Bremerton, Washington Before and After 2019: How Its Courts-Martial Changed

Trends › By Installation › Bremerton, Washington › Before and after 2019

Based on 153 cases · 2019–2023 · Navy and Marine Corps records · data updated October 24, 2026

Drug Charges Were the Most Common

In 2019–2023, Article 112a (wrongful use or possession of controlled substances) was the most common charge at Bremerton. It was charged in 55 cases (38%), compared with 25% in all Navy and Marine Corps cases in those years. The charge lists cover 146 of the 153 cases, and a case with several articles is counted under each one.

Some other articles appeared less often than across the service. Article 128 (assault) was charged in 21% of cases, compared with 31%. Article 92 (failure to obey an order or regulation) was charged in 8%, compared with 18%. Article 80 (attempts) was slightly more common, at 12% compared with 9%. Article 134 (the general article) was the same, at 18%.

How 2013–2018 and 2019–2023 Compare

Compared with 2013–2018, the later period had fewer cases and more contested cases. The earlier period had 221 cases over 6 years, about 37 a year. Since 2019 there have been about 31 a year, counting full years only. A case is contested when the accused pleads not guilty to at least one charge, either in a not-guilty plea or a mixed plea. The contested share went from 13% to 29%.

Sentences were lower in the later period. Convictions that included confinement went from 94% to 76%. The median confinement went from 5 months to 4 months. Punitive discharges for convicted enlisted members went from 52% to 42%. General courts-martial were about the same, at 32% of cases before and 34% after. In groups of this size, a few cases can move a percentage, so the changes show direction, not precise rates.

Fewer Punitive Discharges Than the Service Overall

A punitive discharge means a bad-conduct or dishonorable discharge for an enlisted member, or a dismissal for an officer. Of 130 enlisted members convicted at Bremerton, 55 received one (42%). That is lower than the 63% across the Navy and Marine Corps. 13 of those 55 were dishonorable discharges.

The records also include 8 convicted officers or warrant officers, and 2 were dismissed. A sentence with no punitive discharge can still be followed by an administrative separation, which these records do not track.

Shorter Confinement, Fewer Long Terms

Of the 138 convictions, 76% included confinement. The median confinement was 4 months, compared with 6 months in the rest of the Navy and Marine Corps. A quarter of the sentences were 10 months or longer. The figures are adjudged sentences, set at trial before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal. Each sentence covers every charge in the case.

Sentences longer than one year were less common: 17 of 138 convictions (12%), compared with 24% across the service. 24% of convictions here had no confinement, compared with 17% across the service. 43% were sentences under 6 months.

Pleas, Verdicts, and Acquittals

Plea records exist for 150 of the 153 cases: 107 guilty pleas and 43 contested cases. The contested share was 29%, about the same as the 31% across the Navy and Marine Corps in the same years.

Of 43 contested cases that reached a verdict, 14 ended in a full acquittal (33%). The full-acquittal rate across the service was 29%. In 2013–2018 it was 11 of 27 at Bremerton. Another 4 cases were partial acquittals, meaning not guilty of at least one charge or specification but guilty of another.

Results Article by Article

Among the most common charges, Article 134 ended in a conviction on that article in all 27 cases that charged it. Article 80 ended in a conviction in 17 of 18. Article 112a ended in a conviction on the drug charge in 53 of 55 cases (96%), with a median confinement of 3 months. Article 128 ended in a conviction on that article least often, in 23 of 31 cases.

Guilty pleas differed by charge. Cases charging Article 112a ended in a guilty plea 87% of the time (46 of 53). Cases charging Article 128 ended in a guilty plea 50% of the time (15 of 30). One case can include a conviction on one article and an acquittal on another, so these rows overlap. The records do not show why an accused pleaded guilty or contested the charges.

General and Special Courts-Martial

A general court-martial can impose any lawful sentence, including long confinement and a dishonorable discharge. A special court-martial is capped at one year of confinement and a bad-conduct discharge. Bremerton held 52 general courts-martial, 34% of its cases. Their median confinement was 1 year, and 39% were contested. The 101 special courts-martial had a median of 2 months and were 23% contested.

By rank, the accused included 82 junior enlisted members, 60 NCOs, and 10 officers. This group was more senior than the Navy and Marine Corps as a whole.

Cases by Year and Similar Installations

The trials took place between January 2019 and November 2023. The yearly counts were 47 in 2019, 38 in 2020, 28 in 2021, 16 in 2022, and 24 in 2023.

San Diego, California (173 cases) and Norfolk, Virginia (205 cases) tried a similar number of cases in those years. Of the 3 installations, Bremerton had the lowest contested share (29%) and the shortest median confinement (4 months). It also had the lowest punitive-discharge share, at 42%, compared with 55% and 62%.

Gaps in the Record

The records show trial dates but not offense dates. They do not describe the evidence or plea terms. They leave out nonjudicial punishment and administrative separations. Navy and Marine Corps records before December 2020 often omit the plea and forum, so plea counts here use only the records that list them.

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.