

What Experience Means on This Page

Experience is counted as the number of courts-martial a lawyer had already been counsel of record on in this data, on either side, in the Air Force, before the trial date. It is not a measure of skill, and a lawyer may have tried cases before the records start.

Many cases list more than one defense lawyer, and the records do not say who led. Each case is therefore counted by its most experienced defense counsel of record. Nothing here rates or ranks any lawyer.

Prior Cases of the Most Experienced Defense Lawyer

Of the 368 cases, 367 list at least one defense counsel of record. The median prior-case count for the most experienced of them was 9.

Almost all cases fell in two ranges. In 161 cases (44%), the most experienced defense counsel had 10 to 19 prior cases, and in 148 (40%) the count was 5 to 9. Another 54 cases (15%) were in the 1 to 4 range.

Only 3 cases (1%) had a defense counsel with 20 or more prior cases, and 1 case had no defense counsel of record with any prior case. Air Force counsel names are nearly complete only from 2016, so counts for 2018 trials draw on a short run of earlier records.

Prior cases (most experienced defense counsel)	Cases	Share
No prior cases	1	0%
1 to 4	54	15%
5 to 9	148	40%
10 to 19	161	44%
20 or more	3	1%

One Defense Lawyer Was Most Common

Of the 367 cases with a defense counsel listed, 207 named 1 defense counsel of record. Another 144 named 2, and 16 named 3 or more.

The number of lawyers listed is a count of names in the trial record. The records do not show how the work was divided among them or whether each lawyer took part in the whole trial.

Defense Compared With Prosecution

Both sides have lawyers listed in 366 cases. Comparing the most experienced counsel of record on each side, the defense counsel had more prior cases in 202 cases (55%) and fewer in 138 (38%). The rest were tied.

This is a comparison of prior-case counts only. It does not show which side was more skilled or how any case turned out.

The 2018 Cases Compared With 2017

Article 134 (general article) was charged in 27% of 2018 cases, compared with 21% in 2017.

Among convicted enlisted members, 58% received a punitive discharge, compared with 51% in 2017. A punitive discharge is a bad-conduct discharge or a dishonorable discharge; the officer equivalent is a dismissal. A sentence without one does not rule out a later administrative separation, and all sentences are as adjudged at trial.

These two comparisons describe the 2018 cases as a whole. They are not broken down by lawyer, and the records do not show why either figure changed from 2017.

Before the 2019 Rule Changes

Every case on this page was tried before the Military Justice Act of 2016 took effect on January 1, 2019. That law later set fixed panel sizes, created judge-alone special courts-martial capped at six months with no punitive discharge, and brought in written plea agreements. None of those changes applied to these 2018 trials.

Limits of the 2018 Records

This page starts two years after Air Force counsel names become nearly complete, so most lawyers have some prior cases in the data. Names written several ways are merged as on Learn Your Lawyer. Navy and Marine Corps records list counsel only from mid-2025, mostly by surname, and are not included.

Air Force records rarely list charges in full acquittals and never report plea agreements, and from 2016 to 2019 they rarely list a guilty plea. Cases resolved by nonjudicial punishment, administrative separation, or no action are not in the records, and the evidence and plea terms are not described.

Dates and sources for the law changes mentioned here: UCMJ change timeline.

How We Counted

Every Air Force court-martial with a trial date in 2018 (368 cases). Counsel of record are as listed in the public records.

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

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.