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# Aggravated Assault: Federal Sentences vs. Marine Corps Courts-Martial
- URL: https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-aggravated-assault-vs-marine-corps/
- Published: 2026-11-03T01:39:25.000Z
- Updated: 2026-11-03T01:39:25.000Z
- Description: The Marine Corps had 45 convictions for aggravated assault under Article 128 with trial dates from 2017 to 2025. The median confinement was 9 months, and 93% of the convictions included confinement. Guilty pleas were 74% of the convictions with a plea recorded, compared with 93% of federal sentences
- 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: Marine Corps

**In brief:** The Marine Corps had 45 convictions for aggravated assault under Article 128 with trial dates from 2017 to 2025\. The median confinement was 9 months, and 93% of the convictions included confinement. Guilty pleas were 74% of the convictions with a plea recorded, compared with 93% of federal sentences under guideline §2A2.2.

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/).

## Guilty Pleas Were Common in Marine Corps Cases

A plea is recorded for 39 of the 45 convictions. Of those, 29 (74%) were guilty pleas. That is the highest guilty plea share in this data.

The federal share is higher still: 4,200 of 4,493 people (93%) pleaded guilty. The federal group is people sentenced in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, and the court-martial group is convictions by trial date, so the groups do not count the same stage of a case.

|                                    | Marine Corps courts-martial         | Federal court, FY2016–FY2025 |
| ---------------------------------- | ----------------------------------- | ---------------------------- |
| Convictions or people sentenced    | 45                                  | 4,493                        |
| Sentenced to confinement or prison | 93%                                 | 97%                          |
| Median confinement or prison       | 9 months                            | 40 months                    |
| A quarter received this or more    | 24 months                           | 63 months                    |
| Pleaded guilty                     | 29 of 39 with a plea recorded (74%) | 93%                          |
| Mandatory minimum applied          | See the caveats                     | 6%                           |

## Marine Corps Confinement and Discharges

Of the 45 convictions, 42 included confinement (93%). The median adjudged confinement was 9 months, and a quarter of the sentences were 24 months or more. One person received confinement for life.

All 45 convicted were enlisted. Of those, 37 received a punitive discharge (82%): 13 dishonorable discharges and 24 bad-conduct discharges. A general court-martial heard 25 of the 45 cases (56%).

## Pleas Compared With Contested Cases

After a guilty plea, the median confinement was 8.4 months, based on 27 cases. In contested cases that ended in a conviction, it was 6.5 months, based on 8 cases.

The contested figure is the lower of the medians here, which is the reverse of the pattern in federal court. It rests on 8 cases, so it is a weak basis for a conclusion.

For trials in 2016 to 2019, the median confinement was 60 months, based on 5 cases. For trials in 2020 to 2025 it was 7.4 months, based on 36 cases.

## Federal Prison Terms for the Same Guideline

Of 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, or 3.3 years.

A quarter of the federal terms were 63 months or more, and a quarter were 24 months or less. The median was 37 months after a guilty plea and 78 months after a trial, based on 290 people convicted at trial and sent to prison.

## Federal Rules With No Court-Martial Counterpart

A mandatory minimum applied to 264 federal defendants (6%). Among the 4,490 with guideline information, 44% were sentenced within the range, 22% below it at the government's request, 23% below it without that request, and 11% above it.

Of the federal guilty pleas, 89% had a written plea agreement and 11% were straight pleas. Court-martial records have no criminal history field, while 41% of the federal group were in the lowest category.

## The Marine Corps Beside the Other Services

The table lists each service for the same offense and period. The Marine Corps has the highest share of enlisted members with a punitive discharge, 82%, and the highest guilty plea share, 74%.

Its median confinement of 9 months is lower than the Navy median of 12 months and the Air Force median of 13.8 months and higher than the Army median of 8 months.

| 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%                           |

## What These Records Cannot Show

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

The Marine Corps data begins in 2017 here, and the groups are small. The records cannot show how cases would compare if matched by injury, weapon, or criminal history.

### How We Counted

Marine Corps courts-martial with trial dates in 2016 to 2025 ending in a conviction for aggravated assault (Article 128) (45). 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](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: Federal Sentences vs. Air Force Courts-Martial, 2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-aggravated-assault-vs-air-force/)
- [Aggravated Assault: Federal Sentences vs. Army Courts-Martial](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-aggravated-assault-vs-army/)
- [Aggravated Assault: Federal Sentences vs. Navy Courts-Martial, 2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-aggravated-assault-vs-navy/)
- [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/)
- [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)
- [Navy-Marine Corps Courts-Martial: Data and Trends](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/navy-marine-corps-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.