Drug Use: Courts-Martial at Nellis AFB vs. Federal Court in the District of Nevada
Nellis AFB had 43 Article 112a drug-use convictions at court-martial, and 24 of the 41 enlisted members convicted (59%) received a punitive discharge. Confinement was part of 84% of the sentences, with a median of 3.7 months. In the District of Nevada, 17 people were sentenced for simple possession
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In brief: Nellis AFB had 43 Article 112a drug-use convictions at court-martial, and 24 of the 41 enlisted members convicted (59%) received a punitive discharge. Confinement was part of 84% of the sentences, with a median of 3.7 months. In the District of Nevada, 17 people were sentenced for simple possession in fiscal years 2016 to 2023, and 12 of them (71%) received probation only.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 17 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.
Punitive Discharges at Nellis AFB
A punitive discharge is a discharge imposed as part of a court-martial sentence. It is separate from any confinement. At Nellis AFB, 24 of the 41 enlisted members convicted of wrongful drug use received one: 2 dishonorable discharges and 22 bad-conduct discharges.
Officers cannot receive those discharges, but they can be dismissed. 2 officers were convicted at Nellis AFB, and 1 was dismissed.
9 of the 43 convictions (21%) were at a general court-martial, the level of court that can impose the most serious sentences. The rest were at lower-level courts-martial.
Confinement for Drug Use at the Base
The records list the trial location as "Nellis AFB, Nevada." All 43 convictions were Air Force cases, with trial dates from 2016 to 2025.
Of the 43 convictions with a sentence recorded, 36 (84%) included confinement. The median adjudged confinement was 3.7 months. A quarter received 6.7 months or more. For all 1,071 court-martial convictions for this offense in the data, the median confinement was 3 months.
Of 22 convictions with a plea recorded, 10 (45%) were guilty pleas. The median confinement after a guilty plea was 4.9 months, based on 9 cases with confinement. In contested cases ending in conviction, it was 3.9 months, based on 7 cases.
Simple Possession in the District of Nevada
The federal comparison uses 21 U.S.C. 844, simple possession, which the data treats as the nearest federal charge to Article 112a. The U.S. Sentencing Commission counted 17 people sentenced under that statute in the District of Nevada in fiscal years 2016 to 2023.
Only 5 of the 17 (29%) received a prison term. The recorded median prison term for those 5 was 0 months, and both quarter marks were also 0 months. With so few people sent to prison, these figures rest on very few cases. Across all federal districts, the median prison term for simple possession was 6 months, from 6,268 people sentenced.
All 17 (100%) pleaded guilty, and every guilty plea had a written plea agreement. No one was convicted after a trial, and no mandatory minimum applied. Of the 16 cases with guideline information, all 16 (100%) were sentenced within the recommended guideline range.
| Courts-martial at Nellis AFB | Federal court, District of Nevada | |
|---|---|---|
| Convictions or people sentenced | 43 | 17 |
| Sentenced to confinement or prison | 84% | 29% |
| Median confinement or prison | 3.7 months | 0 months |
| A quarter received this or more | 6.7 months | 0 months |
| Pleaded guilty | 10 of 22 with a plea recorded (45%) | 100% |
| Mandatory minimum applied | See the caveats | 0 of 17 with the information (0%) |
The Federal Cases Are Not From the Base
Nellis AFB is located in the District of Nevada. The federal cases here, however, come from the whole district. Most did not involve service members. The records do not show that cases from Nellis AFB would have been tried in the district court.
The 2 sides also count different years. Court-martial numbers are by trial date. Federal numbers are by fiscal year, which runs from October 1 to September 30.
Other Federal Sentence Terms
A fine was ordered for 8 of the 17 (47%), and restitution for none. Only 1 person (6%) was ordered to serve supervised release after prison, and the median term was 12 months.
On criminal history, 81% were in category I, the lowest, and 0% were in category VI, the highest. Court-martial records have no criminal history field.
Earlier and Later Trials at Nellis AFB
For trials in 2016 to 2019, the median confinement at Nellis AFB was 3 months, based on 25 cases with confinement. For trials in 2020 to 2025, the median was 4.9 months, based on 11 cases. The records cannot show why the median was higher in the later period.
Limits of the Comparison
Court-martial sentences are as adjudged at trial, before clemency or appeal. Federal prison terms are those imposed, not the time served. The data does not include the drug involved, the amount, or the facts of any case, and it cannot show how any person's case would have ended in the other system.
How We Counted
Courts-martial with trial dates in 2016 to 2025 whose recorded trial location is Nellis AFB, Nevada, ending in a conviction for wrongful drug use (Article 112a), compared with federal simple possession, the nearest federal charge (43). Federal: people sentenced in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 in the District of Nevada (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Nevada") under a conviction under 21 U.S.C. 844 (simple possession), the nearest federal charge (17). 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.
Drug use has no federal counterpart. Federal law does not make drug use a crime. A positive drug test is not a federal offense; a civilian can be charged only with possessing the drug. Bringing drugs onto a military installation is also a military-only offense. For these, the nearest federal charge is simple possession, and the post says that the match is not exact.
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)
- Federal Law Has No Crime of Drug Use: How Article 112a Cases Compare (overview)
- Federal Sentences in the District of Nevada, FY2016–2025 (the federal district)
- Drug Possession: Courts-Martial at Nellis AFB vs. Federal Court in the District of Nevada (same installation)
- Drug Distribution: Courts-Martial at Nellis AFB vs. Federal Court in the District of Nevada (same installation)
- Drug Use: Courts-Martial at Barksdale AFB vs. Federal Court in the Western District of Louisiana (other installations)
- Drug Use: Courts-Martial at Beale AFB vs. Federal Court in the Eastern District of California (other installations)
- Drug Use: Courts-Martial at Bremerton vs. Federal Court in the Western District of Washington (other installations)
- Drug Use: Courts-Martial at Camp Lejeune vs. Federal Court in the Eastern District of North Carolina (other installations)
- Drug Use: Federal Sentences vs. Air Force Courts-Martial, 2016–2025
- Drug Use: Federal Sentences vs. Army Courts-Martial
- Drug Use: 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.