Army Cases Charging Both Article 107 and Article 121

Trends › By Offense › Article 107 › Army, with Article 121

Based on 47 cases · 2021–2026 · Army records · data updated October 24, 2026

A Group Made Up Mostly of NCOs

32 of the 47 accused were NCOs (E-5 to E-9). 8 were junior enlisted members (E-1 to E-4), and 7 were officers or warrant officers. Across all Army Article 107 cases, 42% of the accused were junior enlisted, so this group was more senior.

7 convicted officers or warrant officers appear in these records, and 4 were dismissed. Dismissal is the officer equivalent of a punitive discharge.

Few Full Acquittals in Contested Cases

13 of the 47 cases were contested, meaning the accused pleaded not guilty to at least one charge. Of those 13 cases that reached a verdict, 1 ended in a full acquittal (8%). Across Army Article 107 cases, the full-acquittal rate was 18%.

9 of the 13 contested cases ended in a partial acquittal. In a partial acquittal, the accused is found not guilty of at least one charge or specification and guilty of another. Army results list findings charge by charge, so partial acquittals are common in Army records.

Guilty Pleas and Plea Agreements

34 of the 47 cases ended in a guilty plea. The contested share was 28%, lower than the 37% across Army Article 107 cases. 32 of the 34 guilty pleas are recorded with a plea agreement, and 2 have no entry. Army records state whether an agreement existed, not its terms.

A military judge alone decided guilt in 38 of 47 cases (81%). Members heard 9, all of them enlisted panels. Among contested cases, members heard 8 of 13 (62%). The accused usually chooses the forum, and most judge-alone cases are guilty pleas.

Short Confinement Terms

46 of the 47 cases ended in a conviction. Confinement was part of 72% of those sentences. Half of the confinement terms were 4 months or less, compared with a median of 5 months across Army Article 107 cases. A quarter of the sentences were 7 months or longer.

Only 4 of 46 convictions (9%) carried more than one year, compared with 19% in the rest of the Army. Sentences under 6 months were 48% of convictions here and 41% elsewhere. No confinement was 28% here and 27% elsewhere. Sentences of 5 years or more were 7% in both groups.

These are adjudged sentences, announced at trial before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal. Each covers every charge in the case.

Sentences at Each Court Level

28 of the 46 cases with a court level listed were general courts-martial (61%), compared with 63% across Army Article 107 cases. In those 28, 86% of convictions included confinement, with a median of 5 months. In the 18 special courts-martial, 47% of convictions included confinement, with a median of 2 months. The court level is not listed for 1 case.

A general court-martial can impose any lawful sentence, including more than one year of confinement and a dishonorable discharge. A special court-martial caps confinement at one year and cannot impose a dishonorable discharge.

Bad-Conduct and Dishonorable Discharges

59% of enlisted convictions in this group ended with a punitive discharge: 19 bad-conduct discharges and 4 dishonorable discharges. Across Army Article 107 cases, the share was 60%. A sentence without a punitive discharge does not rule out a later administrative separation.

Other Charges in These Cases

Article 121 appeared in all 47 cases, since that defines this group. Article 134, the general article, appeared in 7. Article 92, failure to obey an order or regulation, appeared in 6, as did Article 105, forgery. Article 128, assault, appeared in 5.

Years and Installations

The cases were tried from January 2021 to September 2026. There were 13 in 2021, 9 in 2022, 6 in 2023, 4 in 2024, 8 in 2025, and 7 in 2026, a partial year.

Fort Hood had the most cases (5). Wheeler Army Airfield and Camp Humphreys had 4 each, and Fort McNair and Vilseck (Europe) had 3 each. These five installations account for 40% of the 47 cases. Larger installations try more cases of every kind, so a high count alone says little about any one installation.

What the Records Do Not Show

Only cases that reached a court-martial are counted. Nonjudicial punishment, administrative separation, and cases with no action are not included, and the records do not describe the evidence or plea terms. They also give trial dates, not offense dates. Since December 28, 2023, special trial counsel decide whether to prosecute covered offenses, and new sentencing parameters apply to offenses after December 27, 2023. Without offense dates, trials from 2024 on cannot be sorted into old-rule and new-rule cases.

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.

Compare: federal court. Theft and Fraud: Federal Sentences vs. Army Courts-Martial

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.