> ## 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. # Bremerton, Washington, 2019–2023: Charges, Verdicts, and Sentences in 153 Cases - URL: https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/bremerton-washington-courts-martial-2019-2023/ - Published: 2026-10-28T06:48:18.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-28T08:21:11.000Z - Description: Bremerton, Washington tried 153 courts-martial from 2019 to 2023. Article 112a (drug) appeared in 38% of cases, compared with 25% across the Navy and Marine Corps. - 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/) › 2019–2023 **Short answer:** Bremerton, Washington tried 153 courts-martial from 2019 to 2023\. Article 112a (drug) appeared in 38% of cases, compared with 25% across the Navy and Marine Corps. Punitive discharges were less common: 42% of convicted enlisted members received one, compared with 63% across the Navy and Marine Corps. Based on 153 cases · 2019–2023 · Navy and Marine Corps records · data updated October 24, 2026 ## Drug Charges Were the Most Common Charge lists are available for 146 of the 153 cases. A case with several articles counts once under each one. Article 112a, which covers wrongful use and possession of controlled substances, was charged in 55 cases (38%), compared with 25% in all Navy and Marine Corps cases. Some common military charges appeared less often. Article 128 (assault) appeared in 21% of cases, compared with 31% across the service. Article 92 (orders violation) appeared in 8%, compared with 18%. Article 134 (general article) was the same as the service, at 18%. Article 80 (attempts) was slightly more common, at 12% compared with 9%. | UCMJ Article | Cases | Share here | Share, the whole Navy and Marine Corps docket | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ----- | ---------- | --------------------------------------------- | | [Art. 112a](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/ucmj/article-112a-drug-offenses/?ref=bodiesburied.com) Wrongful use, possession of controlled substances | 55 | 38% | 25% | | [Art. 128](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/practice-areas/court-martial/article-128/?ref=bodiesburied.com) Assault | 31 | 21% | 31% | | [Art. 134](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/practice-areas/court-martial/article-134/?ref=bodiesburied.com) General article | 27 | 18% | 18% | | [Art. 80](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/practice-areas/court-martial/article-80/?ref=bodiesburied.com) Attempts | 18 | 12% | 9% | | [Art. 120](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/ucmj/article-120-sexual-assault/?ref=bodiesburied.com) Rape and sexual assault | 17 | 12% | 14% | | [Art. 92](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/practice-areas/court-martial/article-92/?ref=bodiesburied.com) Failure to obey order or regulation | 11 | 8% | 18% | | Art. 81 Conspiracy | 11 | 8% | 7% | | [Art. 120b](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/practice-areas/court-martial/article-120b/?ref=bodiesburied.com) Rape and sexual assault of a child | 10 | 7% | 7% | ## Fewer Punitive Discharges A punitive discharge, meaning a bad-conduct or dishonorable discharge for an enlisted member, followed 42% of enlisted convictions at Bremerton. There were 42 bad-conduct discharges and 13 dishonorable discharges. Across the Navy and Marine Corps, the share was 63%. Officers and warrant officers had 8 convictions, and 2 of them were dismissed. Dismissal is the officer form of a punitive discharge. A conviction without a punitive discharge can still be followed by an administrative separation. These records do not track those separations. ## Shorter Sentences Confinement was part of 76% of the 138 convictions. The median confinement was 4 months, compared with 6 months across all Navy and Marine Corps cases. A quarter of the sentences were 10 months or longer. Convictions with no confinement made up 24% here, compared with 17% in the rest of the service. Sentences longer than one year were 17 of 138 convictions (12%), compared with 24%. All of these are adjudged sentences, before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal. Each sentence covers every charge in the case. | Adjudged confinement | Convictions | Share here | Share, the rest of the Navy and Marine Corps | | ------------------------------- | ----------- | ---------- | -------------------------------------------- | | No confinement | 33 | 24% | 17% | | Under 6 months | 60 | 43% | 35% | | 6 months to 1 year | 28 | 20% | 24% | | More than 1 year, under 5 years | 14 | 10% | 19% | | 5 years or more | 3 | 2% | 5% | ## Sentences by Court Level Most Bremerton cases were special courts-martial, which cap confinement at one year and cannot impose a dishonorable discharge. There were 101 special and 52 general courts-martial. The general share was 34%, compared with 44% across the Navy and Marine Corps. Sentences differed by court level. At general courts-martial, 86% of convictions included confinement, with a median of 1 year. At special courts-martial, 71% did, with a median of 2 months. ## How the Leading Charges Ended Almost all drug cases ended in a conviction on the drug charge: 53 of 55 cases charging Article 112a (96%). The median confinement for those convictions was 3 months. Of those with a plea listed, 46 of 53 ended in a guilty plea (87%), the highest rate among the top charges. Assault cases were different. Of 31 cases charging Article 128, 23 ended in a conviction on that article (74%), the lowest among the top charges. Only 50% of those with a plea listed were guilty pleas (15 of 30). All 27 cases charging Article 134 ended in a conviction on that article. A conviction on one article and an acquittal on another can happen in the same case, so the rows overlap. The records do not say why an accused pleaded guilty or contested the charges. | Article | Cases charging it | Convicted of it (share) | Median confinement when convicted of it | | ----------------------------------------------------------- | ----------------- | ----------------------- | --------------------------------------- | | Art. 112a Wrongful use, possession of controlled substances | 55 | 53 (96%) | 3 months | | Art. 128 Assault | 31 | 23 (74%) | 3 months | | Art. 134 General article | 27 | 27 (100%) | 1 year | | Art. 80 Attempts | 18 | 17 (94%) | 1 year | ## Pleas and Acquittals A case is contested when the accused pleads not guilty to at least one charge. Of the 150 records with a plea, 43 were contested and 107 were guilty pleas. The contested share was 29%, compared with 31% across the service. Of the 43 contested cases that reached a verdict, 33% ended in a full acquittal. That is higher than the 29% across the Navy and Marine Corps. Another 4 ended in a partial acquittal, meaning not guilty of at least one charge but guilty of another. ## Compared With San Diego and Norfolk San Diego, California and Norfolk, Virginia tried a similar number of cases in the same years: 173 and 205\. Both had a median confinement of 6 months, against 4 months at Bremerton, and both had higher punitive discharge shares, at 55% and 62%. Contested shares were similar at the 3 installations: 29% at Bremerton, 30% at San Diego, and 35% at Norfolk. | Installation | Cases | Contested | Full acquittals (decided contested) | Median confinement | Punitive discharge (enlisted) | | --------------------- | ----- | --------- | ----------------------------------- | ------------------ | ----------------------------- | | Bremerton, Washington | 153 | 29% | 14 of 43 | 4 months | 42% | | San Diego, California | 173 | 30% | 18 of 52 | 6 months | 55% | | Norfolk, Virginia | 205 | 35% | 29 of 70 | 6 months | 62% | ## How 2019–2023 Compares With 2013–2018 The earlier period had 221 cases over 6 years with cases on record, about 37 a year. Since then there have been about 31 a year, counting full years only. The median confinement went from 5 months to 4 months. Convictions with confinement went from 94% to 76%. Punitive discharges for convicted enlisted members went from 52% to 42%. Full acquittals in contested cases that reached a verdict went from 11 of 27 to 14 of 43\. The contested share went from 13% to 29%. Older Navy and Marine Corps records often omit the plea. In small groups a few cases can move a figure, and the records cannot show why any figure changed. | | 2013–2018 | 2019–2023 | | ----------------------------------- | --------- | --------- | | Cases | 221 | 153 | | Contested (of pleas recorded) | 13% | 29% | | Full acquittals (decided contested) | 11 of 27 | 14 of 43 | | Convictions with confinement | 94% | 76% | | Median confinement | 5 months | 4 months | | Punitive discharge (enlisted) | 52% | 42% | | General courts-martial | 32% | 34% | ## Year Counts and Rank The trials took place from January 2019 through November 2023: 47 in 2019, 38 in 2020, 28 in 2021, 16 in 2022, and 24 in 2023\. Bremerton held 8% of the 1,991 Navy and Marine Corps courts-martial in those years. The accused included 82 junior enlisted members, 60 NCOs, and 10 officers. That group was more senior than the service as a whole. The records give trial dates, not offense dates. They leave out the evidence, plea terms, and anything handled by nonjudicial punishment or administrative separation. 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 in the data tried at Bremerton, Washington with a trial date in 2019–2023 (153 cases), compared with all 1,991 Navy and Marine Corps trials in those years. Dates are trial dates. 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) - [Navy-Marine Corps Courts-Martial: Data and Trends](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/navy-marine-corps-courts-martial/) (hub) - [By Installation](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/by-installation/) (hub) - [Bremerton, Washington, 2013–2018: Charges, Verdicts, and Sentences in 221 Cases](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/bremerton-washington-courts-martial-2013-2018/) (another period) - [Bremerton, Washington Courts-Martial, 2024–2026: What 52 Cases Show](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/bremerton-washington-courts-martial-2024-2026/) (another period) - [Inside 173 Courts-Martial at San Diego, California, 2019–2023](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/san-diego-california-courts-martial-2019-2023/) (same years, similar size) - [What Was Tried at Norfolk, Virginia, 2019–2023? 205 Courts-Martial](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/norfolk-virginia-courts-martial-2019-2023/) (same years, similar size) - [Did Drug Cases at Bremerton, Washington Change After 2019?](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/bremerton-washington-article-112a-before-after-2019/) - [Assault Cases at Bremerton, Washington: 2013–2018 vs. 2019–2023](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/bremerton-washington-article-128-before-after-2019/) - [Search every case in Military Trial Results](https://www.bodiesburied.com/military-trial-results/) (members) ← Previous: [Bremerton, Washington, 2013–2018: Charges, Verdicts, and Sentences in 221 Cases](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/bremerton-washington-courts-martial-2013-2018/)Next: [Bremerton, Washington Courts-Martial, 2024–2026: What 52 Cases Show](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/bremerton-washington-courts-martial-2024-2026/) → ## Military Judges Who Presided Over Cases at Bremerton, Washington, 2019–2023 - [Matthew Brower](https://www.bodiesburied.com/judge-matthew-brower/) - [Justin Henderson](https://www.bodiesburied.com/judge-justin-henderson/) - [Kimberly Kelly](https://www.bodiesburied.com/judge-kimberly-kelly/) - [Lawrence Lee](https://www.bodiesburied.com/judge-lawrence-lee/) - [Justin Mcewen](https://www.bodiesburied.com/judge-justin-mcewen/) - [Ann Minami](https://www.bodiesburied.com/judge-ann-minami/) - [Michelle Pettit](https://www.bodiesburied.com/judge-michelle-pettit/) - [Michael Whitican](https://www.bodiesburied.com/judge-michael-whitican/) Names and links only. Each judge's record of pleas, findings, and sentences is on their Know Your Judge page, part of the [Court-Martial Characters](https://www.bodiesburied.com/judges/) membership. **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.