Drug Cases at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina: 2017–2018 vs. 2019–2023

Trends › By Installation › Camp Lejeune, North Carolina › Article 112a

Based on 87 cases · 2019–2023 · Navy and Marine Corps records · data updated October 24, 2026

Longer Confinement in Drug Cases

84 of the 87 cases ended in a conviction. Confinement was part of 76 of those sentences (90%). The median confinement was 9 months, compared with 5 months in the rest of the Navy and Marine Corps. A quarter of the sentences were 1.1 years or longer.

Sentences longer than one year were 22 of 84 convictions (26%), compared with 16% in Navy and Marine Corps Article 112a cases overall. Sentences under 6 months were less common: 33% of convictions, compared with 45%. Sentences of 6 months to 1 year made up 31%, compared with 27%. 8 convictions had no confinement (10%, compared with 11%). No conviction here included 5 years or more. These are adjudged sentences, before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal. They cover every charge in the case.

Most Convictions Ended in a Punitive Discharge

69 of 79 convicted enlisted members received a punitive discharge (87%). That share compares with 64% in the rest of the Navy and Marine Corps. 64 were bad-conduct discharges, and 5 were dishonorable.

The 2 convicted officers or warrant officers were both dismissed. Dismissal is the officer equivalent of a punitive discharge. That figure is based on only 2 cases. A sentence without a punitive discharge does not rule out a later administrative separation.

Before and After 2019

The 2017–2018 records have 40 drug cases over 2 years, about 20 a year. Since 2019 there have been about 17 a year, counting full years only. In the later period, 2021 had 32 cases, the most of any year. 2023 had 4, the fewest. The other years had 19 (2019), 21 (2020), and 11 (2022).

The median confinement went from 6 months to 9 months. Every earlier conviction included confinement (100%), compared with 90% later. Punitive discharges for convicted enlisted members went from 95% to 87%. General courts-martial went from 30% to 34% of cases. The earlier records have too few pleas to compare. In small groups a few cases can move each figure, so these changes show direction, not precise size.

Drug Charges Often Came With Other Charges

Of the 87 cases, 52 charged at least one article besides Article 112a. Orders violations under Article 92 appeared with the drug charge in 28 cases. Assault (Article 128) and conspiracy (Article 81) appeared in 10 each. AWOL (Article 86) appeared in 9, and solicitation (Article 82) in 8.

Each sentence covers every charge in the case, so a term in a case with companion charges is not a measure of the drug count alone.

Pleas in the Records That List Them

The plea appears in only 48 of the 87 records, since Navy and Marine Corps records before December 2020 often omit it. In those 48 cases, 39 accused pleaded guilty. 9 entered a not-guilty or mixed plea to at least one charge.

A case is contested when the accused pleads not guilty to at least one charge. That is a contested share of 19%. In all Navy and Marine Corps Article 112a cases in the same years, it was 20%. The records do not say why an accused pleaded guilty or contested the charges. They do not show what any plea agreement provided.

More General Courts-Martial

General courts-martial, which can impose any lawful sentence, tried 30 of the 87 cases (34%), compared with 24% in Navy and Marine Corps Article 112a cases overall. A special court-martial caps confinement at one year and cannot impose a dishonorable discharge.

General courts-martial had a median confinement of 1.3 years and a contested share of 24%. The 57 special courts-martial had a median of 5 months and a contested share of 16%. The general share was higher here, and confinement was longer. The records cannot show whether one is related to the other.

A Mostly Junior Group

The accused were 68 junior enlisted members, 11 NCOs, and 2 officers. That mix is more junior than Navy and Marine Corps Article 112a cases overall. Drug cases made up 31% of the 283 courts-martial at Camp Lejeune in 2019–2023.

Limits of the Data

Drug cases handled by nonjudicial punishment, administrative separation, or no action are not in these records, which cover only courts-martial. The records give trial dates, not offense dates. They leave out the evidence and any plea terms.

For what the offense covers and how it is defended, see Article 112a on the law firm's website. Dates and sources for the law changes: UCMJ change timeline.

Compare: federal court. Federal Law Has No Crime of Drug Use: How Article 112a Cases Compare · Drug Distribution and Importation: Federal vs. Court-Martial Sentences, 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.