The Longest Court-Martial Sentences in the Data, Without the Names
Of 7813 court-martial convictions in the Army, Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps records from 2016–2025, 561 carried 5 years of confinement or more (7%), and 11 were life sentences.
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Short answer: Of 7813 court-martial convictions in the Army, Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps records from 2016–2025, 561 carried 5 years of confinement or more (7%), and 11 were life sentences. Among sentences of 20 years or more, Article 120b (rape and sexual assault of a child) was the most common article of conviction, in 72 cases.
Sentences of 10 Years, 20 Years, and Life
The table below counts adjudged confinement terms at or above each length, by service. Life sentences are counted in their own column and also in the 10-year and 20-year columns.
In the Army, 91 of 2128 convictions brought 10 years or more, 48 brought 20 years or more, and 5 were life sentences. In the Air Force, 70 of 2168 convictions brought 10 years or more, 28 brought 20 years or more, and 3 were life sentences. In the Navy and Marine Corps, 102 of 3517 convictions brought 10 years or more, 46 brought 20 years or more, and 3 were life sentences.
The Navy and Marine Corps have the most convictions in the data, so their raw counts are not directly comparable with the other services' counts.
| Service | Convictions | 10 years or more | 20 years or more | Life |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Army | 2128 | 91 | 48 | 5 |
| Air Force | 2168 | 70 | 28 | 3 |
| Navy-Marine Corps | 3517 | 102 | 46 | 3 |
Which Convictions Led to 20 Years or More?
Among sentences of 20 years or more, the most common articles of conviction were Article 120b (rape and sexual assault of a child), in 72 cases; Article 120 (rape and sexual assault), in 49; Article 134 (the general article), in 45; Article 128 (assault), in 33; and Article 80 (attempts), in 19.
A single case can include convictions under several articles, and the sentence covers all of them. A case with convictions under both Article 120b and Article 134, for example, counts under each article. The counts therefore show which articles appear in these cases, not which single offense produced the sentence.
How Often These Articles Are Charged
Several of the articles behind the longest sentences are not among the most common charges. Article 120b was charged in 657 cases (8%) and Article 120 in 1264 (15%). Article 128 was the most common charge, in 2104 cases (25%), and Article 134 appeared in 1690 (20%). The charge lists cover 8433 of the 9284 cases.
| UCMJ Article | Cases | Share here | Share, all courts-martial in those years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Art. 128 Assault | 2104 | 25% | 25% |
| Art. 112a Wrongful use, possession of controlled substances | 1989 | 24% | 24% |
| Art. 134 General article | 1690 | 20% | 20% |
| Art. 92 Failure to obey order or regulation | 1326 | 16% | 16% |
| Art. 120 Rape and sexual assault | 1264 | 15% | 15% |
| Art. 128b Domestic violence, numbered since 2019 | 670 | 8% | 8% |
| Art. 120b Rape and sexual assault of a child | 657 | 8% | 8% |
| Art. 121 Larceny | 642 | 8% | 8% |
Long Sentences Are a Small Share
Most convictions did not bring long confinement. 3112 of the 7813 convictions carried under 6 months (40%), and 1286 carried no confinement (16%). Another 1452 fell between 6 months and 1 year (19%).
At the upper end, 1402 convictions brought more than 1 year but under 5 years (18%), and 561 brought 5 years or more (7%). Taken together, 1963 convictions carried more than one year of confinement (25%).
| Adjudged confinement | Convictions | Share here | Share, all courts-martial in those years |
|---|---|---|---|
| No confinement | 1286 | 16% | 16% |
| Under 6 months | 3112 | 40% | 40% |
| 6 months to 1 year | 1452 | 19% | 19% |
| More than 1 year, under 5 years | 1402 | 18% | 18% |
| 5 years or more | 561 | 7% | 7% |
Median and Upper Quarter
84% of convictions included confinement. Among those confinement terms, the median was 6 months. A quarter of the terms were 1.5 years or longer.
These are adjudged sentences, meaning the confinement imposed at trial. They come before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal, so the time actually served can be shorter. Each sentence covers every charge in the case.
Only a General Court-Martial Can Impose Long Confinement
A special court-martial caps confinement at one year and cannot impose a dishonorable discharge. Only a general court-martial, the court level that can impose any lawful sentence, can adjudge more than one year of confinement, including a life sentence.
The records hold 4955 general courts-martial and 4271 special courts-martial, with the level not listed for 58 cases. The median confinement was 1.3 years at general courts-martial and 3 months at special courts-martial.
Discharges in the Same Sentences
Confinement is only one part of a sentence. Among 7321 convicted enlisted members, 4629 received a punitive discharge: 3134 bad-conduct discharges and 1495 dishonorable discharges. A dishonorable discharge, like long confinement, is available only at a general court-martial.
420 convicted officers or warrant officers appear in the records, and 215 were dismissed, the officer equivalent of a punitive discharge.
Median Confinement for the Most Common Charges
The table gives the median confinement for the top charges across all cases. A conviction on Article 134 brought a median confinement of 1.2 years. A conviction on Article 128 brought a median of 6 months. Convictions on Article 112a (drug offenses) and Article 92 (failure to obey an order or regulation) each brought a median of 4 months.
One case can include a conviction on one article and an acquittal on another, so the rows in the table overlap.
| Article | Cases charging it | Convicted of it (share) | Median confinement when convicted of it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Art. 128 Assault | 2104 | 1769 (84%) | 6 months |
| Art. 112a Wrongful use, possession of controlled substances | 1989 | 1891 (95%) | 4 months |
| Art. 134 General article | 1690 | 1564 (93%) | 1.2 years |
| Art. 92 Failure to obey order or regulation | 1326 | 1221 (92%) | 4 months |
Pleas, Rule Changes, and Data Limits
6715 of the 9284 records list the plea. 4403 accused pleaded guilty and 2312 contested at least one charge, so 34% of cases with a plea recorded were contested. The records do not report the terms of any plea agreement, so they cannot show whether a sentence was limited by one.
The Military Justice Act of 2016 took effect on January 1, 2019, and brought in written plea agreements. When every guilty finding in a case is for an offense after December 27, 2023, the military judge sets the sentence under new sentencing parameters. The rules turn on the offense date, which the records do not give, so trials from 2024 on mix old-rule and new-rule cases.
The records also do not show the evidence or conduct handled outside a court-martial.
Dates and sources for the law changes mentioned here: UCMJ change timeline.
How We Counted
Courts-martial in the Army, Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps with trial dates in 2016–2025 (9284 cases). Figures are totals; no individual case is listed.
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
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.