> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.bodiesburied.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Articles 119b and 128b in the Same Case: What the Records Show - URL: https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/article-119b-and-article-128b-charged-together/ - Published: 2026-10-28T06:55:34.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-30T08:14:50.000Z - Description: From 2020–2026, 49 Army, Navy, and Marine Corps courts-martial charged both Article 119b (child endangerment, numbered since 2019) and Article 128b (domestic violence, numbered since 2019). - Author: Jocelyn C. Stewart - Tags: Understanding Trends, Article 119b, Article 128b [Trends](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/) › [By Offense](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/by-offense/) › [Article 119b](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/article-119b-courts-martial/) › With Article 128b **Short answer:** From 2020–2026, 49 Army, Navy, and Marine Corps courts-martial charged both Article 119b (child endangerment, numbered since 2019) and Article 128b (domestic violence, numbered since 2019). 51% of these cases were contested, compared with 44% for all Article 119b cases in those services, and the median confinement was 1 year, compared with 10 months. 6 of 24 contested cases that reached a verdict ended in a full acquittal (25%), compared with 21%. Based on 49 cases · 2020–2026 · Army, Navy, and Marine Corps records · data updated October 24, 2026 ## Full Acquittals Were More Common The full-acquittal rate was higher here than for child endangerment cases overall. Of the 24 contested cases that reached a verdict, 6 ended in a full acquittal (25%). For all Army, Navy, and Marine Corps cases charging Article 119b, the rate was 21%. Partial acquittals were more common than full acquittals. In 17 contested cases (71%), the accused was found not guilty of at least one charge or specification and guilty of another. Those cases still ended in a sentence. ## About Equal Numbers of Pleas and Contested Cases A case is contested when the accused pleads not guilty to at least one charge, through a not-guilty plea or a mixed plea. The plea is listed in 47 of the 49 records: 24 contested cases and 23 guilty pleas. The contested share was 51%, compared with 44% for all Article 119b cases. In these records, a contested case was about as common as a guilty plea. A contested case ended in a partial acquittal more often than in a full acquittal or a conviction on every charge. ## Confinement After Conviction Confinement was part of 84% of the 43 convictions. The median confinement was 1 year, slightly longer than the 10 months for all Article 119b cases. A quarter of the sentences were 2 years or longer. Sentences over one year were about as common as in the comparison group: 16 of 43 convictions (37%), compared with 35%. Sentences of 5 years or more were less common here. Only 2 convictions (5%) were 5 years or more, compared with 11% for all Article 119b cases. 14 convictions (33%) were more than 1 year but under 5 years. | Adjudged confinement | Convictions | Share here | Share, all Army, Navy, and Marine Corps cases charging Article 119b | | ------------------------------- | ----------- | ---------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------- | | No confinement | 7 | 16% | 18% | | Under 6 months | 8 | 19% | 26% | | 6 months to 1 year | 12 | 28% | 21% | | More than 1 year, under 5 years | 14 | 33% | 24% | | 5 years or more | 2 | 5% | 11% | ## Most Cases Were General Courts-Martial Of the 49 cases, 40 were general courts-martial and 9 were special courts-martial. The general court-martial share was 82%, compared with 67% for all Article 119b cases. A general court-martial can impose any lawful sentence. A special court-martial caps confinement at one year and cannot impose a dishonorable discharge. All sentence figures in this post are adjudged sentences, set at trial before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal. Each sentence covers every charge in the case. ## Discharges and Dismissals A punitive discharge was part of the sentence in 68% of enlisted convictions. There were 18 bad-conduct discharges and 7 dishonorable discharges. For all Article 119b cases, the rate was 62%. The records list 5 convicted officers or warrant officers. 1 of them was dismissed. A sentence without a punitive discharge does not rule out a later administrative separation, which these records do not show. ## Rank of the Accused The accused were 24 junior enlisted members (E-1 to E-4), 18 NCOs (E-5 to E-9), and 6 officers or warrant officers. The records describe this mix as more junior than all Article 119b cases, where 44% of the accused were junior enlisted. ## Other Charges in These Cases Article 128 (assault) was charged in 13 cases. Article 92 (orders violation) and Article 134 (general article) were each charged in 8, and Article 131b (obstruction, numbered since 2019) in 7\. When these charges led to a conviction, they are part of the sentences reported above. ## More Cases Since 2023 Trials took place from June 2020 through August 2026\. There were 2 cases in 2020 and 4 each in 2021 and 2022\. There were 11 in 2023, 12 in 2024, and 11 in 2025\. The 2026 count of 5 covers part of the year. Fort Bragg had the most cases, with 5\. Fort Sill, Jacksonville, Florida, Marine Corps Base Hawaii, Kaneohe Bay, and Fort Riley had 3 each. These installations account for 35% of the 49 cases. Larger installations try more cases of every kind. ## What the Records Cannot Show Since December 28, 2023, special trial counsel, not commanders, decide whether to prosecute covered offenses such as domestic violence. Offenses after December 27, 2023 are sentenced under new parameters. This change happened in the same period as the higher counts from 2023 on. The records give only trial dates, not offense dates, and cannot show whether one caused the other. The records also do not cover nonjudicial punishment, administrative separations, the evidence, or the plea terms. Dates and sources for the law changes mentioned here: [UCMJ change timeline](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/ucmj-change-timeline/). ### How We Counted Army, Navy, and Marine Corps courts-martial that charged both Article 119b and Article 128b (49 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](https://www.bodiesburied.com/military-trial-results/), data updated October 24, 2026\. Definitions, sources, and known gaps: [how this data was built](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/how-the-military-trial-results-data-was-built/). Errors: content@bodiesburied.com. ## Related Analysis - [Article 119b (Child Endangerment, Numbered Since 2019): Court-Martial Data and Trends](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/article-119b-courts-martial/) (hub) - [Article 128b (Domestic Violence, Numbered Since 2019): Court-Martial Data and Trends](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/article-128b-courts-martial/) (hub) - [Articles 119b and 128 in the Same Case: What the Records Show](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/article-119b-and-article-128-charged-together/) - [Articles 119b and 134 in the Same Case: What the Records Show](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/article-119b-and-article-134-charged-together/) - [When Article 119b and Article 131b Are Charged Together, How Do Cases End?](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/article-119b-and-article-131b-charged-together/) - [Army Article 119b Cases by the Numbers, 2021–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/army-article-119b-trend-2021-2025/) - [Fewer or More? Child Endangerment Charges at Navy-Marine Corps Courts-Martial, 2017–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/navy-marine-corps-article-119b-trend-2017-2025/) - [Search every case in Military Trial Results](https://www.bodiesburied.com/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](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/?ref=bodiesburied.com). This analysis is for education and information only. It is not legal advice, and every case is different.