How Has Article 129 Changed in Army Courts-Martial Since 2021?

Trends › By Offense › Article 129 › Army

Based on 40 cases · 2021–2025 · Army records · data updated October 24, 2026

Punitive Discharges After Conviction

Of 33 convicted enlisted members, 30 received a punitive discharge: 24 bad-conduct discharges and 6 dishonorable discharges. In the rest of the Army in the same years, the share was 73%.

All 3 convicted officers or warrant officers were sentenced to dismissal, the officer equivalent of a punitive discharge. A sentence without a punitive discharge does not rule out a later administrative separation.

Confinement After Conviction

Of 36 convictions, 32 included confinement. The median confinement was 9 months, compared with 6 months in the rest of the Army. A quarter of the sentences were 2.2 years or longer.

Sentences of 5 years or more were 19% of convictions here (7 of 36), compared with 8% Army-wide. Sentences longer than one year were 12 of 36 convictions (33%), compared with 28%. Sentences under 6 months were 25%, compared with 39%.

These are adjudged sentences, set at trial before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal. Each covers every charge in the case. That matters here because Article 129 was never the only charge.

Other Charges in Every Case

Article 129 was the only charge in 0 of the 40 cases. The most common other charges were Article 128 (assault) in 16 cases and Article 121 (larceny) in 11. Article 80 (attempt), Article 92 (orders violation), and Article 128b (domestic violence) were each charged in 10.

The records do not describe the facts behind any charge. A sentence in these cases also covers the other charges.

Court Level and Rank

Of the 40 cases, 35 were general courts-martial (88%), compared with 73% across the Army. A general court-martial can impose any lawful sentence, including long confinement and a dishonorable discharge. A special court-martial can impose no more than one year of confinement and cannot impose a dishonorable discharge.

The accused were more junior than in the Army overall. There were 26 junior enlisted members (E-1 to E-4), 11 NCOs (E-5 to E-9), and 3 officers or warrant officers. Across all Army cases in those years, 55% were junior enlisted.

Pleas, Forum, and Verdicts

Of the 40 cases, 27 were guilty pleas and 13 were contested. A case is contested when the accused pleads not guilty to at least one charge. The contested share was 32%, compared with 30% across the Army.

Of the 27 guilty pleas, 25 are recorded with a plea agreement and 2 have no entry. Army records show whether there was an agreement but not its terms.

Members decided 22% of cases with the forum listed. All 9 were enlisted panels. A judge alone decided the other 31. In contested cases, members decided 9 of 13 (69%).

Of the 13 contested cases that reached a verdict, 4 ended in a full acquittal and 8 ended in a partial acquittal. The full acquittal rate of 31% is lower than the 38% across the Army. A partial acquittal means not guilty of at least one charge but guilty of another. Army results list findings charge by charge, so partial acquittals are common.

Cases and Convictions by Year

The records show 40 cases between January 2021 and July 2025. There were 7 in 2021, 11 in 2022, 14 in 2023, 5 in 2024, and 3 in 2025. The 2025 count covers part of the year. These cases were 2% of the 2,422 Army courts-martial in those years.

Convictions that included Article 129 were 6 in 2021, 9 in 2022, 9 in 2023, 5 in 2024, and 2 in 2025. As a share of Army convictions with offenses listed, they were 2% in 2021–2022 and 1% in 2024–2025, about the same share. Shares keep years with more or fewer total cases comparable.

Where the Cases Were Tried

Joint Base Lewis-McChord and Fort Sill had 4 cases each. Fort Campbell, Fort Wainwright, and Fort Riley had 3 each. Together these 5 installations account for 42% of the 40 cases. Larger installations try more cases of every kind, so a high count does not show a problem with burglary at any one base.

Rule Changes and What the Records Do Not Show

Since December 28, 2023, special trial counsel, not commanders, decide whether to prosecute covered offenses such as sexual assault, domestic violence, and murder. 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. Both rules depend on the offense date, which the records do not give. Trials from 2024 on therefore include cases under the old rules and the new rules.

The records do not show the evidence or the plea terms. They do not include burglaries handled by nonjudicial punishment or administrative separation. The services were required to begin publishing trial records under Article 140a by December 2020, and Army records in this data are sparse before 2021.

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

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.