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# A Year of Courts-Martial at Bremerton, Washington: 2017
- URL: https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/bremerton-washington-courts-martial-2017/
- Published: 2026-10-28T06:54:30.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-30T05:25:57.000Z
- Description: The records show 50 courts-martial at Bremerton, Washington in 2017. 46% of convicted enlisted members received a punitive discharge, compared with 68% across the Navy and Marine Corps. Article 112a (drug) appeared in 54% of cases, compared with 31% across the service.
- Author: Jocelyn C. Stewart
- Tags: Understanding Trends, Bremerton, Washington, Navy-Marine Corps

[Trends](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/) › [By Installation](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/by-installation/) › [Bremerton, Washington](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/courts-martial-at-bremerton-washington/) › 2017

**Short answer:** The records show 50 courts-martial at Bremerton, Washington in 2017\. 46% of convicted enlisted members received a punitive discharge, compared with 68% across the Navy and Marine Corps. Article 112a (drug) appeared in 54% of cases, compared with 31% across the service.

Based on 50 cases · 2017 · Navy and Marine Corps records · data updated October 24, 2026

## Fewer Punitive Discharges Than the Service as a Whole

For enlisted members, a punitive discharge is either a bad-conduct discharge or a dishonorable discharge. Of 46 enlisted members convicted at Bremerton in 2017, 21 received one (46%). Across all Navy and Marine Corps cases that year, the share was 68%.

Of those 21 discharges, 5 were dishonorable. The records also include 1 convicted officer or warrant officer, who was dismissed. Dismissal is the officer equivalent of a punitive discharge. A sentence with no punitive discharge can still be followed by an administrative separation. These records do not capture those separations.

## The Most Common Charges

Charges are listed in 48 of the 50 records, and one case can fall under several articles. Drug use or possession under Article 112a was the most common charge, in 26 cases (54%), compared with 31% across the service. Conspiracy under Article 81 appeared in 21% of cases, compared with 8%.

Some charges appeared less often than in the rest of the service. Article 128 (assault) was charged in 25% of cases, compared with 37%. Article 92 (orders violation) was charged in 10%, compared with 16%. Article 120 (rape and sexual assault) was charged in 15%, compared with 19% across the Navy and Marine Corps.

| UCMJ Article                                                                                                                                       | Cases | Share here | Share, Navy and Marine Corps-wide |
| -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ----- | ---------- | --------------------------------- |
| [Art. 112a](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/ucmj/article-112a-drug-offenses/?ref=bodiesburied.com) Wrongful use, possession of controlled substances | 26    | 54%        | 31%                               |
| [Art. 128](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/practice-areas/court-martial/article-128/?ref=bodiesburied.com) Assault                                   | 12    | 25%        | 37%                               |
| Art. 81 Conspiracy                                                                                                                                 | 10    | 21%        | 8%                                |
| [Art. 107](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/practice-areas/court-martial/article-107/?ref=bodiesburied.com) False official statements                 | 7     | 15%        | 11%                               |
| [Art. 120](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/ucmj/article-120-sexual-assault/?ref=bodiesburied.com) Rape and sexual assault                            | 7     | 15%        | 19%                               |
| [Art. 86](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/practice-areas/court-martial/article-86/?ref=bodiesburied.com) AWOL                                        | 6     | 12%        | 8%                                |
| [Art. 92](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/practice-areas/court-martial/article-92/?ref=bodiesburied.com) Failure to obey order or regulation         | 5     | 10%        | 16%                               |
| Art. 131b Obstruction, numbered since 2019                                                                                                         | 4     | 8%         | 4%                                |

## How Many Cases Were Contested?

A contested case is one where the accused pleads not guilty to at least one charge. Of 47 records with a plea, 42 show guilty pleas and 5 show not-guilty or mixed pleas. The contested share was 11%, compared with 26% across the Navy and Marine Corps.

Of those 5 contested cases, 3 ended in a full acquittal. Guilty pleas also differed by charge. Cases charging Article 112a ended in a guilty plea 96% of the time (24 of 25). Cases charging Article 128 ended in a guilty plea 92% of the time (11 of 12). The records do not say why an accused pleaded guilty or contested the charges.

## Conviction on the Top Charges

All 26 cases charging Article 112a and all 10 charging Article 81 ended in a conviction on that article. Article 128 ended in a conviction in 11 of 12\. The median confinement was 5 months for drug convictions, 6 months for assault, and 9 months for conspiracy.

These rows overlap. One case can include a conviction on one article and an acquittal on another. Each median covers the full sentence in the case.

| Article                                                     | Cases charging it | Convicted of it (share) | Median confinement when convicted of it |
| ----------------------------------------------------------- | ----------------- | ----------------------- | --------------------------------------- |
| Art. 112a Wrongful use, possession of controlled substances | 26                | 26 (100%)               | 5 months                                |
| Art. 128 Assault                                            | 12                | 11 (92%)                | 6 months                                |
| Art. 81 Conspiracy                                          | 10                | 10 (100%)               | 9 months                                |

## Shorter Confinement Than the Rest of the Service

Confinement was part of 98% of the 47 convictions. The median confinement was 5 months, compared with 8 months across the Navy and Marine Corps. A quarter of the sentences were 9 months or longer. These are adjudged sentences, as announced at trial, before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal.

Sentences under 6 months made up 60% of convictions, compared with 37% across the service. Confinement longer than one year was part of 7 of 47 convictions (15%), compared with 31% across all Navy and Marine Corps cases. 4 convictions included 5 years or more.

| Adjudged confinement            | Convictions | Share here | Share, all Navy and Marine Corps cases in those years |
| ------------------------------- | ----------- | ---------- | ----------------------------------------------------- |
| No confinement                  | 1           | 2%         | 10%                                                   |
| Under 6 months                  | 28          | 60%        | 37%                                                   |
| 6 months to 1 year              | 11          | 23%        | 23%                                                   |
| More than 1 year, under 5 years | 3           | 6%         | 20%                                                   |
| 5 years or more                 | 4           | 9%         | 10%                                                   |

## General and Special Courts-Martial

General courts-martial, which can impose long confinement and a dishonorable discharge, made up 15 of the 50 cases (30%). The other 35 were special courts-martial, where confinement is capped at one year and a dishonorable discharge is not available.

Every conviction at a general court-martial included confinement (100%), with a median of 1.3 years. At special courts-martial, 97% did, with a median of 4 months.

## A Mostly Junior Group

By rank, the accused included 36 junior enlisted members, 13 NCOs, and 1 officer. That mix is more junior than all Navy and Marine Corps cases in 2017.

## Changes From 2016

Bremerton tried 37 cases in 2016 and 50 in 2017\. The contested share went from 3% to 11%. The median confinement stayed at 5 months. Punitive discharges for enlisted members went from 56% to 46%. Convictions with confinement went from 92% to 98%. In groups this small, a few cases can move these figures, so they show direction, not precise size.

San Diego, California (45 cases) and Norfolk, Virginia (39 cases) tried a similar number of cases. Both had higher contested shares, at 28% and 32%. Their median confinement was 7 months and 10 months. Their punitive discharge shares for enlisted members were 56% and 59%.

|                                     | 2016     | 2017     |
| ----------------------------------- | -------- | -------- |
| Cases                               | 37       | 50       |
| Contested (of pleas recorded)       | 3%       | 11%      |
| Full acquittals (decided contested) | 1 of 1   | 3 of 5   |
| Convictions with confinement        | 92%      | 98%      |
| Median confinement                  | 5 months | 5 months |
| Punitive discharge (enlisted)       | 56%      | 46%      |
| General courts-martial              | 27%      | 30%      |

## Limits of the Records

These cases came before the Military Justice Act of 2016 took effect on January 1, 2019\. The records give trial dates, not offense dates. They leave out the evidence, the plea terms, and anything handled by nonjudicial punishment or administrative separation. Navy and Marine Corps records before December 2020 often omit the plea, so plea counts use only the records that list one.

| Installation          | Cases | Contested | Full acquittals (decided contested) | Median confinement | Punitive discharge (enlisted) |
| --------------------- | ----- | --------- | ----------------------------------- | ------------------ | ----------------------------- |
| Bremerton, Washington | 50    | 11%       | 3 of 5                              | 5 months           | 46%                           |
| San Diego, California | 45    | 28%       | 8 of 11                             | 7 months           | 56%                           |
| Norfolk, Virginia     | 39    | 32%       | 5 of 12                             | 10 months          | 59%                           |

Dates and sources for the law changes mentioned here: [UCMJ change timeline](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/ucmj-change-timeline/).

### How We Counted

Every court-martial tried at Bremerton, Washington with a trial date in 2017 (50 cases).

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

- [Bremerton, Washington: Court-Martial Data and Trends](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/courts-martial-at-bremerton-washington/) (hub)
- [By Year](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/by-year/) (hub)
- [Bremerton, Washington in 2016: 37 Courts-Martial, Year in Review](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/bremerton-washington-courts-martial-2016/) (previous / next)
- [A Year of Courts-Martial at Bremerton, Washington: 2018](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/bremerton-washington-courts-martial-2018/) (previous / next)
- [Bremerton, Washington, 2013–2018: Charges, Verdicts, and Sentences in 221 Cases](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/bremerton-washington-courts-martial-2013-2018/) (the whole period)
- [A Year of Courts-Martial at Bremerton, Washington: 2015](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/bremerton-washington-courts-martial-2015/)
- [A Year of Courts-Martial at Bremerton, Washington: 2020](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/bremerton-washington-courts-martial-2020/)
- [A Year of Courts-Martial at Bremerton, Washington: 2021](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/bremerton-washington-courts-martial-2021/)
- [Search every case in Military Trial Results](https://www.bodiesburied.com/military-trial-results/) (members)

← Previous: [Bremerton, Washington in 2016: 37 Courts-Martial, Year in Review](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/bremerton-washington-courts-martial-2016/)Next: [A Year of Courts-Martial at Bremerton, Washington: 2018](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/bremerton-washington-courts-martial-2018/) →

**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.