Sexual Abuse of an Adult Charges: Federal Trial Acquittals vs. Contested Army Courts-Martial
In the Army, 157 of 348 contested courts-martial for sexual abuse of an adult that reached a verdict ended in a full acquittal (45%), from trial dates in 2020 to 2025. In federal court, 79 of 276 trials ended in an acquittal (29%). The Army figure counts contested cases, and the federal figure count
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In brief: In the Army, 157 of 348 contested courts-martial for sexual abuse of an adult that reached a verdict ended in a full acquittal (45%), from trial dates in 2020 to 2025. In federal court, 79 of 276 trials ended in an acquittal (29%). The Army figure counts contested cases, and the federal figure counts trials, so they are not a like-for-like pair.
This post uses the Federal Judicial Center's records of 2,093 federal defendants whose cases ended in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, compared with court-martial results from this site's Military Trial Results data (updated November 2, 2026). The series also draws on the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 659,036 people sentenced in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. It is part of the Federal Prosecution Analysis series, which builds on Military Moves Toward Sentencing Guidelines to Mirror the Federal System. How the numbers were built: How the Federal Comparison Data Was Built.
Army Verdicts in Contested Cases
The Army group is every contested court-martial for Article 120 rape, sexual assault, and abusive sexual contact that reached a verdict. A court-martial is contested when the accused pleads not guilty to at least one charge.
Of the 348 cases, 157 ended in a full acquittal (45%). A further 146 (42%) were partial acquittals, which means not guilty of at least one charge and guilty of another.
Verdicts by Forum
A judge alone decided 116 cases, with 35 full acquittals (30%). Members decided 222 cases, with 112 full acquittals (50%).
Enlisted members decided 187 cases, with 102 full acquittals (55%). Officer members decided 35 cases, with 10 full acquittals (29%). In 10 cases the forum is not listed, and all 10 were full acquittals (100%).
Army Results by Year
The table shows full acquittals of contested cases each year. The Army counts were 45 of 115 in 2021, 37 of 89 in 2022, 31 of 63 in 2023, 25 of 50 in 2024, and 18 of 30 in 2025.
The 2020 entry is 1 of 1, so it carries no weight as a rate. The number of contested cases reaching a verdict was lower in each later year shown.
| Year | Army: full acquittals of contested cases |
|---|---|
| 2020 | 1 of 1 |
| 2021 | 45 of 115 |
| 2022 | 37 of 89 |
| 2023 | 31 of 63 |
| 2024 | 25 of 50 |
| 2025 | 18 of 30 |
Federal Trials for Comparison
The Federal Judicial Center counted 2,093 defendants charged under 18 U.S.C. 2241 to 2244, with any victim age, whose cases ended in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. Most pleaded guilty: 1,555 (74%). Another 262 (13%) had their cases dismissed, and 276 (13%) went to trial.
Of the trials, 79 ended in an acquittal (29%). Jury trials numbered 257 with 72 acquittals (28%), and bench trials, decided by a judge, numbered 19 with 7 acquittals (37%). Overall, 1,752 defendants (84%) were convicted by plea or at trial.
What Is and Is Not Comparable
The federal numbers include every defendant whose case ended, with dismissals counted. Federal case data does not report partial acquittals separately. The Army partial acquittals, 146 cases, have no federal counterpart in the data.
The federal group also includes cases where the victim was a minor, since the data covers 18 U.S.C. 2241 to 2244 for any victim age. The Army group is limited to adult victims.
What the Records Cannot Show
The records do not show the evidence in any case or the reason the Army cases ended as they did. Army cases also come from a system with no grand jury, while federal felonies need an indictment.
The Army date range in this comparison starts in 2020, while the federal range starts in fiscal year 2016. The ranges overlap, but they are not identical.
How We Counted
Army courts-martial charging sexual abuse of an adult (Article 120 rape, sexual assault, and abusive sexual contact) with trial dates in 2016 to 2025 that were contested and reached a verdict (348). Federal: defendants charged under 18 U.S.C. 2241 to 2244 (any victim age) whose cases ended in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 (2,093), Federal Judicial Center.
Federal fiscal years run from October 1 to September 30. No person, judge, or lawyer is identified in any of these records.
What to Keep in Mind
Who is in each set of numbers. The federal sentencing numbers come from the U.S. Sentencing Commission. They count only people who were convicted and sentenced in federal district court. People whose cases were dismissed or who were acquitted are not in them. The military numbers come from court-martial results, which include acquittals. To compare acquittal or dismissal rates, the federal side uses a different source: the Federal Judicial Center's case data, which counts every defendant whose case ended.
Different cases reach each system. Federal prosecutors bring a narrow set of cases. In fiscal year 2024, immigration and drug trafficking cases were 59% of everyone sentenced in federal court (36,664 of 61,678). Many crimes that the military prosecutes, such as most assaults, most sexual assaults between adults, and drug use, are usually state crimes for civilians and reach federal court only in special situations, such as on federal land or in Indian Country. A federal case and a court-martial for the same crime can involve different kinds of facts.
Time periods. Federal numbers are by federal fiscal year (October 1 to September 30), based on the sentencing date. The military numbers are by trial date. Neither source has the date of the offense, so a change in law shows up in either data set gradually.
Offense categories do not line up exactly. Each comparison uses a federal offense group chosen to match the military article as closely as possible (see the crosswalk). Some matches are close; others are partial. The post says which federal guideline or statute was used and why it is not an exact match.
How "plea" and "trial" are counted. In the federal sentencing numbers, "trial" means the person was convicted after a trial, including people who pleaded guilty to some counts and went to trial on others. People acquitted at trial are not in these numbers at all (see "Who is in each set of numbers"). In the federal case data, the trial rate counts both convictions and acquittals at trial among all defendants whose cases ended, including dismissed cases. Military numbers count contested cases that reached a verdict. These denominators are not the same, and each post states the one it uses.
Related Analysis
- Military Moves Toward Sentencing Guidelines to Mirror the Federal System (the background article)
- Federal Prosecution Analysis (all federal posts)
- How the Federal Comparison Data Was Built (sources and method)
- Sexual Abuse of an Adult: Federal Cases vs. Article 120 Courts-Martial (overview)
- Sexual Abuse of an Adult Charges: Federal Trial Acquittals vs. Contested Marine Corps Courts-Martial
- Sexual Abuse of an Adult Charges: Federal Trial Acquittals vs. Contested Navy Courts-Martial
- Sexual Abuse of an Adult Sentences Since the 2023 Military Sentencing Reform: What the Data Shows So Far
- Sexual Abuse of an Adult Charges: How Often Federal Trials and Courts-Martial End in Acquittal
- Guilty Pleas in Sexual Abuse of an Adult Cases: Federal Court vs. Courts-Martial
- Sexual Abuse of an Adult Convictions of Junior Enlisted (E-1 to E-4): Courts-Martial Compared With Federal Court
- Are Courts-Martial More Likely to End in Acquittal Than Federal Trials? (related comparison)
- Guilty Pleas in Federal Court vs. Courts-Martial, Year by Year (related comparison)
- Child Pornography Sentences: Federal Court vs. Courts-Martial, 2016–2025 (related comparison)
- Federal Law Has No Crime of Drug Use: How Article 112a Cases Compare (related comparison)
- Drug Distribution and Importation: Federal vs. Court-Martial Sentences, 2016–2025 (related comparison)
- Child Sexual Abuse and Enticement: Federal Cases vs. Article 120b Courts-Martial (related comparison)
- Theft and Fraud by Dollar Loss: Federal Sentences vs. Article 121 Courts-Martial (related comparison)
- Fewer or More? Sexual Assault Charges at Army Courts-Martial, 2021–2025 (court-martial data)
- Article 120 Sentences in the Army: Confinement and Discharges, 2021–2025 (court-martial data)
- Fighting an Army Sexual Assault Charge: How Contested Cases Ended (court-martial data)
- When Army Accused Plead Guilty to Sexual Assault (court-martial data)
- Article 120 (Rape and Sexual Assault): Court-Martial Data and Trends (court-martial data)
- Army Courts-Martial: Data and Trends (court-martial data)
- Article 120 UCMJ Explained by a Former Special Victim Prosecutor (law firm reference page)
- Forum Selection (law firm reference page)
- U.S. Sentencing Commission, Individual Offender Datafiles (source)
- Federal Judicial Center, Integrated Database (criminal defendants) (source)
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.