Drug Distribution: Courts-Martial at Fort Bliss vs. Federal Court in the Western District of Texas
All 12 Army convictions for drug distribution at Fort Bliss, with trial dates from 2021 to 2025, included confinement, and the median adjudged confinement was 8 months. In the Western District of Texas, 8,537 people were sentenced in federal court for drug trafficking without an import statute in fi
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In brief: All 12 Army convictions for drug distribution at Fort Bliss, with trial dates from 2021 to 2025, included confinement, and the median adjudged confinement was 8 months. In the Western District of Texas, 8,537 people were sentenced in federal court for drug trafficking without an import statute in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, and the median prison term was 60 months (5 years). The district figures cover the whole district and are not cases from Fort Bliss.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 8,537 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.
Every Fort Bliss Sentence Included Confinement
Confinement was part of 12 of the 12 Fort Bliss sentences recorded (100%). The median adjudged confinement was 8 months, and a quarter received 12 months or more. These are sentences as adjudged at trial, before any clemency or appeal.
For all courts-martial for this offense in the data, the median confinement was 4.9 months across 408 convictions. The Fort Bliss median was higher. With only 12 convictions, the Fort Bliss figures are a small group and can shift with a few cases.
Which Federal Cases Are Counted
Fort Bliss, Texas is in the federal Western District of Texas. The federal numbers count every person sentenced in that district under primary guideline §2D1.1 without an import statute, mostly 21 U.S.C. 841 and 846. Most of those cases did not involve service members.
For the military side, the records list the trial location as "Fort Bliss". All 12 convictions were Army cases for Article 112a wrongful distribution. The records do not show that any of these cases would have been prosecuted in the district court.
Prison Terms in the Western District of Texas
Of the 8,537 people sentenced, 8,229 (96%) received a prison term and 228 (3%) received probation only. Among those sent to prison, a quarter received 120 months or more, and a quarter received 30 months or less. 7 received a life sentence.
The district median of 60 months was lower than the 65-month median across all federal districts, which counted 160,460 people. A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 5,345 people in the district (63%). Federal prison terms are the terms imposed, not time served.
| Courts-martial at Fort Bliss | Federal court, Western District of Texas | |
|---|---|---|
| Convictions or people sentenced | 12 | 8,537 |
| Sentenced to confinement or prison | 100% | 96% |
| Median confinement or prison | 8 months | 60 months |
| A quarter received this or more | 12 months | 120 months |
| Pleaded guilty | 11 of 12 with a plea recorded (92%) | 99% |
| Mandatory minimum applied | See the caveats | 5,345 of 8,517 with the information (63%) |
Plea Agreements, Straight Pleas, and Trials
Guilty pleas accounted for 8,431 of 8,537 federal cases (99%), and 106 people were convicted after a trial. The median prison term was 60 months after a guilty plea and 180 months after a trial.
Among the guilty pleas, 77% had a written plea agreement. The other 23% were straight pleas, meaning the person pleaded guilty with no agreement.
At Fort Bliss, 11 of 12 convictions with a plea recorded (92%) were guilty pleas. The 11 guilty pleas had a median confinement of 9 months. Only 1 contested case ended in a conviction with confinement, and it was 7 months, too few to compare with the pleas.
Discharges and Court Level at Fort Bliss
Of the 12 enlisted members convicted, 10 (83%) received a punitive discharge: 4 dishonorable discharges and 6 bad-conduct discharges. A general court-martial, the highest level of court-martial, heard 6 of the 12 convictions (50%).
Guideline Position, Supervision, and Fines
Out of 8,536 federal sentences with the information, 53% (4,548) were within the guideline range. Below the range at the government's request were 25% (2,113), and below it without a government request were 21% (1,780). Above the range were 1% (95).
Supervised release after prison was ordered for 8,201 people (96%), with a median term of 48 months. 7 received supervised release for life. A fine was ordered for 1,287 (15%), and restitution for 28 (less than 1%).
What These Numbers Leave Out
Federal records put 51% of the district's defendants in category I, the lowest criminal history category, and 9% in category VI, the highest. Court-martial records have no criminal history field. Court-martial years are calendar years by trial date, while federal fiscal years run October 1 to September 30. Neither source records why a sentence was chosen.
How We Counted
Courts-martial with trial dates in 2016 to 2025 whose recorded trial location is Fort Bliss, Texas, ending in a conviction for drug distribution (Article 112a wrongful distribution; federal drug trafficking without an import statute) (12). Federal: people sentenced in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 in the Western District of Texas (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Texas West") under primary guideline §2D1.1 without an import statute (mostly 21 U.S.C. 841 and 846) (8,537). 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)
- Drug Distribution and Importation: Federal vs. Court-Martial Sentences, 2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Sentences in the Western District of Texas, FY2016–2025 (the federal district)
- Obstruction of Justice: Courts-Martial at Fort Bliss vs. Federal Court in the Western District of Texas (same installation)
- Drug Distribution: Courts-Martial at Camp Lejeune vs. Federal Court in the Eastern District of North Carolina (other installations)
- Drug Distribution: Courts-Martial at Camp Pendleton vs. Federal Court in the Southern District of California (other installations)
- Drug Distribution: Courts-Martial at Nellis AFB vs. Federal Court in the District of Nevada (other installations)
- Drug Distribution: Federal Sentences vs. Air Force Courts-Martial, 2016–2025
- Drug Distribution: Federal Sentences vs. Army Courts-Martial
- Drug Distribution: Federal Sentences vs. Marine Corps Courts-Martial
- Army Article 112a Cases by the Numbers, 2021–2025 (court-martial data)
- What Sentence Follows an Army Drug Conviction? (court-martial data)
- How Often Are Contested Army Article 112a Cases Acquitted? (court-martial data)
- Guilty Pleas in Army Drug Cases: How Often, and What Came Next (court-martial data)
- Are Air Force Drug Courts-Martial Disappearing? Article 112a, 2016–2025 (court-martial data)
- How Much Confinement for an Article 112a Conviction in the Air Force? (court-martial data)
- Pleading Guilty to Article 112a in the Air Force: What Sentences Followed? (court-martial data)
- Is Navy-Marine Corps Drug Prosecution Rising or Falling? Article 112a, 2017–2025 (court-martial data)
- How Much Confinement for an Article 112a Conviction in the Navy-Marine Corps? (court-martial data)
- Fighting a Navy-Marine Corps Drug Charge: How Contested Cases Ended (court-martial data)
- When Navy-Marine Corps Accused Plead Guilty to Drug (court-martial data)
- Article 112a (Wrongful Use, Possession of Controlled Substances): Court-Martial Data and Trends (court-martial data)
- Article 112a UCMJ Drug Offenses and Positive Urinalysis (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.