Communicating Threats Plus Assault: Courts-Martial Charging Articles 115 and 128

Trends › By Offense › Article 115 › With Article 128

Based on 95 cases · 2021–2026 · Army, Navy, and Marine Corps records · data updated October 24, 2026

More Cases Were Contested

Cases that charged a threat and an assault were contested more often than threat cases overall. The plea is listed in 94 records: 44 were not-guilty or mixed pleas and 50 were guilty pleas. A case is contested when the accused pleads not guilty to at least one charge. The contested share was 47%, compared with 37% for all Army, Navy, and Marine Corps cases charging Article 115.

Since 2019, Article 115 has covered communicating threats. Before 2019, the same article number covered malingering. Every case here was tried in 2021 or later.

How Did the Contested Cases End?

Of the 44 contested cases that reached a verdict, 20% ended in a full acquittal. For all Article 115 cases, the rate was 25%.

Partial acquittals were more common. In 26 contested cases, the accused was found not guilty of at least one charge or specification and guilty of another. In these records, a contested case in this pairing ended in a partial acquittal more often than in a full acquittal or a conviction on every charge.

Length of Confinement

Confinement was part of 91% of the 86 convictions. The median confinement was 8 months, compared with 6 months for all Article 115 cases. A quarter of the sentences were 1.4 years or longer.

Long sentences were about as common as in the comparison group. Sentences over one year were given in 26 of 86 convictions (30%), compared with 28%. These are adjudged sentences, set at trial before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal, and each covers every charge in the case.

Most Cases Were General Courts-Martial

General courts-martial made up 68% of the 94 cases with a court level listed (64 of 94). There were 30 special courts-martial, and the court level is not listed for 1 case. A general court-martial can impose long confinement and a dishonorable discharge. A special court-martial caps confinement at one year.

At general courts-martial, 96% of convictions included confinement, with a median of 1 year. At special courts-martial, 80% did, with a median of 5 months. All 26 sentences longer than one year came from general courts-martial, the only level that can adjudge that much confinement.

Punitive Discharges and Dismissals

Of 78 convicted enlisted members, 52 received a punitive discharge: 42 bad-conduct and 10 dishonorable. For all Article 115 cases in these services, the share was 67%.

The records list 7 convicted officers or warrant officers. 2 of them were dismissed. A service member without a punitive discharge can still be separated administratively, and these records do not show that.

The Accused Were More Senior

Junior enlisted members (E-1 to E-4) made up 57% of the accused, NCOs (E-5 to E-9) 34%, and officers 9%. For all Article 115 cases, junior enlisted members were 62%. This group had a higher share of NCOs and officers than the comparison group. The 7 convicted officers or warrant officers in the discharge figures are part of that share.

Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Charges

Many cases included other charges. Article 134 (general article) was charged in 24 cases and Article 128b (domestic violence) in 23. Article 120 (sexual assault) and Article 92 (orders violation) were each charged in 17. Each sentence above covers all of these charges when they resulted in a conviction.

Most Cases Were Tried in 2021

Trials took place from January 2021 through September 2026. The highest count was 40 cases in 2021. There were 18 in 2022, 14 in 2023, 8 in 2024, and 10 in 2025. The 2026 count of 5 covers part of the year.

Fort Bragg had the most cases, with 10. Camp Pendleton, California had 8, Joint Base Lewis-McChord 7, Camp Lejeune, North Carolina 6, and Vilseck (Europe) 5. These 5 installations account for 38% of the 95 cases. Large installations try more cases of every kind.

What the Records Do Not Show

Since December 28, 2023, special trial counsel, not commanders, decide whether to prosecute covered offenses such as domestic violence and sexual assault. Offenses after December 27, 2023 are sentenced under new parameters. These rules depend on the offense date. The records give only trial dates, so cases from 2024 on include both old-rule and new-rule cases, and the data cannot show whether the change affected outcomes.

Court-martial records also do not include nonjudicial punishment, administrative separations, the evidence, or the terms of any plea agreement.

For what the offense covers and how it is defended, see Article 115 on the law firm's website. Dates and sources for the law changes: UCMJ change timeline.

Compare: federal court. Aggravated Assault: Federal Sentences vs. Article 128 Courts-Martial, 2016–2025

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.