Child Sexual Abuse and Enticement: Courts-Martial at Fort Hood vs. Federal Court in the Western District of Texas
Army courts-martial at Fort Hood, Texas recorded 15 Article 120b convictions for sexual offenses against a child with trial dates from 2021 to 2025. The median adjudged confinement was 89.9 months (7.5 years), and a quarter received 308.8 months or more. In the Western District of Texas, 110 people
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In brief: Army courts-martial at Fort Hood, Texas recorded 15 Article 120b convictions for sexual offenses against a child with trial dates from 2021 to 2025. The median adjudged confinement was 89.9 months (7.5 years), and a quarter received 308.8 months or more. In the Western District of Texas, 110 people were sentenced in federal court for child-victim sexual abuse, enticement, and travel offenses in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, with a median prison term of 120 months (10 years); those federal cases come from the whole district, and most did not involve service members.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 110 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.
The Longest Sentences on Each Side
The top quarter of Fort Hood sentences began at 308.8 months. In the Western District of Texas, the top quarter began at 202 months. On this measure, the court-martial figure was higher.
The medians show the reverse order. The Fort Hood median of 89.9 months was lower than the district median of 120 months.
The Fort Hood group has 15 convictions, so its upper quarter rests on only a few sentences. The federal group has 110. In the district, 4 people received a life sentence.
| Courts-martial at Fort Hood | Federal court, Western District of Texas | |
|---|---|---|
| Convictions or people sentenced | 15 | 110 |
| Sentenced to confinement or prison | 93% | 97% |
| Median confinement or prison | 89.9 months | 120 months |
| A quarter received this or more | 308.8 months | 202 months |
| Pleaded guilty | 10 of 15 with a plea recorded (67%) | 88% |
| Mandatory minimum applied | See the caveats | 76 of 110 with the information (69%) |
What Each Count Includes
Fort Hood is in the federal Western District of Texas. The federal count covers people sentenced anywhere in that district under guideline §2G1.3 (enticement, transportation, and travel offenses involving a minor) plus §2A3.1 to §2A3.4 cases with a child-victim statute. It is not a count of Fort Hood cases, and most of the people in it were not in the military.
The court-martial count includes convictions where the records list the trial location as "Fort Hood". All 15 were Army cases.
Contested Cases and Guilty Pleas at Fort Hood
Of the 15 Fort Hood convictions with a plea recorded, 10 (67%) were guilty pleas. The median confinement after a guilty plea was 79 months, across 10 cases.
The 4 contested cases that ended in conviction with confinement had a median of 209.9 months. That median was higher than the guilty-plea median, but 4 cases are too few to show a pattern.
Confinement was part of 14 of the 15 sentences (93%). Of the 15 convictions, 14 (93%) were at a general court-martial. Of the 13 enlisted members convicted, 12 (92%) received a punitive discharge: 11 dishonorable discharges and 1 bad-conduct discharge. The 2 officers convicted were dismissed.
Federal Pleas, Trials, and the Guideline Range
In the district, 97 of 110 people (88%) pleaded guilty and 13 were convicted after a trial. Of the guilty pleas, 76% had a written plea agreement and 23% were straight pleas with no agreement. The median prison term after a guilty plea was 120 months. After a trial it was 235 months.
Of the 110 sentences, 59% (65) were within the guideline range. Below-range sentences at the government's request were 21% (23), below-range sentences without a request were 15% (17), and 5% (5) were above the range. A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 76 people (69%).
Prison was imposed on 107 of the 110 (97%). The other 3 (3%) received probation only.
Supervision, Fines, and Restitution
Supervised release after prison was ordered for 107 people (97%), with a median term of 60 months. Of those, 14 (13%) received supervised release for life.
A fine was ordered for 16 people (15%), and restitution for 13 (12%).
Broader Figures and Limits
Across all courts-martial for this offense in the data, 605 convictions had a median confinement of 36 months. Across all federal districts, 4,971 people had a median prison term of 120 months, the same as this district.
Federal records show that 64% in the district were in criminal history category I and 5% in category VI. Court-martial records have no such field. Court-martial sentences are counted as adjudged, before clemency or appeal, and federal terms as imposed, not served. Federal fiscal years begin October 1, while court-martial years follow the trial date. The records do not show case facts.
How We Counted
Courts-martial with trial dates in 2016 to 2025 whose recorded trial location is Fort Hood, Texas, ending in a conviction for sexual offenses against a child (Article 120b; federal child-victim sexual abuse, enticement, and travel offenses) (15). Federal: people sentenced in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 in the Western District of Texas (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Texas West") under guideline §2G1.3 (enticement, transportation, and travel offenses involving a minor) plus §2A3.1 to §2A3.4 cases with a child-victim statute (110). The installation is matched to the federal district for the county where it sits.
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.
Mandatory minimum sentences. Many federal statutes on drugs, images of child exploitation, child sex abuse, and firearms carry mandatory minimum prison terms. The UCMJ has mandatory minimums only for a few offenses (a dishonorable discharge or dismissal for rape and sexual assault, and life for premeditated murder). Federal sentences for these offenses are partly set by Congress, not by the judge.
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)
- Child Sexual Abuse and Enticement: Federal Cases vs. Article 120b Courts-Martial (overview)
- Federal Sentences in the Western District of Texas, FY2016–2025 (the federal district)
- Child Pornography: Courts-Martial at Fort Hood vs. Federal Court in the Western District of Texas (same installation)
- Theft and Fraud: Courts-Martial at Fort Hood vs. Federal Court in the Western District of Texas (same installation)
- Child Sexual Abuse and Enticement: Courts-Martial at Bremerton vs. Federal Court in the Western District of Washington (other installations)
- Child Sexual Abuse and Enticement: Courts-Martial at Camp Lejeune vs. Federal Court in the Eastern District of North Carolina (other installations)
- Child Sexual Abuse and Enticement: Courts-Martial at Camp Pendleton vs. Federal Court in the Southern District of California (other installations)
- Child Sexual Abuse and Enticement: Courts-Martial at Fort Bragg vs. Federal Court in the Eastern District of North Carolina (other installations)
- Child Sexual Abuse and Enticement: Federal Sentences vs. Air Force Courts-Martial, 2016–2025
- Child Sexual Abuse and Enticement: Federal Sentences vs. Army Courts-Martial
- Child Sexual Abuse and Enticement: Federal Sentences vs. Marine Corps Courts-Martial
- Fewer or More? Child Sexual Abuse Charges at Army Courts-Martial, 2021–2025 (court-martial data)
- How Much Confinement for an Article 120b Conviction in the Army? (court-martial data)
- How Often Are Contested Army Article 120b Cases Acquitted? (court-martial data)
- Pleading Guilty to Article 120b in the Army: What Sentences Followed? (court-martial data)
- How Has Article 120b Changed in Air Force Courts-Martial Since 2016? (court-martial data)
- How Much Confinement for an Article 120b Conviction in the Air Force? (court-martial data)
- Guilty Pleas in Air Force Child Sexual Abuse Cases: How Often, and What Came Next (court-martial data)
- Fewer or More? Child Sexual Abuse Charges at Navy-Marine Corps Courts-Martial, 2017–2025 (court-martial data)
- What Sentence Follows a Navy-Marine Corps Child Sexual Abuse Conviction? (court-martial data)
- Fighting a Navy-Marine Corps Child Sexual Abuse Charge: How Contested Cases Ended (court-martial data)
- Guilty Pleas in Navy-Marine Corps Child Sexual Abuse Cases: How Often, and What Came Next (court-martial data)
- Article 120b (Rape and Sexual Assault of a Child): Court-Martial Data and Trends (court-martial data)
- Article 120b UCMJ: Rape and Sexual Assault of a Child (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.