November 2025 at Army Courts-Martial: 29 Cases
The Army tried 29 courts-martial in November 2025. Article 128b (domestic violence) was charged in 41% of them, compared with 26% for the Army across 2025. The contested share was 24%, slightly higher than the 20% for the year.
Understanding Trends in Military Practice · 6 min read
Trends › By Year › November 2025
Short answer: The Army tried 29 courts-martial in November 2025. Article 128b (domestic violence) was charged in 41% of them, compared with 26% for the Army across 2025. The contested share was 24%, slightly higher than the 20% for the year. The median confinement for convictions was 8 months, the same as the median for the year.
Domestic Violence Was the Most Common Charge
Charge lists exist for 27 of the 29 cases. Article 128b (domestic violence) was charged in 11 of them. No other article was close. Article 80 (attempts) and Article 134 (general article) were each charged in 4 cases (15%).
For Article 80, that share was higher than the 7% for the year. For Article 134, it was lower than the 22% for 2025. Article 120b (child sexual abuse) and Article 120 (rape and sexual assault) were each charged in 3 cases (11%). A case with several articles is counted under each of them.
| UCMJ Article | Cases | Share here | Share, the Army for all of 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Art. 128b Domestic violence | 11 | 41% | 26% |
| Art. 80 Attempts | 4 | 15% | 7% |
| Art. 134 General article | 4 | 15% | 22% |
| Art. 120b Rape and sexual assault of a child | 3 | 11% | 8% |
| Art. 120 Rape and sexual assault | 3 | 11% | 11% |
| Art. 131b Obstructing justice | 2 | 7% | 4% |
| Art. 121 Larceny | 2 | 7% | 6% |
| Art. 87a Resistance, flight, breach of arrest | 1 | 4% | 1% |
Pleas, Agreements, and Acquittals
The accused pleaded guilty in 22 cases and contested 7. A contested case is one with a not-guilty plea to at least one charge. The contested share was 24%, compared with 20% for the Army in 2025.
All 22 guilty pleas are recorded with a plea agreement. The records show that each agreement existed but not what it said.
Of the contested cases that reached a verdict, 3 of 5 ended in a full acquittal. In a full acquittal, the accused is found not guilty of every charge.
Median and Long Confinement Terms
Of 24 convictions on at least one charge, 20 included confinement (83%). The median confinement was 8 months, the same as the median for the year. A quarter of terms were 3.5 years or more.
More than one year of confinement was given in 8 of 24 convictions (33%), compared with 30% for the year. Terms of 5 years or more made up 12%, about the same as 11%. Terms under 6 months made up 33%, compared with 36%. Another 17% of convictions had no confinement, compared with 19%.
Each figure is the sentence adjudged at trial and covers every charge in the case. It does not reflect any later plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal.
| Adjudged confinement | Convictions | Share here | Share, the Army for all of 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| No confinement | 4 | 17% | 19% |
| Under 6 months | 8 | 33% | 36% |
| 6 months to 1 year | 4 | 17% | 15% |
| More than 1 year, under 5 years | 5 | 21% | 18% |
| 5 years or more | 3 | 12% | 11% |
Discharges for Enlisted Members and Officers
Of 19 convicted enlisted members, 14 received a punitive discharge. Of those, 12 were bad-conduct discharges and 2 were dishonorable. For the Army in 2025, the share was 73%.
The month also had 5 convicted officers or warrant officers, and 2 were dismissed. Dismissal is the officer form of a punitive discharge. A sentence with no punitive discharge can still be followed by an administrative separation.
A More Senior Group of Accused
The accused were 13 junior enlisted members, 10 NCOs, and 6 officers or warrant officers. This mix was more senior than the Army over the year, where 50% were junior enlisted.
General courts-martial made up 20 of the 29 cases (69%, compared with 66% for the year). A general court-martial can impose any lawful sentence, including a dishonorable discharge. Special courts-martial, which are limited to one year of confinement and cannot impose a dishonorable discharge, made up the rest.
Members Heard More Cases Than for the Year
A military judge alone decided 22 cases. Enlisted panels decided 4 and officer panels decided 3. Members heard 24% of the cases, compared with 15% for the Army in 2025. In most cases the accused chooses between a judge and members. Guilty pleas are almost always heard by a judge alone.
Installations
Fort Hood tried 5 cases, Fort Campbell 4, Fort McNair and Fort Wainwright 3 each, and Fort Benning 2. Together these installations account for 59% of the 29 cases. Installations with more soldiers try more cases of all kinds.
Compared With November 2024
November 2024 had 38 cases. November 2025 had 29. The contested share was 24%, compared with 18% in November 2024. The median confinement was 8 months, compared with 6 months. Full acquittals in contested cases that reached a verdict were 3 of 5, compared with 3 of 7. Convictions that included confinement were 83% in both months, and enlisted punitive discharges were 74% in both. The general court-martial share was 69%, compared with 74%. Monthly groups are small, so these changes show direction only.
| November 2024 | November 2025 | |
|---|---|---|
| Cases | 38 | 29 |
| Contested (of pleas recorded) | 18% | 24% |
| Full acquittals (decided contested) | 3 of 7 | 3 of 5 |
| Convictions with confinement | 83% | 83% |
| Median confinement | 6 months | 8 months |
| Punitive discharge (enlisted) | 74% | 74% |
| General courts-martial | 74% | 69% |
Law Changes and Missing Information
Since December 28, 2023, special trial counsel, not commanders, decide whether to prosecute covered offenses. These include sexual assault, domestic violence, and murder. Judges sentence within new parameters when every guilty finding is for an offense after December 27, 2023. The records do not give offense dates. They cannot separate cases under the old and new rules or connect any change to the rules. Evidence, plea terms, and nonjudicial punishment are 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 2025 (29 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)
- What the Army Tried in October 2025 (previous / next)
- Army Courts-Martial, December 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, 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.