Army Article 90 Cases in 2025
The Army tried 24 courts-martial in 2025 that charged Article 90 (disobeying an officer). Only 8% were contested, compared with 20% in all Army cases in 2025.
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Trends › By Offense › Article 90 › Army, 2025
Short answer: The Army tried 24 courts-martial in 2025 that charged Article 90 (disobeying an officer). Only 8% were contested, compared with 20% in all Army cases in 2025. The median confinement was 9 months, close to the 8 months across the Army, but terms longer than one year came in 42% of convictions, compared with 30%.
Many Short Terms and Many Long Terms
Of the 24 convictions, 11 carried confinement under 6 months (46%), more often than the 36% Army-wide. Another 7 carried more than 1 year but under 5 years (29%), compared with 18%, and 3 carried 5 years or more (12%), compared with 11%.
Terms of 6 months to 1 year were less common: 2 convictions (8%), compared with 15%. Only 1 conviction (4%) carried no confinement, compared with 19% for all Army cases in 2025. Only a general court-martial can adjudge more than one year of confinement.
| Adjudged confinement | Convictions | Share here | Share, all Army cases in 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| No confinement | 1 | 4% | 19% |
| Under 6 months | 11 | 46% | 36% |
| 6 months to 1 year | 2 | 8% | 15% |
| More than 1 year, under 5 years | 7 | 29% | 18% |
| 5 years or more | 3 | 12% | 11% |
Median and Upper Range
Confinement was part of 23 of the 24 sentences. The median was 9 months, close to the 8 months for all Army cases in 2025. A quarter of the sentences with confinement were 1.5 years or longer.
These are adjudged sentences, before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal. A sentence covers every charge in the case.
Assault and Domestic Violence Charges
Article 90 was the only charge in 4 of the 24 cases. Article 128 (assault) appeared in 10 cases and Article 128b (domestic violence) in 8. Article 107 (false official statement), Article 120 (sexual assault), and Article 134 (general article) each appeared in 2.
Guilty Pleas in 22 Cases
Of the 24 accused, 22 pleaded guilty and 2 entered a not-guilty or mixed plea, which makes a case contested. All 22 guilty pleas are recorded with a plea agreement. Army records say whether an agreement existed, not what it said.
A military judge alone decided guilt in 23 of the 24 cases (96%). Members heard 1, with an enlisted panel.
Changes From 2024
The number of cases went from 28 in 2024 to 24 in 2025. The contested share went from 18% to 8%, and the median confinement went from 6 months to 9 months. Convictions with confinement were 96% in both years, and general courts-martial were 78% in both years.
Full acquittals in contested cases that reached a verdict went from 1 of 5 to 0 of 2. With groups this small, a few cases can move these figures.
| 2024 | 2025 | |
|---|---|---|
| Cases | 28 | 24 |
| Contested (of pleas recorded) | 18% | 8% |
| Full acquittals (decided contested) | 1 of 5 | 0 of 2 |
| Convictions with confinement | 96% | 96% |
| Median confinement | 6 months | 9 months |
| Punitive discharge (enlisted) | 72% | 76% |
| General courts-martial | 78% | 78% |
Discharges and Dismissals
A punitive discharge followed 76% of enlisted convictions (14 bad-conduct, 2 dishonorable), compared with 73% in all Army cases in 2025. Of the 3 convicted officers or warrant officers, 1 was dismissed. A sentence without a punitive discharge does not rule out a later administrative separation.
Rank, Court Level, and Installations
The accused included 15 junior enlisted members, 6 NCOs, and 3 officers. The group was more junior than all Army cases in 2025. The cases included 18 general and 5 special courts-martial, with 1 not listed. The general share was 78%, compared with 66% Army-wide. A special court-martial caps confinement at one year and cannot impose a dishonorable discharge.
Fort Campbell tried 5 of these cases. Fort Polk and Joint Base Lewis-McChord each tried 3, and Camp Humphreys and Fort Hood each tried 2. Together these five installations tried 62% of the 24 cases. Larger installations try more cases of every kind.
Rule Changes and Limits
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 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, so 2025 trials mix cases under the old and new rules.
The records do not describe the evidence or the plea terms, and they do not include cases handled by nonjudicial punishment or administrative separation.
For what the offense covers and how it is defended, see Article 90 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 2025 that charged Article 90 (24 cases), compared with all Army cases that year and with 2024.
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 90 (Willfully Disobeying Superior Officer): Court-Martial Data and Trends (hub)
- By Year (hub)
- How Army Disobeying An Officer Cases Ended in 2024 (previous / next)
- Is Army Disobeying An Officer Prosecution Rising or Falling? Article 90, 2021–2025 (the full trend)
- Army Article 90 Cases in 2022
- Disobeying An Officer at Army Courts-Martial, 2021: The Year in Numbers
- Disobeying An Officer at Army Courts-Martial, 2023: The Year in Numbers
- AWOL at Army Courts-Martial, 2021: The Year in Numbers
- Article 90 Sentences in the Army: Confinement and Discharges, 2021–2025
- Article 90 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.