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Sexual Abuse of an Adult Convictions of NCOs (E-5 to E-9): Courts-Martial Compared With Federal Court

Court-martial records show 308 convictions of NCOs (E-5 to E-9) for sexual abuse of an adult from 2016 to 2025, with a median adjudged confinement of 26 months. Confinement was part of the sentence in 258 cases (84%), lower than the 88% for all ranks together. The federal median prison term for 531

Understanding Trends in Military Practice · 9 min read

Trends › Federal Prosecution Analysis › Sexual Abuse of an Adult › Sexual Abuse of an Adult: NCOs

In brief: Court-martial records show 308 convictions of NCOs (E-5 to E-9) for sexual abuse of an adult from 2016 to 2025, with a median adjudged confinement of 26 months. Confinement was part of the sentence in 258 cases (84%), lower than the 88% for all ranks together. The federal median prison term for 531 people sentenced in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 was 74 months.

Updated November 2, 2026 · Sources: U.S. Sentencing Commission and Federal Judicial Center, fiscal years 2016–2025 · Military Trial Results

This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 531 people sentenced in federal court in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, compared with court-martial results from this site's Military Trial Results data (updated November 2, 2026). Acquittals and dismissals come from a second source, the Federal Judicial Center's records of 753,808 federal defendants whose cases ended 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.

NCO Confinement and Discharges

Of the 308 NCO convictions, 258 (84%) included confinement. The median was 26 months, which is 2.2 years. A quarter of the sentences were 83.9 months or more, and 1 carried confinement for life.

All 308 NCOs were enlisted members, and 247 received a punitive discharge (80%). That total is 192 dishonorable discharges and 55 bad-conduct discharges.

Courts-martial: NCOs (E-5 to E-9)Federal court, FY2016–FY2025
Convictions or people sentenced308531
Sentenced to confinement or prison84%95%
Median confinement or prison26 months74 months
A quarter received this or more83.9 months151 months
Pleaded guilty110 of 283 with a plea recorded (39%)87%
Mandatory minimum appliedSee the caveats1%

Contested Cases Compared With Guilty Pleas

A plea was recorded for 283 NCO convictions, and 110 (39%) were guilty pleas. After a guilty plea the median confinement was 21.5 months, from 102 cases with confinement.

In contested cases that ended in conviction, the median was 29.6 months, from 132 cases. These contested cases are the ones where the accused pleaded not guilty to at least one charge.

Earlier Trials and Later Trials

For trials in 2016 to 2019, the median confinement was 38 months, from 96 cases with confinement. For trials in 2020 to 2025 it was 24 months, from 161 cases.

Of the NCO convictions, 281 (91%) were at a general court-martial. By service, the NCO convictions were 112 in the Army, 67 in the Air Force, 84 in the Navy, and 45 in the Marine Corps.

How NCOs Compare With All Ranks

All ranks together had 901 convictions, a median confinement of 24 months, and 88% with confinement. The NCO median was higher than that overall median, and the share with confinement was lower.

Rank is the rank at trial as listed in the court-martial record.

Federal Defendants Have No Rank

The federal data has no rank field. It counts 531 people sentenced under guideline §2A3.1 or §2A3.4 where the statute of conviction shows an adult victim (18 U.S.C. 2241(a)/(b), 2242, 2244). Criminal history is the nearest federal measure, and court-martial records have no such field.

A prison term went to 506 of the 531 people (95%), and 15 (3%) received probation only. The median was 74 months, or 6.2 years. A quarter received 24 months or less, and 4 received a life sentence.

Of the federal group, 87% pleaded guilty. The median prison term was 63 months after a plea and 131.5 months after a trial.

Limits of the Records

Court-martial sentences are as adjudged at trial, before any clemency or appeal. Federal prison terms are the terms imposed, not time served.

The records cannot show why NCOs received the sentences they did, or whether the federal and military groups involved similar conduct. Nothing in either data set describes the facts of a case, the evidence at trial, or the position of the accused at the time of the offense.

How We Counted

Courts-martial with trial dates in 2016 to 2025 ending in a conviction for sexual abuse of an adult (Article 120 rape, sexual assault, and abusive sexual contact) where the accused was an NCO (e-5 to e-9) (308). Federal: 531 people sentenced under primary sentencing guideline §2A3.1 or §2A3.4 where the statute of conviction shows an adult victim (18 U.S.C. 2241(a)/(b), 2242, 2244) (U.S. Sentencing Commission). Federal records have no rank; criminal history is the nearest federal measure of record, and courts-martial have no criminal history field.

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.

No parole in federal prison; credit for good conduct. Federal prison has no parole for crimes committed on or after November 1, 1987. A federal prisoner can earn up to 54 days of good conduct credit for each year of the sentence the judge imposed, which is about 15%. Some federal prisoners can also earn First Step Act time credits, but many offenses make a person ineligible. The numbers in this post are the sentences judges imposed, not the time people actually served.

Military confinement credit and parole. For military sentences adjudged after 2004, good conduct time is 5 days for each month of confinement, about 16%. Military prisoners can also earn up to 8 more days a month for work and programs and up to 2 days a month for special acts, with a limit of 15 days a month in total. Military prisoners can be considered for parole by their service's clemency and parole board. The military numbers in this post are the confinement adjudged at trial, not the time served.

Military sentences include punishments federal sentences do not. A court-martial sentence can include a punitive discharge (bad-conduct discharge, dishonorable discharge, or dismissal for officers), reduction in rank, and forfeiture of pay. These have no federal counterpart. A comparison of months of confinement leaves them out. A short confinement term combined with a dishonorable discharge is a heavier sentence than the months alone show.

Federal supervised release. Most federal prison sentences are followed by a term of supervised release that the judge sets as part of the sentence. A person who violates it can be sent back to prison. A court-martial cannot sentence anyone to supervision after release. Military parole and mandatory supervised release are decided later by a board, not by the judge at trial.

Who decides the sentence, and under what rules. Federal judges sentence every federal case. They must calculate the Sentencing Guidelines range, which is advisory, and must impose any mandatory minimum the statute requires unless an exception applies. In courts-martial, the accused could choose sentencing by members until the rules changed. For cases in which every guilty finding is for an offense committed after December 27, 2023, a military judge sentences alone, within sentencing parameters. Courts-martial tried in 2024 and later include both old-rule and new-rule cases, and the data cannot tell them apart.

How life sentences and "time served" are counted. In the federal numbers, a life sentence is counted as 470 months, and any other sentence longer than 470 months is counted as just under 470 months. A sentence of "time served" is counted as one day (0.03 months). Averages are affected by these rules; medians much less.

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.

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