False Official Statement at Army Courts-Martial, 2023: The Year in Numbers
The Army records hold 20 courts-martial from 2023 that charged Article 107 (false official statement), down from 40 cases in 2022. A punitive discharge followed 87% of enlisted convictions, higher than the 74% for all Army cases in 2023.
Understanding Trends in Military Practice · 5 min read
Trends › By Offense › Article 107 › Army, 2023
Short answer: The Army records hold 20 courts-martial from 2023 that charged Article 107 (false official statement), down from 40 cases in 2022. A punitive discharge followed 87% of enlisted convictions, higher than the 74% for all Army cases in 2023. Among sentences with confinement, the median was 8 months, compared with 6 months Army-wide.
Discharges Were More Common Than Across the Army
A punitive discharge followed 87% of enlisted convictions in these cases: 10 bad-conduct discharges and 3 dishonorable discharges. Across all Army cases in 2023, the share was 74%. In 2022, the share for Article 107 cases was 53%.
4 convicted officers or warrant officers appear in these cases, and 2 were dismissed. A dismissal is the officer equivalent of a punitive discharge. A sentence without a punitive discharge does not rule out a later administrative separation.
Fewer Sentences Included Confinement
Confinement was part of 53% of the 19 convictions, lower than the 72% for Article 107 cases in 2022. Among sentences that did include confinement, half were 8 months or less. The median for all Army cases in 2023 was 6 months.
Among the sentences that included confinement, a quarter were 1.6 years or longer. These are adjudged sentences, set at trial before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal, and each covers every charge in the case.
How 2023 Compared With 2022
The number of cases fell from 40 in 2022 to 20 in 2023. The contested share moved from 50% to 35%. The median confinement went from 5 months to 8 months, and punitive discharges for convicted enlisted members went from 53% to 87%.
General courts-martial were 74% of the cases in 2022 and 70% in 2023. With groups this small, a few cases either way can move these figures, so the changes show direction, not precision.
| 2022 | 2023 | |
|---|---|---|
| Cases | 40 | 20 |
| Contested (of pleas recorded) | 50% | 35% |
| Full acquittals (decided contested) | 1 of 20 | 1 of 7 |
| Convictions with confinement | 72% | 53% |
| Median confinement | 5 months | 8 months |
| Punitive discharge (enlisted) | 53% | 87% |
| General courts-martial | 74% | 70% |
Pleas and Plea Agreements
Contested cases made up 35% of those with a plea recorded: 7 not-guilty or mixed pleas and 13 guilty pleas. A case is contested when the accused pleads not guilty to at least one charge. For all Army cases in 2023, the contested share was 31%.
All 13 guilty pleas are recorded with a plea agreement. Army records say whether there was an agreement, not what it said. Of the 7 contested cases that reached a verdict, 1 ended in a full acquittal. In 2022, 1 of 20 did.
A More Senior Group of Accused
By rank, 10 accused were junior enlisted members, 6 were NCOs, and 4 were officers. This group was more senior than all Army cases in 2023.
General courts-martial made up 70% of these cases (14 of 20). A general court-martial can impose long confinement and a dishonorable discharge. A special court-martial caps confinement at one year and cannot impose a dishonorable discharge.
Companion Charges
Article 107 was rarely charged alone: 18 of the 20 cases charged at least one other article. Article 121 (larceny) appeared in 6 cases and Article 120 (sexual assault) in 5. Article 128b (domestic violence), Article 133 (conduct unbecoming), and Article 134 (general article) each appeared in 4.
Panels and Installations
A military judge alone decided 17 cases. An enlisted panel heard 1 and officer panels heard 2. Members heard 15% of these cases, compared with 19% of all Army cases in 2023.
Fort Stewart tried 3 of these cases. Fort Carson, Fort McNair, Fort Bragg, and Fort Campbell tried 2 each. Together those five installations account for 55% of the 20 cases. Larger installations try more cases of every kind, so a high count alone does not mean a base has a problem with this offense.
What the Records Cannot Tell You
The records give trial dates, not offense dates. They do not describe the evidence or the terms of any plea agreement. Cases handled by nonjudicial punishment or administrative separation do not appear.
For what the offense covers and how it is defended, see Article 107 on the law firm's website. Dates and sources for the law changes: UCMJ change timeline.
How We Counted
Army courts-martial with a trial date in 2023 that charged Article 107 (20 cases), compared with all Army cases that year and with 2022.
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
- Article 107 (False Official Statements): Court-Martial Data and Trends (hub)
- By Year (hub)
- How Army False Official Statement Cases Ended in 2022 (previous / next)
- False Official Statement at Army Courts-Martial, 2024: The Year in Numbers (previous / next)
- Army Article 107 Cases by the Numbers, 2021–2025 (the full trend)
- False Official Statement at Army Courts-Martial, 2021: The Year in Numbers
- How Army False Official Statement Cases Ended in 2025
- Article 107 Sentences in the Army: Confinement and Discharges, 2021–2025
- Article 107 explained on the law firm's website
- 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.