What Changed at Cannon AFB, New Mexico After 2019? 17 Cases vs. 29
Cannon AFB, New Mexico had more contested cases and longer sentences in 2019–2023 than the Air Force as a whole. Of the 19 records that list a plea, 84% were contested, compared with 50% Air Force-wide.
Understanding Trends in Military Practice · 6 min read
Trends › By Installation › Cannon AFB, New Mexico › Before and after 2019
Short answer: Cannon AFB, New Mexico had more contested cases and longer sentences in 2019–2023 than the Air Force as a whole. Of the 19 records that list a plea, 84% were contested, compared with 50% Air Force-wide. The median confinement was 1.2 years, compared with 4 months at Cannon in 2016–2018 and 4 months across the Air Force.
Most Accused Pleaded Not Guilty
The plea is listed in 19 of the 29 Cannon records from 2019 to 2023. Of those 19, 16 were not-guilty or mixed pleas and 3 were guilty pleas. A contested case is one where the accused pleaded not guilty to at least one charge. The contested share was 84%, compared with 50% across the Air Force.
Air Force records from 2016 to 2019 rarely list a guilty plea, so there is no contested share for 2016–2018 to compare.
How the Contested Cases Ended
Of 16 contested cases that reached a verdict, 9 ended in a full acquittal (56%). The Air Force rate for contested cases was 51%. Another 2 cases (12%) ended in a partial acquittal: not guilty of at least one charge or specification, but guilty of another.
Air Force results give one verdict per case. A partial acquittal appears in these records only when an appeals opinion reports it, so the partial acquittal count may be incomplete.
Sentences Longer Than Before 2019
Of 18 convictions, 15 included confinement (83%). In 2016–2018, 71% of convictions included confinement. The median confinement was 1.2 years in 2019–2023 and 4 months in 2016–2018. Across the Air Force in the later years, the median was 4 months.
Among the sentences with confinement, a quarter were 3.7 years or longer. These are adjudged sentences, before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal, and each covers every charge in the case.
| 2016–2018 | 2019–2023 | |
|---|---|---|
| Cases | 17 | 29 |
| Contested (of pleas recorded) | — | 84% |
| Convictions with confinement | 71% | 83% |
| Median confinement | 4 months | 1.2 years |
| Punitive discharge (enlisted) | 42% | 69% |
| General courts-martial | 29% | 76% |
Punitive Discharges and Dismissals
Of 16 convicted enlisted members, 11 received a punitive discharge: 6 bad-conduct discharges and 5 dishonorable discharges. The share was 69%, compared with 56% across the Air Force and 42% at Cannon in 2016–2018.
2 convicted officers or warrant officers appear in the records, and both were dismissed. A dismissal is the officer equivalent of a punitive discharge. A sentence without a punitive discharge does not rule out a later administrative separation.
General Courts-Martial in 76% of Cases
General courts-martial heard 22 of the 29 cases (76%). The share was 53% across the Air Force and 29% at Cannon in 2016–2018. A general court-martial can impose any lawful sentence, including long confinement and a dishonorable discharge. A special court-martial caps confinement at one year and cannot impose a dishonorable discharge.
Panels Heard Most Cases
A military judge alone decided 14 cases. An enlisted panel decided 9 and an officer panel decided 6. Members heard 52% of the cases, compared with 38% in the rest of the Air Force. Among contested cases, members heard 10 of 16 (62%). The accused usually chooses whether a judge alone or a panel decides guilt.
Charges and Rank
Charges are listed for 18 of the 29 cases. Article 112a (drugs) and Article 134 (the general article) were each charged in 7 cases (39%). The drug share was about the same as the 41% Air Force-wide. The Article 134 share was higher than the 21% Air Force-wide. Article 128 (assault) appeared in 5 cases (28%), compared with 19% service-wide. Article 120b (rape and sexual assault of a child) appeared in 4 cases (22%), compared with 7%.
The accused were 16 junior enlisted members (E-1 to E-4), 11 NCOs (E-5 to E-9), and 2 officers or warrant officers. Across the Air Force, 64% of the accused were junior enlisted, so the Cannon group was more senior.
| UCMJ Article | Cases | Share here | Share, the whole Air Force docket |
|---|---|---|---|
| Art. 112a Wrongful use, possession of controlled substances | 7 | 39% | 41% |
| Art. 134 General article | 7 | 39% | 21% |
| Art. 128 Assault | 5 | 28% | 19% |
| Art. 120b Rape and sexual assault of a child | 4 | 22% | 7% |
| Art. 92 Failure to obey order or regulation | 2 | 11% | 16% |
| Art. 115 Malingering before 2019, communicating threats since | 1 | 6% | 4% |
| Art. 127 Extortion | 1 | 6% | 0% |
| Art. 128b Domestic violence | 1 | 6% | 5% |
Case Counts and Similar Bases
The records show 29 cases from January 2019 to September 2023: 10 in 2019 and 4 or 5 in each later year. In 2016–2018 there were 17 cases. Counting full years only, both periods average about 6 cases a year. In small groups, a few cases can change a percentage by a large amount.
Davis-Monthan AFB, Arizona and Hurlburt Field, Florida each tried 29 cases in the same years. Their median confinement was 6 months and 2 months, both lower than at Cannon. The contested share was 56% at Davis-Monthan and 79% at Hurlburt Field.
| Installation | Cases | Contested | Full acquittals (decided contested) | Median confinement | Punitive discharge (enlisted) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cannon AFB, New Mexico | 29 | 84% | 9 of 16 | 1.2 years | 69% |
| Davis-Monthan AFB, Arizona | 29 | 56% | 5 of 9 | 6 months | 59% |
| Hurlburt Field, Florida | 29 | 79% | 7 of 15 | 2 months | 39% |
What the Records Do Not Show
The records show charges, pleas, findings, and sentences. They do not show the evidence, the plea terms, offense dates, or misconduct handled outside a court-martial. Air Force records rarely list charges in full acquittals and never report plea agreements.
Dates and sources for the law changes mentioned here: UCMJ change timeline.
How We Counted
Every court-martial tried at Cannon AFB, New Mexico in 2016–2018 (17) and 2019–2023 (29).
Source: public court-martial records (Article 140a, UCMJ) in Military Trial Results, data updated October 24, 2026. Definitions, sources, and known gaps: how this data was built. Errors: content@bodiesburied.com.
Related Analysis
- Cannon AFB, New Mexico: Court-Martial Data and Trends (hub)
- By Installation (hub)
- Inside 29 Courts-Martial at Cannon AFB, New Mexico, 2019–2023
- Inside 17 Courts-Martial at Cannon AFB, New Mexico, 2016–2018
- Andersen AFB, Guam Before and After 2019: How Its Courts-Martial Changed
- Aviano AB, Italy, 2016–2018 vs. 2019–2023: A Side-by-Side Look
- Aviano AB, Italy, 2019–2023 vs. 2024–2026: A Side-by-Side Look
- Davis-Monthan AFB, Arizona, 2016–2018 vs. 2019–2023: A Side-by-Side Look
- Davis-Monthan AFB, Arizona, 2019–2023 vs. 2024–2026: A Side-by-Side Look
- Search every case in Military Trial Results (members)
Military Judges Who Presided Over Cases at Cannon AFB, New Mexico, 2019–2023
- Colin P. Eichenberger
- Christina M. Jimenez
- James E. Key III
- Brett A. Landry
- Matthew N. McCall
- Charlton J. Meginley
- Bradley A. Morris
- Andrew R. Norton
- Julie L. Pitvorec
- Rebecca E. Schmidt
- Christopher M. Schumann
- Matthew P. Stoffel
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 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. This analysis is for education and information only. It is not legal advice, and every case is different.