November 2023 at Army Courts-Martial: 31 Cases
The Army tried 31 courts-martial in November 2023. The median confinement was 9 months, longer than the 6 months for the Army across 2023. General courts-martial made up 97% of cases with a court level listed, compared with 76% for the year.
Understanding Trends in Military Practice · 6 min read
Trends › By Year › November 2023
Short answer: The Army tried 31 courts-martial in November 2023. The median confinement was 9 months, longer than the 6 months for the Army across 2023. General courts-martial made up 97% of cases with a court level listed, compared with 76% for the year. Of convicted enlisted members, 88% received a punitive discharge, compared with 74%.
Almost All General Courts-Martial
Army cases are tried at general or special courts-martial. A general court-martial can adjudge any lawful sentence, including long confinement and a dishonorable discharge. A special court-martial is limited to one year of confinement and cannot impose a dishonorable discharge.
In November 2023, 28 cases were general courts-martial and only 1 was a special court-martial. The court level is not listed for 2 cases. The general share was 97%, much higher than the 76% for the Army in 2023. This is relevant to the sentences below.
Longer Terms Than for the Year
Of 28 convictions, 26 included confinement. The median confinement was 9 months. A quarter of terms were 1.5 years or longer.
More terms were in the middle and upper ranges than for the year. Terms from 6 months to 1 year made up 29% of convictions, compared with 16% for the year. Terms of more than 1 year but under 5 years made up 36%, compared with 21%. In all, 10 of 28 convictions (36%) carried more than one year, compared with 28%. No conviction carried 5 years or more, compared with 8% for the year. Only 7% had no confinement, compared with 16%.
These are adjudged sentences. They cover every charge in the case and come before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal.
| Adjudged confinement | Convictions | Share here | Share, the Army for all of 2023 |
|---|---|---|---|
| No confinement | 2 | 7% | 16% |
| Under 6 months | 8 | 29% | 39% |
| 6 months to 1 year | 8 | 29% | 16% |
| More than 1 year, under 5 years | 10 | 36% | 21% |
| 5 years or more | 0 | 0% | 8% |
Most Convictions Included a Discharge
Of 25 convicted enlisted members, 22 received a bad-conduct or dishonorable discharge (88%). That rate was higher than the 74% for the Army that year. Of those 22, 5 were dishonorable discharges. The month also had 3 convicted officers or warrant officers, and 1 was dismissed. Dismissal is the officer form of a punitive discharge.
A sentence without a punitive discharge can still be followed by an administrative separation. These records do not track administrative separation.
The General Article Was the Most Common Charge
Of 31 records, 30 list charges. Each article counts once per case, so a case charging both domestic violence and the general article appears in both rows. Article 134 (general article) was charged in 11 cases (37%), compared with 24% for the year. Article 128b (domestic violence) was charged in 6 (20%, compared with 21%). Article 120 (rape and sexual assault) was charged in 5 (17%, compared with 21%).
Article 90 (willfully disobeying a superior officer) was charged in 13% of cases, compared with 7%. Article 121 (larceny) was charged in 10%, compared with 5%. Article 128 (assault) was charged in only 3 cases (10%), compared with 26% for the year.
| UCMJ Article | Cases | Share here | Share, the Army for all of 2023 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Art. 134 General article | 11 | 37% | 24% |
| Art. 128b Domestic violence | 6 | 20% | 21% |
| Art. 120 Rape and sexual assault | 5 | 17% | 21% |
| Art. 90 Willfully disobeying superior officer | 4 | 13% | 7% |
| Art. 80 Attempts | 3 | 10% | 8% |
| Art. 121 Larceny | 3 | 10% | 5% |
| Art. 92 Failure to obey order or regulation | 3 | 10% | 11% |
| Art. 128 Assault | 3 | 10% | 26% |
Pleas and Panels
A contested case is one where the accused pleads not guilty to at least one charge. The month had 9 contested cases and 22 guilty pleas. The contested share was 29%, compared with 31% for the year. Plea agreements are recorded for 20 of the 22 guilty pleas, and 2 have no entry. The records show whether an agreement existed, not its terms.
In most cases, the accused chooses whether a military judge alone or a panel of members decides guilt. A military judge alone decided 25 cases, and enlisted panels decided 6. No officer panel heard a case. Members heard 19% of the cases, the same as the 19% for the year. Most judge-alone trials are guilty pleas.
Rank and Installation
The accused were 17 junior enlisted members, 11 NCOs, and 3 officers. This mix was similar to the Army in 2023. Officers here include warrant officers. For officers, dismissal takes the place of a punitive discharge.
No installation tried more than 3 cases. Fort Sill, Fort Hood, and Fort Polk tried 3 each, and Fort Benning and Fort Wainwright tried 2 each. Together these installations account for 42% of the 31 cases. Larger installations try more cases overall.
Compared With November 2022
November 2022 had 46 cases. November 2023 had 31. The median confinement was 9 months, compared with 4 months in November 2022. Convictions that included confinement were 93%, compared with 80%. Enlisted punitive discharges were 88%, compared with 72%. The general court-martial share was 97%, compared with 73%.
The contested share was 29%, compared with 37%. Full acquittals in contested cases that reached a verdict were 3 of 9, compared with 6 of 17. With so few cases, a few results can change these figures. They show direction, not a firm trend.
| November 2022 | November 2023 | |
|---|---|---|
| Cases | 46 | 31 |
| Contested (of pleas recorded) | 37% | 29% |
| Full acquittals (decided contested) | 6 of 17 | 3 of 9 |
| Convictions with confinement | 80% | 93% |
| Median confinement | 4 months | 9 months |
| Punitive discharge (enlisted) | 72% | 88% |
| General courts-martial | 73% | 97% |
What the Records Do Not Show
These records cover only cases that reached a courtroom. Nonjudicial punishment, administrative separations, and cases closed without action are not included. The evidence, the plea terms, and the offense dates are also not included.
Dates and sources for the law changes mentioned here: UCMJ change timeline.
How We Counted
Army courts-martial with a trial date in November 2023 (31 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)
- October 2023 at Army Courts-Martial: 35 Cases (previous / next)
- What the Army Tried in December 2023 (previous / next)
- The Army Court-Martial Year, 2023 (the whole year)
- April 2023 at Army Courts-Martial: 49 Cases
- April 2024 at Army Courts-Martial: 46 Cases
- Army Courts-Martial, August 2025: The Month in Review
- 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.