Child Sexual Abuse and Enticement Sentences in 2018: Federal Court vs. Courts-Martial
Courts-martial recorded 80 convictions for sexual offenses against a child in 2018, and 74 of them (93%) included confinement, with a median of 29.8 months (2.5 years). In fiscal year 2018, federal court sentenced 499 people for child-victim sexual abuse, enticement, and travel offenses; 98% receive
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In brief: Courts-martial recorded 80 convictions for sexual offenses against a child in 2018, and 74 of them (93%) included confinement, with a median of 29.8 months (2.5 years). In fiscal year 2018, federal court sentenced 499 people for child-victim sexual abuse, enticement, and travel offenses; 98% received a prison term, and the median was 120 months (10 years).
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 499 people sentenced in federal court in fiscal year 2018, 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.
How Many Cases in 2018?
The 80 court-martial convictions came from the Air Force (34), the Marine Corps (25), and the Navy (21). Army records in this data begin in 2020, so no Army cases appear for 2018. These are convictions under Article 120b, counted by trial date in calendar year 2018.
The 499 federal cases are people sentenced in fiscal year 2018, which ran from October 1, 2017 to September 30, 2018. They were sentenced under guideline §2G1.3 (enticement, transportation, and travel offenses involving a minor) or under §2A3.1 to §2A3.4 with a child-victim statute.
Not Every Conviction Brought Confinement
In 2018, 74 of the 80 court-martial convictions with a sentence recorded included confinement. That is 93%. The median confinement was 29.8 months, and a quarter received 60 months or more.
Federal court sent 491 of the 499 people to prison (98%). 7 received probation only, with no prison or other confinement. Among those sent to prison, the median term was 120 months. A quarter received 180 months or more, and a quarter received 60 months or less. 9 people received a life sentence.
A court-martial sentence in these records is the sentence adjudged at trial, before clemency or appeal. A federal prison term is the term imposed, which is not the same as time served.
| Courts-martial, 2018 | Federal court, FY2018 | |
|---|---|---|
| Convictions or people sentenced | 80 | 499 |
| Sentenced to confinement or prison | 93% | 98% |
| Median confinement or prison | 29.8 months | 120 months |
| A quarter received this or more | 60 months | 180 months |
| Pleaded guilty | 29 of 50 with a plea recorded (58%) | 90% |
| Mandatory minimum applied | See the caveats | 266 of 498 with the information (53%) |
Federal Trials and Federal Pleas
In federal court, 449 of 499 people (90%) pleaded guilty and 50 were convicted after a trial. Those 50 had a median prison term of 296 months. People who pleaded guilty had a median of 120 months.
Nearly all federal guilty pleas came with a written plea agreement (91%). The remaining 9% were straight pleas with no agreement.
Military Pleas and Contested Cases
The court-martial records list a plea for 50 of the 80 convictions. Of those 50, 29 (58%) were guilty pleas. The median confinement after a guilty plea was 30 months, across 28 cases with confinement. In contested cases ending in conviction, the median was 36 months, across 16 cases with confinement.
These plea groups are small. A difference between 28 cases and 16 cases in a single year should not be read as a pattern.
Discharges and Level of Court
77 of the 80 convictions (96%) were at a general court-martial. Of the 77 enlisted members convicted, 74 received a punitive discharge (96%): 57 dishonorable discharges and 17 bad-conduct discharges. All 3 officers convicted were dismissed.
Guideline Range, Supervision, and Restitution
A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 266 federal defendants (53%). 45% of sentences were within the guideline range. 28% were below the range at the government's request, 22% were below it without a government request, and 4% were above it.
After prison, 489 people (98%) were ordered to serve supervised release, with a median term of 84 months. 79 (16%) received supervised release for life. Restitution was ordered for 109 (22%), and a fine for 24 (5%).
61% were in criminal history category I and 5% in category VI. Court-martial records have no criminal history field.
Compared With Other Years
The 2018 court-martial median of 29.8 months was lower than the 36-month median for all 605 convictions from 2016 to 2025. The federal median of 120 months matched the median for all 4,971 people sentenced in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. The yearly federal figures are in the table below.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 503 | 120 months | 86% |
| 2017 | 494 | 120 months | 90% |
| 2018 | 499 | 120 months | 90% |
| 2019 | 495 | 120 months | 89% |
| 2020 | 386 | 120 months | 87% |
| 2021 | 429 | 120 months | 89% |
| 2022 | 607 | 120 months | 86% |
| 2023 | 546 | 120 months | 83% |
| 2024 | 544 | 121 months | 85% |
| 2025 | 468 | 120 months | 90% |
What the Records Do Not Show
The court-martial side counts convictions and the federal side counts people, on calendars that only partly overlap. The records give sentence lengths, but they do not explain them. They also cannot show how similar the underlying conduct was in military and federal cases.
How We Counted
Courts-martial with a trial date in 2018 ending in a conviction for sexual offenses against a child (Article 120b; federal child-victim sexual abuse, enticement, and travel offenses) (80). Federal: people sentenced in fiscal year 2018 under guideline §2G1.3 (enticement, transportation, and travel offenses involving a minor) plus §2A3.1 to §2A3.4 cases with a child-victim statute (499), 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.
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)
- Child Sexual Abuse and Enticement Sentences in 2017: Federal Court vs. Courts-Martial (previous or next year)
- Child Sexual Abuse and Enticement Sentences in 2019: Federal Court vs. Courts-Martial (previous or next year)
- Child Sexual Abuse and Enticement Sentences Since the 2023 Military Sentencing Reform: What the Data Shows So Far
- 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
- Child Sexual Abuse and Enticement: Federal Sentences vs. Navy Courts-Martial, 2016–2025
- Child Sexual Abuse and Enticement: Courts-Martial at Bremerton vs. Federal Court in the Western District of Washington
- Child Sexual Abuse and Enticement: Courts-Martial at Camp Lejeune vs. Federal Court in the Eastern District of North Carolina
- Child Sexual Abuse and Enticement: Courts-Martial at Camp Pendleton vs. Federal Court in the Southern District of California
- 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.