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# Aggravated Assault Convictions of NCOs (E-5 to E-9): Courts-Martial Compared With Federal Court
- URL: https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-aggravated-assault-ncos-vs-federal-court/
- Published: 2026-11-03T01:39:26.000Z
- Updated: 2026-11-03T01:39:26.000Z
- Description: Courts-martial convicted 64 NCOs (E-5 to E-9) of aggravated assault under Article 128 with trial dates from 2016 to 2025. The median confinement was 14.9 months, and 88% of the convictions included confinement. In federal court, 4,493 people were sentenced under guideline §2A2.2 in fiscal years 2016
- Author: Jocelyn C. Stewart
- Tags: Understanding Trends, Federal

[Trends](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/) › [Federal Prosecution Analysis](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal/) › [Aggravated Assault](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-aggravated-assault-vs-article-128/) › Aggravated Assault: NCOs

**In brief:** Courts-martial convicted 64 NCOs (E-5 to E-9) of aggravated assault under Article 128 with trial dates from 2016 to 2025\. The median confinement was 14.9 months, and 88% of the convictions included confinement. In federal court, 4,493 people were sentenced under guideline §2A2.2 in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, with a median prison term of 40 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 4,493 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](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal/) series, which builds on [Military Moves Toward Sentencing Guidelines to Mirror the Federal System](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/military-sentencing-guidelines-federal-system/). How the numbers were built: [How the Federal Comparison Data Was Built](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-data-methodology/).

## Contested Cases Carried Longer Sentences for NCOs

Among NCOs, guilty pleas were 29 of the 57 convictions with a plea recorded (51%). The median confinement after a guilty plea was 6.5 months, based on 26 cases with confinement.

In contested cases that ended in a conviction, the median confinement was 29.6 months, based on 23 cases. That is much higher than the median after a plea, though both groups are small.

|                                    | Courts-martial: NCOs (E-5 to E-9)   | Federal court, FY2016–FY2025 |
| ---------------------------------- | ----------------------------------- | ---------------------------- |
| Convictions or people sentenced    | 64                                  | 4,493                        |
| Sentenced to confinement or prison | 88%                                 | 97%                          |
| Median confinement or prison       | 14.9 months                         | 40 months                    |
| A quarter received this or more    | 60 months                           | 63 months                    |
| Pleaded guilty                     | 29 of 57 with a plea recorded (51%) | 93%                          |
| Mandatory minimum applied          | See the caveats                     | 6%                           |

## Overall NCO Sentences

Confinement was part of 56 of the 64 sentences (88%). The median adjudged confinement was 14.9 months, and a quarter of the sentences were 60 months or more.

For all ranks, the records show 214 convictions, a median confinement of 11.3 months, and confinement in 91%. The NCO median is higher than the all-rank median, and the NCO share with confinement is lower.

## Discharges and Level of Court

A punitive discharge went to 41 of the 64 enlisted members convicted (64%). That was 23 dishonorable discharges and 18 bad-conduct discharges. A general court-martial heard 45 of the 64 cases (70%).

By service, the NCO group is Army 19, Air Force 24, Navy 9, and Marine Corps 12.

## Earlier and Later Trial Years

For trials in 2016 to 2019, the median confinement was 23.7 months, based on 13 cases with confinement. For trials in 2020 to 2025 it was 10 months, based on 43 cases.

The records cannot show why the later median is lower. The earlier group is small.

## The Federal Sentences for Comparison

Federal court data comes from the U.S. Sentencing Commission, which reports 4,493 people sentenced under guideline §2A2.2 for fiscal years 2016 to 2025\. A prison term went to 4,340 of them (97%). Probation only went to 120 (3%).

Among those sent to prison, the median term was 40 months (3.3 years). The top quarter of terms were 63 months or more, and the bottom quarter were 24 months or less.

The NCO figure for the top quarter, 60 months, is close to the federal figure of 63 months. The medians are not close: 14.9 months compared with 40 months.

## Pleas and Trials in Federal Court

In federal court, 93% pleaded guilty (4,200 people), and the other 293 were convicted at trial. Sentences differed by route: 37 months at the median after a plea, and 78 months at the median after a trial. The trial median counts 290 people sent to prison.

Guilty pleas were less common among NCOs, at 51%, than in federal court. Federal law required a mandatory minimum for 264 defendants (6%). Court-martial records have no matching field.

## What Rank Can and Cannot Be Compared To

Rank does not appear in federal records. The closest federal measure is criminal history, which court-martial records lack.

This post therefore sets NCO convictions beside every federal defendant sentenced under the guideline. Court-martial figures are adjudged at trial, before clemency or appeal. Federal figures are imposed terms, and time served is not shown.

### How We Counted

Courts-martial with trial dates in 2016 to 2025 ending in a conviction for aggravated assault (Article 128) where the accused was an NCO (e-5 to e-9) (64). Federal: 4,493 people sentenced under guideline §2A2.2 (aggravated assault) (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

- [Military Moves Toward Sentencing Guidelines to Mirror the Federal System](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/military-sentencing-guidelines-federal-system/) (the background article)
- [Federal Prosecution Analysis](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal/) (all federal posts)
- [How the Federal Comparison Data Was Built](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-data-methodology/) (sources and method)
- [Aggravated Assault: Federal Sentences vs. Article 128 Courts-Martial, 2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-aggravated-assault-vs-article-128/) (overview)
- [Aggravated Assault Convictions of Junior Enlisted (E-1 to E-4): Courts-Martial Compared With Federal Court](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-aggravated-assault-junior-enlisted-vs-federal-court/)
- [Aggravated Assault Sentences Since the 2023 Military Sentencing Reform: What the Data Shows So Far](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-aggravated-assault-2023-sentencing-reform-so-far/)
- [Aggravated Assault Charges: Federal Trial Acquittals vs. Contested Army Courts-Martial](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-aggravated-assault-acquittal-rate-vs-army/)
- [Aggravated Assault Charges: How Often Federal Trials and Courts-Martial End in Acquittal](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-aggravated-assault-acquittal-rate-vs-courts-martial/)
- [Aggravated Assault Charges: Federal Trial Acquittals vs. Contested Marine Corps Courts-Martial](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-aggravated-assault-acquittal-rate-vs-marine-corps/)
- [Aggravated Assault Charges: Federal Trial Acquittals vs. Contested Navy Courts-Martial](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-aggravated-assault-acquittal-rate-vs-navy/)
- [Army Article 128 Cases by the Numbers, 2021–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/army-article-128-trend-2021-2025/) (court-martial data)
- [Article 128 Sentences in the Army: Confinement and Discharges, 2021–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/army-article-128-sent-2021-2025/) (court-martial data)
- [How Often Are Contested Army Article 128 Cases Acquitted?](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/army-article-128-acq-2021-2025/) (court-martial data)
- [When Army Accused Plead Guilty to Assault](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/army-article-128-plea-2021-2025/) (court-martial data)
- [Fewer or More? Assault Charges at Air Force Courts-Martial, 2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/air-force-article-128-trend-2016-2025/) (court-martial data)
- [What Sentence Follows an Air Force Assault Conviction?](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/air-force-article-128-sent-2016-2025/) (court-martial data)
- [Pleading Guilty to Article 128 in the Air Force: What Sentences Followed?](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/air-force-article-128-plea-2016-2025/) (court-martial data)
- [Navy-Marine Corps Article 128 Cases by the Numbers, 2017–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/navy-marine-corps-article-128-trend-2017-2025/) (court-martial data)
- [What Sentence Follows a Navy-Marine Corps Assault Conviction?](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/navy-marine-corps-article-128-sent-2017-2025/) (court-martial data)
- [Not Guilty Pleas in Navy-Marine Corps Article 128 Cases: What Happened at Trial](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/navy-marine-corps-article-128-acq-2017-2025/) (court-martial data)
- [Guilty Pleas in Navy-Marine Corps Assault Cases: How Often, and What Came Next](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/navy-marine-corps-article-128-plea-2017-2025/) (court-martial data)
- [Article 128 (Assault): Court-Martial Data and Trends](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/article-128-courts-martial/) (court-martial data)
- [Article 128 UCMJ: Assault, Aggravated Assault, and Strangulation](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/practice-areas/court-martial/article-128/?ref=bodiesburied.com) (law firm reference page)
- [U.S. Sentencing Commission, Individual Offender Datafiles](https://www.ussc.gov/research/datafiles/commission-datafiles?ref=bodiesburied.com) (source)
- [Federal Judicial Center, Integrated Database (criminal defendants)](https://www.fjc.gov/research/idb?ref=bodiesburied.com) (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](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.