Orders Violation Charges at Camp Pendleton, California, 2024–2026: Pleas, Verdicts, and Sentences

Trends › By Installation › Camp Pendleton, California › Article 92, 2024–2026

Based on 29 cases · 2024–2026 · Navy and Marine Corps records · data updated October 24, 2026

Confinement in Almost Every Conviction

Of the 29 cases, 24 ended in a conviction on at least one charge, and 21 of those sentences included confinement (88%). Across all Navy and Marine Corps Article 92 cases in 2024–2026, 45% of convictions carried no confinement. At Camp Pendleton, the figure was 12%.

The terms were short. The median confinement was 3 months, the same as the 3 months in the Navy and Marine Corps as a whole. A quarter of the confinement sentences were 5 months or longer. These are adjudged sentences, set at trial before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal. Each covers every charge in the case.

Sentence Lengths

Sentences under 6 months were 16 convictions, or 67%, compared with 42% elsewhere. Terms of 6 months to 1 year made up 17%, compared with 8%.

Long sentences were uncommon both here and elsewhere. Only 1 of 24 convictions (4%) carried more than one year of confinement, compared with 5% across the Navy and Marine Corps. No conviction carried 5 years or more. Confinement of more than one year requires a general court-martial. A special court-martial is capped at one year.

Guilty Pleas and Contested Cases

24 of the 29 records list a plea: 16 guilty pleas and 8 contested cases. A case is contested when the accused pleads not guilty to at least one charge. That includes a mixed plea, which is guilty to some charges and not guilty to others.

The contested share of 33% is lower than the 44% across all Navy and Marine Corps Article 92 cases in 2024–2026. Still, 8 accused pleaded not guilty to at least one charge.

Punitive Discharges, None Dishonorable

Among 23 convicted enlisted members, 10 received a punitive discharge (43%). That is more often than in Article 92 cases across the Navy and Marine Corps (37%). All 10 were bad-conduct discharges. None was dishonorable.

A dishonorable discharge is available only at a general court-martial, and few cases here were general courts-martial. A member who received no punitive discharge could still be separated administratively.

Most Cases Were Special Courts-Martial

General courts-martial can impose long confinement and a dishonorable discharge. They were 16% of the 25 cases with a court level listed (4 of 25). The rest were special courts-martial.

Since 2019, a special court-martial can also be tried by a military judge alone. That form is capped at six months of confinement and cannot impose a punitive discharge. Other special courts-martial can impose up to one year of confinement and a bad-conduct discharge.

Other Charges in the Same Cases

Article 92 was the only charge in 7 of the 29 cases. In the other cases, Article 112a (drug) was the most common other charge, in 5 cases, and Article 128 (assault) appeared in 4. Article 81 (conspiracy) and Article 134 (general article) each appeared in 3, and Article 131b (obstruction) in 2.

A sentence covers the full case. The confinement and discharge figures above therefore include punishment for the other charges as well as the orders charge.

Rank of the Accused

Junior enlisted members (E-1 to E-4) were 62% of the accused, and NCOs were 38%. No officers were charged. In Article 92 cases across the Navy and Marine Corps, junior enlisted members were 51%, so the Camp Pendleton group was more junior than the service as a whole.

Cases by Year and Law Changes

The cases were tried from January 2024 through October 2026: 6 in 2024, 13 in 2025, and 10 in 2026, a partial year. Article 92 was charged in 20% of the 142 courts-martial at Camp Pendleton, California in that period.

Since December 28, 2023, special trial counsel, not commanders, decide whether to prosecute covered offenses such as sexual assault, domestic violence, and murder. When every guilty finding is for an offense after December 27, 2023, the military judge sets the sentence within new sentencing parameters. Both rules depend on offense dates, which the records do not have. These trials therefore include cases under both the old and new rules.

What the Records Do Not Show

Only cases that reached a courtroom appear here. Orders violations handled by nonjudicial punishment, administrative separation, or no action are not included. The records do not describe the evidence or the terms of any plea agreement.

For what the offense covers and how it is defended, see Article 92 on the law firm's website. Dates and sources for the law changes: 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.