Army Courts-Martial, September 2025: The Month in Review

Trends › By Year › September 2025

Based on 31 cases · September 2025 · Army records · data updated October 24, 2026

Longer Sentences Than for the Year

Of the 31 cases, 27 ended in a conviction on at least one charge. Of those 27 sentences, 21 included confinement (78%). The median confinement was 1.5 years. For the Army as a whole in 2025, the median was 8 months. A quarter of the September sentences were 2.5 years or more.

These figures are adjudged sentences: the sentence announced at trial, before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal. Each one covers every charge in the case, so a long term may be for several offenses, not one.

Confinement by Length

Few terms were in the middle range. Only 1 conviction (4%) carried between 6 months and 1 year, compared with 15% for the year. Terms of more than 1 year but under 5 years made up 37% of convictions, compared with 18% Army-wide in 2025. Terms of 5 years or more were given in 3 convictions (11%), the same 11% as for the full year.

Overall, 13 of the 27 convictions (48%) carried more than one year of confinement, compared with 30% for the year. Only a general court-martial can adjudge a term that long. A special court-martial is limited to one year. At the short end, 6 convictions (22%) had no confinement, and 7 (26%) carried under 6 months.

More General Courts-Martial Than for the Year

Of the 31 trials, 21 were general courts-martial. The general share was 70% of the 30 cases with a court level listed, compared with 66% for the Army in 2025. A general court-martial can impose any lawful sentence, including long confinement and a dishonorable discharge or dismissal. A special court-martial is limited to one year of confinement. It can adjudge a bad-conduct discharge but not a dishonorable discharge.

The general court-martial share was also higher than in September 2024, when it was 61%.

Disobedience and Assault Charged More Often

Charge lists exist for 29 of the 31 cases. A case with several articles is counted under each one. Article 134 (general article) and Article 128 (assault) were the most common charges, with 7 cases each. Assault was charged in 24% of cases with a charge list, compared with 19% for the year.

Article 90 had the largest difference from the year: 5 cases, or 17%, compared with 6% Army-wide. Article 128b (domestic violence) was charged less often than for the year: 17% of cases, compared with 26% for 2025. Article 120 (sexual assault) was charged in 10%, about the same as the 11% for the year. Article 120b (rape and sexual assault of a child) was charged in 2 cases.

Almost Every Case Ended in a Guilty Plea

There were 27 guilty pleas, and only 4 cases were contested. A case is contested when the accused pleads not guilty to at least one charge, either to every charge or through a mixed plea. The contested share was 13%, lower than the 20% for the Army across 2025.

Plea agreements are recorded in 25 of the 27 guilty pleas, and 2 have no entry. Army records show only whether an agreement existed, not what it said. The records cannot show how many of these sentences were limited by an agreed range.

Who Decided Guilt

The accused usually chooses whether a military judge alone or a panel of members decides guilt. In September 2025, a military judge alone heard 28 cases. Members decided 3: 2 enlisted panels and 1 officer panel. The members' share was 10%, compared with 15% for the full year.

Most guilty pleas are heard by a judge alone, so this split mostly follows the small number of contested cases.

Discharges, Rank, and Installation

Of 25 convicted enlisted members, 16 received a bad-conduct or dishonorable discharge (64%). That rate was lower than the 73% for the Army in 2025. Of those 16, 4 were dishonorable discharges. Both convicted officers or warrant officers (2 in all) were dismissed. Dismissal is the officer form of a punitive discharge. A sentence without a punitive discharge does not rule out an administrative separation later.

By rank, the accused were 16 junior enlisted members, 13 NCOs, and 2 officers. This mix was similar to the year as a whole. Fort Bragg had the most cases (5), then Fort Campbell (4). Fort Riley, Kaiserslautern (Europe), and Fort Bliss had 3 each. Together these five installations account for 58% of the month's cases. Larger installations try more cases of every kind.

Compared With September 2024

September 2024 had 29 cases. September 2025 had 31. The median confinement was 1.5 years, compared with 7 months in September 2024. Punitive discharges for convicted enlisted members were 64%, compared with 59%. The contested share was 13%, compared with 10%. Convictions that included confinement were 78%, compared with 85%.

Monthly groups are small, and a few cases can change these figures. They show direction, not precise change.

Rules in Force and What the Records Leave Out

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 under new sentencing parameters. Both rules depend on the offense date, and these records do not include it. September 2025 trials may include cases under both the old and new rules. The records cannot show whether either change affected the numbers above.

The records also do not describe the evidence or plea terms. They do not include matters handled by nonjudicial punishment, administrative separation, or no action.

Dates and sources for the law changes mentioned here: UCMJ change timeline.

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.