What the Army Tried in July 2025
The Army tried 36 courts-martial in July 2025. Convicted enlisted members received a punitive discharge less often than across the year: 62%, compared with 73% for the Army in 2025. Only 2 of those discharges were dishonorable.
Understanding Trends in Military Practice · 6 min read
Short answer: The Army tried 36 courts-martial in July 2025. Convicted enlisted members received a punitive discharge less often than across the year: 62%, compared with 73% for the Army in 2025. Only 2 of those discharges were dishonorable. The median confinement was 6 months, compared with 8 months for the year.
Bad-Conduct Discharges, Few Dishonorable
Of enlisted convictions, 62% included a punitive discharge: 16 bad-conduct discharges and 2 dishonorable discharges. Only a general court-martial can impose a dishonorable discharge. A special court-martial can also impose a bad-conduct discharge.
Of 3 convicted officers or warrant officers, 2 were dismissed. Dismissal is the officer form of a punitive discharge. A member whose sentence has no punitive discharge can still be separated administratively, and these records do not show it.
Confinement Shorter Than the Yearly Median
Of the 32 convictions, 84% included confinement. Half of the terms were 6 months or less. A quarter were 1.2 years or more.
By length, 13 convictions (41%) carried under 6 months, compared with 36% for 2025. Another 6 (19%) carried 6 months to 1 year, compared with 15%. Terms over one year were given in 8 of 32 convictions (25%), compared with 30%. Of those, 3 (9%) were 5 years or more. Another 5 convictions (16%) carried no confinement, compared with 19%.
Sentences differed by court level. The median confinement was 9 months at general courts-martial (23 cases) and 3 months at special courts-martial (11 cases). A special court-martial cannot impose more than one year. The court level is not listed for 2 cases. All sentences are as adjudged at trial for every charge, before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal.
| Adjudged confinement | Convictions | Share here | Share, the Army for all of 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| No confinement | 5 | 16% | 19% |
| Under 6 months | 13 | 41% | 36% |
| 6 months to 1 year | 6 | 19% | 15% |
| More than 1 year, under 5 years | 5 | 16% | 18% |
| 5 years or more | 3 | 9% | 11% |
Assault and Offenses Against Superiors
Charge lists exist for 33 of the 36 cases. Each article counts once per case. Article 128 (assault) was charged in 8 cases (24%), compared with 19% for the year. Article 128b (domestic violence) was charged in 21%, lower than its 26% share for the year.
Offenses involving superiors were charged more often than in the full year. Article 91 (insubordinate conduct toward NCO) was charged in 9% of cases, compared with 1% for 2025. Article 89 (disrespect toward superior officer; assault of superior officer) was charged in 9%, compared with 2%. Article 86 (AWOL) was charged in 12%, compared with 3%. Article 80 (attempts) was charged in 12%, compared with 7%. Article 121 (larceny) was charged in 9%, compared with 6%.
| UCMJ Article | Cases | Share here | Share, the Army for all of 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Art. 128 Assault | 8 | 24% | 19% |
| Art. 128b Domestic violence | 7 | 21% | 26% |
| Art. 86 AWOL | 4 | 12% | 3% |
| Art. 80 Attempts | 4 | 12% | 7% |
| Art. 91 Insubordinate conduct toward NCO | 3 | 9% | 1% |
| Art. 89 Disrespect toward superior officer; assault of superior officer | 3 | 9% | 2% |
| Art. 92 Failure to obey order or regulation | 3 | 9% | 8% |
| Art. 121 Larceny | 3 | 9% | 6% |
Pleas and Contested Results
Pleas are recorded for 34 of the 36 cases: 25 guilty pleas and 9 contested cases. A contested case is one where the accused pleaded not guilty to at least one charge. The contested share was 26%, compared with 20% for the Army in 2025. It was 29% at general courts-martial and 18% at special courts-martial.
Of the 25 guilty pleas, 24 have a recorded plea agreement and 1 has no entry. Army records do not show what those agreements said. Of the contested cases that reached a verdict, 3 of 9 ended in a full acquittal.
Rank and Forum
The accused were 22 junior enlisted members (E-1 to E-4), 11 NCOs (E-5 to E-9), and 3 officers or warrant officers. This group was more junior than the Army as a whole in 2025, where 50% were junior enlisted.
A military judge alone decided guilt in 28 of 33 cases with a forum listed (85%). Enlisted panels heard 5. The accused usually chooses between a judge and members. Most judge-alone cases are guilty pleas.
Among cases with a court level listed, general courts-martial made up 68%, about the same as the 66% for the year.
Compared With July 2024
Both months had 36 cases. The contested share was 26%, compared with 28% in July 2024. Full acquittals in contested cases that reached a verdict were 3 of 9, compared with 5 of 10. The median confinement was 6 months, compared with 4 months. Punitive discharges for enlisted members were 62%, compared with 57%. The general court-martial share was 68%, compared with 61%.
Monthly groups are small, so a few cases can change any of these figures.
| July 2024 | July 2025 | |
|---|---|---|
| Cases | 36 | 36 |
| Contested (of pleas recorded) | 28% | 26% |
| Full acquittals (decided contested) | 5 of 10 | 3 of 9 |
| Convictions with confinement | 87% | 84% |
| Median confinement | 4 months | 6 months |
| Punitive discharge (enlisted) | 57% | 62% |
| General courts-martial | 61% | 68% |
The Post-2023 Rules
Since December 28, 2023, special trial counsel, not commanders, decide whether to prosecute covered offenses. These include 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 parameters.
Both rules depend on the offense date. The records give only trial dates. For that reason, trials in 2025 can include cases under either set of rules.
Installations and What Is Left Out
Fort Bliss, Vilseck (Europe), and Fort Stewart tried 3 cases each. Fort Hood and Fort Campbell tried 2 each. Together these installations account for 36% of the month. Larger installations try more cases overall.
The records show charges, pleas, findings, and sentences. They do not show evidence, plea terms, or conduct handled outside a court-martial.
Dates and sources for the law changes mentioned here: UCMJ change timeline.
How We Counted
Army courts-martial with a trial date in July 2025 (36 cases), compared with the whole year.
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
- Army Courts-Martial: Data and Trends (hub)
- By Year (hub)
- June 2025 at Army Courts-Martial: 44 Cases (previous / next)
- Army Courts-Martial, August 2025: The Month in Review (previous / next)
- Army Courts-Martial in 2025: Year in Review (the whole year)
- April 2023 at Army Courts-Martial: 49 Cases
- April 2024 at Army Courts-Martial: 46 Cases
- Army Courts-Martial, December 2024: The Month in Review
- 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.