Aggravated Assault Sentences in 2023: Federal Court vs. Courts-Martial
The median federal prison term for aggravated assault in fiscal year 2023 was 43 months, across 525 people sentenced under guideline §2A2.2. The 20 court-martial convictions for aggravated assault (Article 128) with 2023 trial dates had a median adjudged confinement of 14.5 months. The federal media
Understanding Trends in Military Practice · 8 min read
Trends › Federal Prosecution Analysis › Aggravated Assault › Aggravated Assault: 2023
In brief: The median federal prison term for aggravated assault in fiscal year 2023 was 43 months, across 525 people sentenced under guideline §2A2.2. The 20 court-martial convictions for aggravated assault (Article 128) with 2023 trial dates had a median adjudged confinement of 14.5 months. The federal median was higher, and the court-martial group is small.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 525 people sentenced in federal court in fiscal year 2023, 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.
The Federal Median in Fiscal Year 2023
43 months (3.6 years) is the highest yearly median in the federal table for fiscal years 2016 to 2025. A quarter of those sent to prison received 70 months or more, and a quarter received 27 months or less.
509 of the 525 (97%) received a prison term. 9 (2%) received probation only, with no prison or other confinement.
A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 46 people (9%). A mandatory minimum is a floor set by statute that the judge generally cannot go below.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 365 | 36.9 months | 95% |
| 2017 | 383 | 37 months | 96% |
| 2018 | 398 | 39.5 months | 94% |
| 2019 | 413 | 40 months | 94% |
| 2020 | 341 | 40 months | 96% |
| 2021 | 406 | 37 months | 95% |
| 2022 | 524 | 41 months | 94% |
| 2023 | 525 | 43 months | 93% |
| 2024 | 583 | 40 months | 91% |
| 2025 | 555 | 41 months | 91% |
Courts-Martial in 2023
The 20 convictions came from the Army (9), the Navy (6), the Air Force (3), and the Marine Corps (2).
18 of the 20 convictions with a sentence recorded (90%) included confinement. The median was 14.5 months, and a quarter received 26.7 months or more.
17 of the 20 (85%) were at a general court-martial. With 20 convictions, a few unusual sentences can move these figures, so they describe 1 small year and not a trend.
| Courts-martial, 2023 | Federal court, FY2023 | |
|---|---|---|
| Convictions or people sentenced | 20 | 525 |
| Sentenced to confinement or prison | 90% | 97% |
| Median confinement or prison | 14.5 months | 43 months |
| A quarter received this or more | 26.7 months | 70 months |
| Pleaded guilty | 12 of 20 with a plea recorded (60%) | 93% |
| Mandatory minimum applied | See the caveats | 46 of 521 with the information (9%) |
Guilty Pleas Compared With Trials
12 of the 20 court-martial convictions (60%) were guilty pleas. The median confinement was 6 months after a guilty plea (11 cases with confinement) and 16 months after a contested case ending in conviction (7 cases with confinement).
In federal court, 486 of 525 (93%) pleaded guilty, and 39 were convicted after a trial. The median prison term was 41 months after a guilty plea and 71 months after a trial.
89% of federal guilty pleas had a written plea agreement. The other 11% were straight pleas with no agreement.
Punitive Discharges for Enlisted Members
All 20 people convicted were enlisted. 16 received a punitive discharge (80%): 6 dishonorable discharges and 10 bad-conduct discharges.
A punitive discharge is a sentence that only a court-martial can impose. Federal court has no discharge. It ordered supervised release after prison for 492 people (94%), with a median term of 36 months.
Federal Sentences and the Guideline Range
43% of federal sentences (226) were within the guideline range. 22% (113) were below it at the government's request. 23% (123) were below it without such a request, and 12% (63) were above it.
Restitution was ordered for 157 people (30%) and a fine for 19 (4%).
In criminal history, 41% were in category I, the lowest, and 11% in category VI, the highest. Courts-martial do not record a criminal history category.
The 10-Year Totals
Over 2016 to 2025, the court-martial records show 214 aggravated assault convictions and a median confinement of 11.3 months. Federal court sentenced 4,493 people over fiscal years 2016 to 2025, and the median prison term was 40 months.
What the Records Do Not Answer
Federal fiscal year 2023 ran from October 1, 2022 to September 30, 2023. Court-martial years are calendar years by trial date.
Court-martial sentences are as adjudged at trial, before clemency or appeal. Federal prison terms are imposed terms, not time served. The data does not explain why the federal median was higher in this year or what the underlying assaults involved.
How We Counted
Courts-martial with a trial date in 2023 ending in a conviction for aggravated assault (Article 128) (20). Federal: people sentenced in fiscal year 2023 under guideline §2A2.2 (aggravated assault) (525), U.S. Sentencing Commission.
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.
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.
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.
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)
- Aggravated Assault: Federal Sentences vs. Article 128 Courts-Martial, 2016–2025 (overview)
- Aggravated Assault Sentences in 2022: Federal Court vs. Courts-Martial (previous or next year)
- Aggravated Assault Sentences in 2024: Federal Court vs. Courts-Martial (previous or next year)
- Aggravated Assault Sentences Since the 2023 Military Sentencing Reform: What the Data Shows So Far
- Aggravated Assault: Federal Sentences vs. Air Force Courts-Martial, 2016–2025
- Aggravated Assault: Federal Sentences vs. Army Courts-Martial
- Aggravated Assault: Federal Sentences vs. Marine Corps Courts-Martial
- Aggravated Assault: Federal Sentences vs. Navy Courts-Martial, 2016–2025
- Aggravated Assault: Courts-Martial at Camp Lejeune vs. Federal Court in the Eastern District of North Carolina
- Aggravated Assault: Courts-Martial at Camp Pendleton vs. Federal Court in the Southern District of California
- Army Article 128 Cases by the Numbers, 2021–2025 (court-martial data)
- Article 128 Sentences in the Army: Confinement and Discharges, 2021–2025 (court-martial data)
- How Often Are Contested Army Article 128 Cases Acquitted? (court-martial data)
- When Army Accused Plead Guilty to Assault (court-martial data)
- Fewer or More? Assault Charges at Air Force Courts-Martial, 2016–2025 (court-martial data)
- What Sentence Follows an Air Force Assault Conviction? (court-martial data)
- Pleading Guilty to Article 128 in the Air Force: What Sentences Followed? (court-martial data)
- Navy-Marine Corps Article 128 Cases by the Numbers, 2017–2025 (court-martial data)
- What Sentence Follows a Navy-Marine Corps Assault Conviction? (court-martial data)
- Not Guilty Pleas in Navy-Marine Corps Article 128 Cases: What Happened at Trial (court-martial data)
- Guilty Pleas in Navy-Marine Corps Assault Cases: How Often, and What Came Next (court-martial data)
- Article 128 (Assault): Court-Martial Data and Trends (court-martial data)
- Article 128 UCMJ: Assault, Aggravated Assault, and Strangulation (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.