Fewer or More? Child Sexual Abuse Charges at Army Courts-Martial, 2021–2025

Trends › By Offense › Article 120b › Army

Based on 197 cases · 2021–2025 · Army records · data updated October 24, 2026

The Yearly Share Stayed About the Same

The records show 43 cases in 2021, 41 in 2022, 37 in 2023, 42 in 2024, and 34 in 2025. Together, the 197 cases are 8% of the 2,422 Army courts-martial tried from 2021 through 2025.

The share of convictions allows a comparison across years with more or fewer cases overall. Article 120b was part of 8% of Army convictions with listed offenses in 2021, 7% in 2022, 7% in 2023, 8% in 2024, and 7% in 2025. The highest yearly number of convictions including Article 120b was 36, in 2021. In 2025 it was 29.

How Long Were Sentences?

166 of 172 convictions included confinement. The median confinement was 3.9 years, compared with 6 months for the Army as a whole. A quarter of the sentences were 11 years or longer. 1 was a life sentence.

130 of 172 convictions (76%) were sentenced to more than one year, compared with 28% of all Army cases in those years. These are adjudged sentences, announced at trial before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal. Each sentence covers every charge in the case.

Court Level

195 of the 196 cases with a court level listed were general courts-martial (99%). The court level is not listed for 1 case. A general court-martial can impose any lawful sentence, including long confinement and a dishonorable discharge. A special court-martial caps confinement at one year and cannot impose a dishonorable discharge.

Punitive Discharges and Dismissals

154 of 162 convicted enlisted members received a bad-conduct or dishonorable discharge (95%), compared with 73% for the Army as a whole. 117 of those were dishonorable discharges.

Officers receive a dismissal rather than a discharge. 10 officers or warrant officers were convicted, and 9 were dismissed. A sentence without a punitive discharge does not rule out a later administrative separation.

More Cases Were Contested

A case is contested when the accused pleads not guilty to at least one charge. Of 196 cases with a plea recorded, 78 were contested and 118 were guilty pleas. The contested share was 40%, higher than the 30% in the rest of the Army.

111 of the 118 guilty pleas are recorded with a plea agreement, and 7 have no entry. Army records say whether an agreement existed, not what it said.

Verdicts in Contested Cases

25 of 78 contested cases that reached a verdict ended in a full acquittal (32%). That rate is lower than the 38% in the rest of the Army. 31 cases ended in a partial acquittal: not guilty of at least one charge or specification but guilty of another.

The accused usually chooses between a military judge alone and a panel of members. 16 of 42 contested cases decided by members ended in a full acquittal (38%). 7 of 34 contested judge-alone cases ended in a full acquittal (21%). The cases each one heard are not alike, and the records do not show why the results differed.

Who Decided Guilt?

A military judge alone heard 150 cases, enlisted panels 37, and officer panels 8. Members heard 23% of the cases, compared with 18% Army-wide. Among contested cases, members heard 42 of 76 (55%). Guilty pleas are usually heard by a judge alone.

Other Charges in the Same Cases

122 of the 197 cases charged at least one other article. The most common were Article 134 (general article) in 56 cases, Article 128 (assault) in 29, Article 120 (sexual assault) in 25, Article 80 (attempt) in 20, and Article 131b (obstruction) in 11. Each sentence covers all of the charges in the case.

Installations and Rank

Fort Hood (19), Fort Bragg (19), Fort Stewart (15), Fort Campbell (14), and Fort Drum (13) tried the most cases. Together they account for 41% of the 197 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.

Junior enlisted members (E-1 to E-4) were 63% of the accused, compared with 55% in the rest of the Army. NCOs were 31% and officers 6%.

Law Changes and What the Data Leaves Out

Article 120b is a covered offense. Since December 28, 2023, special trial counsel, not commanders, decide whether to prosecute such offenses. When every guilty finding in a case is for an offense after December 27, 2023, the military judge sets the sentence within new sentencing parameters. The records give trial dates, not offense dates. Trials from 2024 on therefore include both old-rule and new-rule cases, and the records cannot separate them.

Cases resolved by nonjudicial punishment, administrative separation, or no action are not in these records. The records also do not describe the evidence or the terms of plea agreements.

For what the offense covers and how it is defended, see Article 120b on the law firm's website. Dates and sources for the law changes: UCMJ change timeline.

Compare: federal court. Child Sexual Abuse and Enticement: 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.