When Article 109 and Article 115 Are Charged Together, How Do Cases End?
From 2021–2024, 12 Army, Navy, and Marine Corps courts-martial charged both Article 109 (property damage) and Article 115 (malingering before 2019; communicating threats since).
Understanding Trends in Military Practice · 4 min read
Trends › By Offense › Article 109 › With Article 115
Short answer: From 2021–2024, 12 Army, Navy, and Marine Corps courts-martial charged both Article 109 (property damage) and Article 115 (malingering before 2019; communicating threats since). The median confinement was 10 months, compared with 6 months in all Army, Navy, and Marine Corps cases charging Article 109. 82% of convicted enlisted members received a punitive discharge, against 57%.
Confinement in Every Sentence
The records show 11 convictions, and all 11 carried confinement. The middle sentence was 10 months, longer than the 6 months for all Army, Navy, and Marine Corps cases charging Article 109.
A quarter of the terms were 1.7 years or longer. Each is the sentence adjudged at trial, covering every charge in the case, and does not reflect any later plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal.
Punitive Discharges
A punitive discharge followed 82% of enlisted convictions: 7 bad-conduct discharges and 2 dishonorable discharges. In all Army, Navy, and Marine Corps cases charging Article 109, the share was 57%. A sentence without a punitive discharge can still be followed by an administrative separation.
Assault and Domestic Violence Charges
Article 115 (communicating threats) was charged in all 12 cases. Article 128 (assault) appeared in 7, Article 128b (domestic violence) in 5, Article 92 (orders violation) in 5, and Article 120 (sexual assault) in 4. The sentences above cover these charges too.
General Courts-Martial
General courts-martial heard 8 of the 12 cases (67%), and special courts-martial heard the rest. A general court-martial can impose long confinement and a dishonorable discharge. A special court-martial is limited to one year and a bad-conduct discharge.
Rank of the Accused
8 of the accused were junior enlisted (E-1 to E-4), and 4 were NCOs (E-5 to E-9). None were officers or warrant officers. The sheet describes this mix as more senior than all Army, Navy, and Marine Corps cases charging Article 109, where 73% were junior enlisted.
Pleas
8 accused pleaded guilty and 4 contested. The contested share of 33% is close to the 31% for all Army, Navy, and Marine Corps cases charging Article 109. A contested case involves a not-guilty plea to at least one charge.
Trial Dates
The 12 trials ran from January 2021 to June 2024. There were 6 in 2021, 2 in 2022, 2 in 2023, and 2 in 2024. The year with the most trials was 2021.
The 2023 Changes and What Is Missing
Since December 28, 2023, special trial counsel, not commanders, decide whether to prosecute covered offenses, which include domestic violence and sexual assault. When every guilty finding is for an offense after December 27, 2023, the military judge sets the sentence within new sentencing parameters. The records do not give offense dates, so the 2024 trials could fall under either the old or new rules.
Cases closed by nonjudicial punishment, administrative separation, or no action are not in these records. The evidence and plea terms are not described.
Dates and sources for the law changes mentioned here: UCMJ change timeline.
How We Counted
Army, Navy, and Marine Corps courts-martial that charged both Article 109 and Article 115 (12 cases). Air Force cases are left out because Air Force records rarely list the charges in acquittals.
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
- Article 109 (Property Other Than Military; Waste, Spoilage, Destruction): Court-Martial Data and Trends (hub)
- Article 115 (Malingering Before 2019, Communicating Threats Since): Court-Martial Data and Trends (hub)
- Property Damage Plus Assault: Courts-Martial Charging Articles 109 and 128
- Articles 109 and 128b in the Same Case: What the Records Show
- Property Damage Plus Orders Violation: Courts-Martial Charging Articles 109 and 92
- How Has Article 109 Changed in Army Courts-Martial Since 2021?
- Air Force Article 109 Cases by the Numbers, 2016–2025
- 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.