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# Contested Air Force Cases in 2021: Verdicts and Sentences
- URL: https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/contested-air-force-courts-martial-2021-verdicts/
- Published: 2026-10-30T05:30:36.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-30T05:30:36.000Z
- Description: In 2021, the Air Force records show 137 contested courts-martial. Among the cases with charges listed, Article 128 (assault) appeared in 32%, compared with 21% across contested Air Force cases in 2020–2025.
- Author: Jocelyn C. Stewart
- Tags: Understanding Trends, Air Force

[Trends](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/) › [By Year](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/by-year/) › Air Force 2021, contested

**Short answer:** In 2021, the Air Force records show 137 contested courts-martial. Among the cases with charges listed, Article 128 (assault) appeared in 32%, compared with 21% across contested Air Force cases in 2020–2025\. 65 cases ended in a full acquittal (47%), close to the 50% rate for 2020–2025, and the median confinement after a conviction was 8 months, compared with 1 year.

Based on 137 cases · 2021 · Air Force records · data updated October 24, 2026

## Assault and Driving Charges Were More Common

The charge lists cover 72 of the 137 cases. Air Force records list charges mainly for convictions, so these shares describe convicted cases more than acquitted ones. Article 128 (assault) appeared in 32% of the listed cases, compared with 21% across contested Air Force cases in 2020–2025.

Article 113 (drunken or reckless driving) appeared in 10%, compared with 4%. Article 120 (sexual assault) appeared less often, in 24% compared with 31%. A case charging several articles counts once under each of them.

| UCMJ Article                                                                                                                                       | Cases | Share here | Share, contested Air Force cases in 2020–2025 |
| -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ----- | ---------- | --------------------------------------------- |
| [Art. 128](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/practice-areas/court-martial/article-128/?ref=bodiesburied.com) Assault                                   | 23    | 32%        | 21%                                           |
| [Art. 120](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/ucmj/article-120-sexual-assault/?ref=bodiesburied.com) Rape and sexual assault                            | 17    | 24%        | 31%                                           |
| [Art. 134](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/practice-areas/court-martial/article-134/?ref=bodiesburied.com) General article                           | 16    | 22%        | 17%                                           |
| [Art. 112a](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/ucmj/article-112a-drug-offenses/?ref=bodiesburied.com) Wrongful use, possession of controlled substances | 12    | 17%        | 18%                                           |
| [Art. 92](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/practice-areas/court-martial/article-92/?ref=bodiesburied.com) Failure to obey order or regulation         | 9     | 12%        | 14%                                           |
| [Art. 113](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/practice-areas/court-martial/article-113/?ref=bodiesburied.com) Drunken or reckless operation of vehicle  | 7     | 10%        | 4%                                            |
| Art. 91 Insubordinate conduct toward NCO                                                                                                           | 3     | 4%         | 1%                                            |
| Art. 87a Resistance, flight, breach of arrest                                                                                                      | 3     | 4%         | 1%                                            |

## A Younger Group of Accused

Junior enlisted members (E-1 to E-4) made up 63% of the accused, compared with 54% across contested Air Force cases in 2020–2025\. NCOs made up 31% and officers 6%.

The court-level split matched the 2020–2025 group. 94 cases were general courts-martial and 43 were special courts-martial, a general share of 69% in both.

## How the Contested Cases Ended

All 137 cases were contested: 137 not-guilty or mixed pleas and no guilty pleas. 65 of the 137 contested cases that reached a verdict ended in a full acquittal (47%), close to the 50% across contested Air Force cases in 2020–2025.

21 cases (15%) ended in a partial acquittal, with the accused found not guilty of at least one charge or specification but guilty of another. Air Force results give one verdict per case, so a partial acquittal appears only when an appeals opinion reports it.

## Verdicts by Who Decided Guilt

Members decided 102 cases, 65 by an enlisted panel and 37 by an officer panel. A military judge alone decided 35\. Members heard 74% of the cases, about the same as the 75% across contested Air Force cases in 2020–2025.

Contested cases decided by members ended in a full acquittal 50% of the time (51 of 102). Contested cases decided by a military judge alone did so 40% of the time (14 of 35). The accused usually chooses the forum, so cases tried each way are not alike. These rates describe what happened, not what the forum caused.

## Confinement in 2021

72 cases ended in a conviction on at least one charge, and 53 of those sentences included confinement (74%). The median confinement was 8 months, shorter than the 1-year median across contested Air Force cases in 2020–2025\. A quarter of those sentences were 2.2 years or longer.

The median was 1.5 years at general courts-martial and 3 months at special courts-martial. These are adjudged sentences, before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal.

## Sentence Bands Compared

23 of 72 convictions (32%) included more than one year of confinement, less often than the 35% in the 2020–2025 group. 19 convictions carried no confinement (26%), compared with 22%. Sentences under 6 months made up 32%, compared with 29%.

Sentences of 5 years or more made up 10%, compared with 9%. Only a general court-martial can adjudge more than one year of confinement.

| Adjudged confinement            | Convictions | Share here | Share, contested Air Force cases in 2020–2025 |
| ------------------------------- | ----------- | ---------- | --------------------------------------------- |
| No confinement                  | 19          | 26%        | 22%                                           |
| Under 6 months                  | 23          | 32%        | 29%                                           |
| 6 months to 1 year              | 7           | 10%        | 14%                                           |
| More than 1 year, under 5 years | 16          | 22%        | 26%                                           |
| 5 years or more                 | 7           | 10%        | 9%                                            |

## Sentences for the Leading Charges

All 23 cases with an Article 128 charge listed ended in a conviction on it, with a median confinement of 1 year. Article 120 was charged in 17 listed cases and resulted in 16 convictions, with a median of 2 years. Article 134 convictions had a median of 1.5 years, and Article 112a (drug) convictions a median of 2 months.

These are conviction counts, not conviction rates, because the records mostly list charges only when a conviction followed.

| Article                                                     | Cases charging it | Convicted of it | Median confinement when convicted of it |
| ----------------------------------------------------------- | ----------------- | --------------- | --------------------------------------- |
| Art. 128 Assault                                            | 23                | 23              | 1 year                                  |
| Art. 120 Rape and sexual assault                            | 17                | 16              | 2 years                                 |
| Art. 134 General article                                    | 16                | 16              | 1.5 years                               |
| Art. 112a Wrongful use, possession of controlled substances | 12                | 12              | 2 months                                |

## Punitive Discharges

A punitive discharge followed 51% of enlisted convictions, made up of 18 bad-conduct discharges and 17 dishonorable discharges. Across contested Air Force cases in 2020–2025, the share was 55%. 4 convicted officers or warrant officers appear here, and 1 was dismissed. A sentence without a punitive discharge does not rule out a later administrative separation.

## Installations and Record Limits

Ramstein AB, Germany had 9 cases, Dyess AFB, Texas 6, and Kirtland AFB, New Mexico, Kadena AB, Japan, and Barksdale AFB, Louisiana 5 each. Those five account for 22% of the 137 cases. Larger installations try more cases of every kind.

Air Force records rarely list charges in full acquittals and never report plea agreements. They also do not show the evidence, offense dates, or cases handled outside a court-martial.

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

### How We Counted

Air Force courts-martial with a trial date in 2021, a not-guilty or mixed plea, and a result posted (137 cases), compared with all such cases in 2020–2025.

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

- [Air Force Courts-Martial: Data and Trends](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/air-force-courts-martial/) (hub)
- [By Year](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/by-year/) (hub)
- [Air Force Acquittals in 2022: How Many Contested Cases Ended Not Guilty?](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/contested-air-force-courts-martial-2022-verdicts/)
- [Air Force Acquittals in 2024: How Many Contested Cases Ended Not Guilty?](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/contested-air-force-courts-martial-2024-verdicts/)
- [Contested Air Force Cases in 2020: Verdicts and Sentences](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/contested-air-force-courts-martial-2020-verdicts/)
- [Contested Air Force Cases in 2025: Verdicts and Sentences](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/contested-air-force-courts-martial-2025-verdicts/)
- [How Did Contested Air Force Courts-Martial End in 2023?](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/contested-air-force-courts-martial-2023-verdicts/)
- [Army Acquittals in 2022: How Many Contested Cases Ended Not Guilty?](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/contested-army-courts-martial-2022-verdicts/)
- [Army Acquittals in 2023: How Many Contested Cases Ended Not Guilty?](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/contested-army-courts-martial-2023-verdicts/)
- [Search every case in Military Trial Results](https://www.bodiesburied.com/military-trial-results/) (members)

**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.