Aggravated Assault: Federal Sentences vs. Air Force Courts-Martial, 2016–2025
Air Force courts-martial produced 81 convictions for aggravated assault under Article 128 with trial dates from 2016 to 2025. The median confinement was 13.8 months, and 95% of the convictions included confinement. Federal courts sentenced 4,493 people under guideline §2A2.2 in fiscal years 2016 to
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In brief: Air Force courts-martial produced 81 convictions for aggravated assault under Article 128 with trial dates from 2016 to 2025. The median confinement was 13.8 months, and 95% of the convictions included confinement. Federal courts sentenced 4,493 people under guideline §2A2.2 in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, with a median prison term of 40 months.
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 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.
Air Force Confinement for Aggravated Assault, 2016 to 2025
Of the 81 Air Force convictions, 77 included confinement, or 95%. The median adjudged confinement was 13.8 months. A quarter of the sentences were 36 months or more.
For trials in 2016 to 2019, the median confinement was 15.8 months, based on 31 cases with confinement. For trials in 2020 to 2025 it was 12.8 months, based on 46 cases.
| Air Force courts-martial | Federal court, FY2016–FY2025 | |
|---|---|---|
| Convictions or people sentenced | 81 | 4,493 |
| Sentenced to confinement or prison | 95% | 97% |
| Median confinement or prison | 13.8 months | 40 months |
| A quarter received this or more | 36 months | 63 months |
| Pleaded guilty | 29 of 58 with a plea recorded (50%) | 93% |
| Mandatory minimum applied | See the caveats | 6% |
Discharges, Officers, and Level of Court
The records list 75 enlisted members among the convicted. Of those, 60 received a punitive discharge (80%): 25 dishonorable discharges and 35 bad-conduct discharges.
The records list 6 officers among the convicted, and 2 of them were dismissed. A general court-martial heard 57 of the 81 cases (70%).
Guilty Pleas in the Air Force Records
A plea is recorded for 58 of the 81 convictions. Of those, 29 (50%) were guilty pleas. Air Force plea information is missing for most trials before 2020, so this share rests on a partial record.
After a guilty plea, the median confinement was 11.6 months, based on 28 cases. In contested cases that ended in a conviction, it was 17.8 months, based on 26 cases.
This post does not give an Air Force acquittal rate. Air Force records rarely list the charges in acquittals, so acquittals for this offense cannot be counted reliably.
The Federal Numbers for Comparison
Among the 4,493 federal defendants, 4,340 (97%) received a prison term and 120 (3%) received probation only. The median prison term was 40 months, which is 3.3 years.
A quarter of federal prison terms were 63 months or more, and a quarter were 24 months or less. The Air Force median is lower than the federal median.
Federal guilty pleas were 93% of the group, and 293 people were convicted after a trial. The median prison term was 37 months after a plea and 78 months after a trial.
Federal Features With No Court-Martial Counterpart
A mandatory minimum applied to 264 federal defendants (6%). Supervised release was ordered for 93%, with a median of 36 months.
Of the 4,490 people with guideline information, 44% were sentenced within the range. Below-range sentences were 22% at the government's request and 23% without it, and 11% were above the range. Among federal guilty pleas, 89% had a written plea agreement.
The Services Side by Side
The table shows each service for the same offense and years. The Air Force has the most convictions in the table, 81, and the highest median confinement, 13.8 months.
Because the counts are small, a few cases can change a service median. The Army median is 8 months, the Navy median is 12 months, and the Marine Corps median is 9 months. The Air Force punitive discharge share for enlisted members, 80%, is the second highest in the table after the Marine Corps share of 82%.
| Service | Convictions, 2016–2025 | With confinement | Median confinement | Punitive discharge (enlisted) | Guilty pleas (where recorded) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Army | 59 | 90% | 8 months | 72% | 69% |
| Air Force | 81 | 95% | 13.8 months | 80% | 50% |
| Navy | 29 | 79% | 12 months | 61% | 55% |
| Marine Corps | 45 | 93% | 9 months | 82% | 74% |
Limits of the Comparison
Court-martial sentences are as adjudged, before clemency or appeal. Federal prison terms are those imposed, not time served.
Court-martial records do not show injuries, weapons, or criminal history, so the groups cannot be matched case by case. The records also cannot show why one system sentenced differently from the other.
How We Counted
Air Force courts-martial with trial dates in 2016 to 2025 ending in a conviction for aggravated assault (Article 128) (81). Federal: 4,493 people sentenced under guideline §2A2.2 (aggravated assault), fiscal years 2016 to 2025 (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.
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 (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: 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 Sentences Since the 2023 Military Sentencing Reform: What the Data Shows So Far
- Aggravated Assault Charges: Federal Trial Acquittals vs. Contested Army Courts-Martial
- Aggravated Assault Charges: How Often Federal Trials and Courts-Martial End in Acquittal
- 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)
- Article 128 (Assault): Court-Martial Data and Trends (court-martial data)
- Air Force Courts-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.