Eglin AFB, Florida Courts-Martial, 2016–2018: What 12 Cases Show
Eglin AFB, Florida had 12 courts-martial in the records from 2016 to 2018. Article 120b (rape and sexual assault of a child) was charged in 60% of the cases with charges listed, compared with 10% across the Air Force.
Understanding Trends in Military Practice · 5 min read
Trends › By Installation › Eglin AFB, Florida › 2016–2018
Short answer: Eglin AFB, Florida had 12 courts-martial in the records from 2016 to 2018. Article 120b (rape and sexual assault of a child) was charged in 60% of the cases with charges listed, compared with 10% across the Air Force. All 10 convicted enlisted members received a punitive discharge (100%), compared with 55% service-wide.
Child Sexual Offense Charges
10 of the 12 records list charges. Article 120b (rape and sexual assault of a child) appears in 6 of them (60%). Across all Air Force cases in those years, the share was 10%.
Article 112a (drug use or possession) appears in 3 cases (30%), lower than the 48% Air Force share. Article 134, the general article, appears in 2 (20%), and Article 120 (rape and sexual assault) in 1 (10%). A case is counted once under each article it charges, so one case can appear in more than one row.
| UCMJ Article | Cases | Share here | Share, the whole Air Force docket |
|---|---|---|---|
| Art. 120b Rape and sexual assault of a child | 6 | 60% | 10% |
| Art. 112a Wrongful use, possession of controlled substances | 3 | 30% | 48% |
| Art. 134 General article | 2 | 20% | 25% |
| Art. 120 Rape and sexual assault | 1 | 10% | 9% |
Every Convicted Enlisted Member Received a Punitive Discharge
Of the 10 enlisted members convicted at Eglin, 10 received a bad-conduct or dishonorable discharge (100%). 5 of those were dishonorable discharges. In the rest of the Air Force, the rate was 55%.
These discharges are part of the sentence the court imposed. A member whose sentence has no punitive discharge can still be separated administratively later, and these records do not show those separations.
General Courts-Martial and Confinement
9 of the 12 cases were general courts-martial (75%), compared with 47% across the Air Force. A general court-martial can impose any lawful sentence, including a dishonorable discharge. A special court-martial is limited to one year of confinement and cannot impose a dishonorable discharge.
Of 10 convictions, 9 included confinement. The median was 1 year, longer than the 4 months for all Air Force cases in those years. A quarter of the confinement terms were 2.5 years or longer. These are adjudged sentences, set at trial before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal, and each one covers every charge in the case.
Full Acquittals
2 of the 12 cases ended in a full acquittal (17%), compared with 20% across the Air Force. Air Force records from these years seldom list a guilty plea, so the rate is measured against all cases rather than contested cases only.
Who Decided Guilt, and Who Was Accused
A military judge alone decided guilt in 8 of the 12 cases (67%). Members decided 4: 2 enlisted panels and 2 officer panels. The accused usually chooses between a judge and a panel.
8 accused were junior enlisted (E-1 to E-4), 4 were NCOs (E-5 to E-9), and none were officers. That mix is more junior than the rest of the Air Force, where 63% were junior enlisted.
Eglin Beside Hill and Moody
Hill AFB, Utah and Moody AFB, Georgia each tried 20 Air Force cases in the same years. Their median confinement was 6 months at Hill and 4 months at Moody, compared with 1 year at Eglin. Their punitive discharge rates for enlisted convictions were 53% and 67%.
| Installation | Cases | Contested | Full acquittals (decided contested) | Median confinement | Punitive discharge (enlisted) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eglin AFB, Florida | 12 | — | — | 1 year | 100% |
| Hill AFB, Utah | 20 | — | — | 6 months | 53% |
| Moody AFB, Georgia | 20 | — | — | 4 months | 67% |
Timing and Rules
The 12 trials ran from April 2016 to November 2018: 2 in 2016, 4 in 2017, and 6 in 2018. They are 1% of the 991 Air Force courts-martial in those years. All came before the Military Justice Act of 2016 took effect on January 1, 2019, so the later rules on panel size, judge-alone special courts-martial, and written plea agreements did not apply.
The records give trial dates, not offense dates. They do not show the evidence, plea terms, or cases handled by nonjudicial punishment or administrative separation, and Air Force records seldom list charges in full acquittals.
Dates and sources for the law changes mentioned here: UCMJ change timeline.
How We Counted
Every court-martial in the data tried at Eglin AFB, Florida with a trial date in 2016–2018 (12 cases), compared with all 991 Air Force trials in those years. Dates are trial dates.
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
- Eglin AFB, Florida: Court-Martial Data and Trends (hub)
- Air Force Courts-Martial: Data and Trends (hub)
- By Installation (hub)
- What Was Tried at Eglin AFB, Florida, 2019–2023? 16 Courts-Martial (another period)
- Eglin AFB, Florida Courts-Martial, 2024–2026: What 17 Cases Show (another period)
- What Was Tried at Malmstrom AFB, Montana, 2016–2018? 12 Courts-Martial (same years, similar size)
- Inside 12 Courts-Martial at Robins AFB, Georgia, 2016–2018 (same years, similar size)
- Andersen AFB, Guam Courts-Martial, 2016–2018: What 13 Cases Show
- Aviano AB, Italy Courts-Martial, 2016–2018: What 16 Cases Show
- Aviano AB, Italy, 2019–2023: Charges, Verdicts, and Sentences in 17 Cases
- Search every case in Military Trial Results (members)
Military Judges Who Presided Over Cases at Eglin AFB, Florida, 2016–2018
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.