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# Army Courts-Martial, May 2023: The Month in Review
- URL: https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/army-courts-martial-may-2023/
- Published: 2026-10-28T06:52:44.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-30T08:06:46.000Z
- Description: The Army tried 57 courts-martial in May 2023. Of convicted enlisted members, 88% received a punitive discharge, compared with 74% for the Army across 2023. Article 128 (assault) was charged in 33% of cases, compared with 26% for the year.
- Author: Jocelyn C. Stewart
- Tags: Understanding Trends, Army

[Trends](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/) › [By Year](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/by-year/) › May 2023

**Short answer:** The Army tried 57 courts-martial in May 2023\. Of convicted enlisted members, 88% received a punitive discharge, compared with 74% for the Army across 2023\. Article 128 (assault) was charged in 33% of cases, compared with 26% for the year. Of 15 contested cases that reached a verdict, 7 ended in a full acquittal (47%).

Based on 57 cases · May 2023 · Army records · data updated October 24, 2026

## More Punitive Discharges

For enlisted members, a punitive discharge is a bad-conduct or dishonorable discharge. Officers receive a dismissal instead. In May 2023, 42 of 48 convicted enlisted members received a punitive discharge: 29 bad-conduct and 13 dishonorable. Across the Army in 2023, the share was 74%.

The month also had 2 convicted officers or warrant officers, and 1 was dismissed. When a sentence has no punitive discharge, the service can still pursue administrative separation. These records do not cover administrative separation.

## Compared With May 2022

The discharge rate was also higher than a year earlier: 88%, compared with 73% in May 2022\. May 2023 had 57 cases, compared with 62 in May 2022.

The contested share was 26%, compared with 34%. Full acquittals in contested cases that reached a verdict were 7 of 15, compared with 6 of 21\. The median confinement was 6 months, compared with 8 months. Convictions that included confinement were 90%, compared with 84%. The general court-martial share was 77% in both months. Monthly groups are small and a few cases can change them, so these comparisons show direction only.

|                                     | May 2022 | May 2023 |
| ----------------------------------- | -------- | -------- |
| Cases                               | 62       | 57       |
| Contested (of pleas recorded)       | 34%      | 26%      |
| Full acquittals (decided contested) | 6 of 21  | 7 of 15  |
| Convictions with confinement        | 84%      | 90%      |
| Median confinement                  | 8 months | 6 months |
| Punitive discharge (enlisted)       | 73%      | 88%      |
| General courts-martial              | 77%      | 77%      |

## Assault and Sexual Assault Charged More Often

All 57 records list charges. Each article is counted once per case. Article 128 (assault) was charged in 19 cases (33%). Article 120 (rape and sexual assault) was charged in 15 cases (26%, compared with 21% for the year). Article 128b (domestic violence) was charged in 13 cases (23%, compared with 21%).

Article 112a (drug offenses) was charged in 14% of cases, compared with 8%. Article 115 (communicating threats) was charged in 9%, compared with 3%. Article 134 (general article) was charged less often: 19% of cases, compared with 24%.

| UCMJ Article                                                                                                                                       | Cases | Share here | Share, the Army for all of 2023 |
| -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ----- | ---------- | ------------------------------- |
| [Art. 128](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/practice-areas/court-martial/article-128/?ref=bodiesburied.com) Assault                                   | 19    | 33%        | 26%                             |
| [Art. 120](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/ucmj/article-120-sexual-assault/?ref=bodiesburied.com) Rape and sexual assault                            | 15    | 26%        | 21%                             |
| [Art. 128b](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/ucmj/article-128b-domestic-violence/?ref=bodiesburied.com) Domestic violence                             | 13    | 23%        | 21%                             |
| [Art. 134](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/practice-areas/court-martial/article-134/?ref=bodiesburied.com) General article                           | 11    | 19%        | 24%                             |
| [Art. 112a](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/ucmj/article-112a-drug-offenses/?ref=bodiesburied.com) Wrongful use, possession of controlled substances | 8     | 14%        | 8%                              |
| [Art. 92](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/practice-areas/court-martial/article-92/?ref=bodiesburied.com) Failure to obey order or regulation         | 8     | 14%        | 11%                             |
| [Art. 115](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/practice-areas/court-martial/article-115/?ref=bodiesburied.com) Communicating threats                     | 5     | 9%         | 3%                              |
| [Art. 120b](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/practice-areas/court-martial/article-120b/?ref=bodiesburied.com) Rape and sexual assault of a child      | 4     | 7%         | 8%                              |

## Convictions on the Charged Article

Almost all assault cases ended in a conviction for assault: 18 of 19 (95%). The median confinement for those convictions was 4 months. Article 128b cases ended in a conviction in 12 of 13 (92%), with a median of 6 months. Article 134 cases ended in a conviction in 9 of 11 (82%), with a median of 2.6 years.

Article 120 had the lowest conviction rate, 9 of 15 (60%). Those convictions had a median of 2 years. The rows overlap, because one case can include a conviction on one article and an acquittal on another.

| Article                          | Cases charging it | Convicted of it (share) | Median confinement when convicted of it |
| -------------------------------- | ----------------- | ----------------------- | --------------------------------------- |
| Art. 128 Assault                 | 19                | 18 (95%)                | 4 months                                |
| Art. 120 Rape and sexual assault | 15                | 9 (60%)                 | 2 years                                 |
| Art. 128b Domestic violence      | 13                | 12 (92%)                | 6 months                                |
| Art. 134 General article         | 11                | 9 (82%)                 | 2.6 years                               |

## Fewer Contested Cases, More Full Acquittals

Only 15 cases were contested, compared with 42 guilty pleas. A contested case is one where the accused pleaded not guilty to at least one charge. The contested share was 26%, compared with 31% for the year. All 42 guilty pleas are recorded with a plea agreement. The records do not say what the agreements contained.

Of those 15 contested cases, 7 ended in a full acquittal (47%). That rate was higher than the 39% for the Army in 2023\. Another 6 (40%) ended in a partial acquittal: not guilty of at least one charge or specification and guilty of another. Army results record the finding on each charge.

Of assault cases, 74% ended in a guilty plea (14 of 19), the highest rate among the most common charges. Of Article 120 cases, 53% did (8 of 15).

## Confinement Terms

Of 50 convictions, 45 included confinement (90%). The median confinement was 6 months, the same as the median for the year. A quarter of terms were 1.8 years or more. More than one year was given in 15 of 50 convictions (30%), about the same as the 28% for the year. Terms of 5 years or more made up 10%, compared with 8%.

The 43 general courts-martial had a median confinement of 11 months, and 33% were contested. The 13 special courts-martial had a median of 2 months, and 8% were contested. The court level is not listed for 1 case. Sentences are as adjudged, before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal.

| Adjudged confinement            | Convictions | Share here | Share, the Army for all of 2023 |
| ------------------------------- | ----------- | ---------- | ------------------------------- |
| No confinement                  | 5           | 10%        | 16%                             |
| Under 6 months                  | 22          | 44%        | 39%                             |
| 6 months to 1 year              | 8           | 16%        | 16%                             |
| More than 1 year, under 5 years | 10          | 20%        | 21%                             |
| 5 years or more                 | 5           | 10%        | 8%                              |

## Forum, Rank, and Installation

A military judge alone decided 48 cases. Of cases with a forum listed, members heard 16%: 7 enlisted panels and 2 officer panels. Members heard 9 of the 15 contested cases (60%).

Junior enlisted members made up 63% of the accused, NCOs 32%, and officers 5%. For the year, 56% were junior enlisted. General courts-martial made up 77% of cases with a court level listed, compared with 76%.

Fort Stewart tried 7 cases, Fort Bragg 6, Fort Hood 5, and Vilseck (Europe) and Fort Sill 4 each. Together these installations account for 46% of the month. Larger installations try more cases overall.

## What the Records Do Not Show

Only cases that reached a courtroom are included. Nonjudicial punishment, administrative separations, cases with no action, evidence, and plea terms are not in the records.

Dates and sources for the law changes mentioned here: [UCMJ change timeline](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/ucmj-change-timeline/).

### How We Counted

Army courts-martial with a trial date in May 2023 (57 cases), compared with the whole year.

Source: public court-martial records (Article 140a, UCMJ) in [Military Trial Results](https://www.bodiesburied.com/military-trial-results/), data updated October 24, 2026\. Definitions, sources, and known gaps: [how this data was built](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/how-the-military-trial-results-data-was-built/). Errors: content@bodiesburied.com.

## Related Analysis

- [Army Courts-Martial: Data and Trends](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/army-courts-martial/) (hub)
- [By Year](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/by-year/) (hub)
- [April 2023 at Army Courts-Martial: 49 Cases](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/army-courts-martial-april-2023/) (previous / next)
- [Army Courts-Martial, June 2023: The Month in Review](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/army-courts-martial-june-2023/) (previous / next)
- [The Army Court-Martial Year, 2023](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/army-courts-martial-2023-year-in-review/) (the whole year)
- [April 2024 at Army Courts-Martial: 46 Cases](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/army-courts-martial-april-2024/)
- [Army Courts-Martial, August 2025: The Month in Review](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/army-courts-martial-august-2025/)
- [Army Courts-Martial, December 2024: The Month in Review](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/army-courts-martial-december-2024/)
- [Search every case in Military Trial Results](https://www.bodiesburied.com/military-trial-results/) (members)

← Previous: [April 2023 at Army Courts-Martial: 49 Cases](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/army-courts-martial-april-2023/)Next: [Army Courts-Martial, June 2023: The Month in Review](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/army-courts-martial-june-2023/) →

**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](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/?ref=bodiesburied.com). This analysis is for education and information only. It is not legal advice, and every case is different.