Kidnapping: Federal Sentences vs. Army Courts-Martial
Army courts-martial from 2022 to 2025 produced 10 convictions for kidnapping under Article 125, with a median adjudged confinement of 8.9 months. In federal court, the median prison term was 164 months among 1,075 people sentenced under guideline §2A4.1 in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. The Army group i
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In brief: Army courts-martial from 2022 to 2025 produced 10 convictions for kidnapping under Article 125, with a median adjudged confinement of 8.9 months. In federal court, the median prison term was 164 months among 1,075 people sentenced under guideline §2A4.1 in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. The Army group is small, and its median hides a wide range of sentences.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 1,075 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 Army Records
The Military Trial Results data lists 10 Army convictions for kidnapping with trial dates from 2022 to 2025. Kidnapping has been Article 125 since 2019. All 10 of the accused were enlisted.
Confinement was part of the sentence in 8 of the 10 cases (80%). The median adjudged confinement was 8.9 months, but a quarter of the sentences were 147.6 months or more. The median and the upper quarter are far apart, which shows how mixed the sentences were.
7 of the 10 enlisted members received a punitive discharge (70%). There were 4 dishonorable discharges and 3 bad-conduct discharges. A general court-martial heard 8 of the 10 cases (80%).
Few Guilty Pleas, and Very Different Sentences
A plea was recorded for all 10 convictions, and 3 were guilty pleas (30%). The median confinement after a guilty plea was 3 months, from 3 cases with confinement.
In contested cases that ended in conviction, the median was 116.8 months, from 5 cases with confinement. A contested case is one where the accused pleaded not guilty to at least one charge.
These groups have 3 and 5 cases. They show that sentences in these kinds of cases were far apart in this set, but they are too small to describe the Army in general.
| Army courts-martial | Federal court, FY2016–FY2025 | |
|---|---|---|
| Convictions or people sentenced | 10 | 1,075 |
| Sentenced to confinement or prison | 80% | more than 99% |
| Median confinement or prison | 8.9 months | 164 months |
| A quarter received this or more | 147.6 months | 262 months |
| Pleaded guilty | 3 of 10 with a plea recorded (30%) | 83% |
| Mandatory minimum applied | See the caveats | 25% |
Federal Court for the Same Offense Type
The federal figures come from the U.S. Sentencing Commission and cover 1,075 people sentenced under guideline §2A4.1, which includes kidnapping, abduction, and unlawful restraint. Of these, 1,068 (more than 99%) received prison. 6 received probation only.
The median prison term was 164 months, or 13.7 years. A quarter of the people received 262 months or more, and a quarter received 108 months or less. A life sentence was imposed on 50 people.
Federal guilty pleas were common: 896 of 1,075 (83%). The median prison term was 144 months after a guilty plea and 365 months after a trial, based on 179 people convicted at trial. A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 274 people (25%).
How Federal Sentences Related to the Guidelines
Federal judges sentence against an advisory guideline range. For this offense, 33% of sentences were within the range. Another 39% were below the range at the government's request, and 24% were below it without a government request. Above the range were 4%.
Supervised release followed prison for 1,045 people (97%), with a median term of 60 months. Restitution was ordered for 400 (37%) and a fine for 56 (5%).
Of the guilty pleas, 91% had a written plea agreement. In the criminal history data, 36% were in the lowest category and 16% in the highest. Court-martial records have no criminal history field.
How the Other Services Compare in the Same Records
The same records list 2 Air Force convictions, 3 Navy convictions, and 4 Marine Corps convictions for kidnapping. The table shows each service. The Army, with 10, had the most.
The medians range from 5 months in the Navy to 218.7 months in the Air Force, and the Air Force figure rests on 2 convictions. None of the other services has enough cases for a stable comparison.
| Service | Convictions, 2016–2025 | With confinement | Median confinement | Punitive discharge (enlisted) | Guilty pleas (where recorded) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Army | 10 | 80% | 8.9 months | 70% | 30% |
| Air Force | 2 | 2 of 2 | 218.7 months | 2 of 2 | 2 of 2 |
| Navy | 3 | 3 of 3 | 5 months | 2 of 3 | 1 of 3 |
| Marine Corps | 4 | 3 of 4 | 36 months | 1 of 3 | 2 of 4 |
Limits of the Comparison
Court-martial sentences are the sentences adjudged at trial, before any clemency or appeal. Federal prison terms are the terms imposed, not time served. The federal years are fiscal years 2016 to 2025. The Army years are trial dates from 2022 to 2025.
The records cannot show the facts behind either set of cases, or why the Army group had fewer guilty pleas than the federal group. With 10 Army convictions, a single case can change the median. The numbers describe what was recorded and cannot predict an outcome in any case.
How We Counted
Army courts-martial with trial dates in 2016 to 2025 ending in a conviction for kidnapping (Article 125 since 2019) (10). Federal: 1,075 people sentenced under guideline §2A4.1 (kidnapping, abduction, unlawful restraint), 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 (the background article)
- Federal Prosecution Analysis (all federal posts)
- How the Federal Comparison Data Was Built (sources and method)
- Robbery and Kidnapping: Federal vs. Court-Martial Sentences, 2016–2025 (overview)
- Kidnapping Charges: Federal Trial Acquittals vs. Contested Army Courts-Martial
- Kidnapping Charges: How Often Federal Trials and Courts-Martial End in Acquittal
- Guilty Pleas in Kidnapping Cases: Federal Court vs. Courts-Martial
- Kidnapping Convictions of Junior Enlisted (E-1 to E-4): Courts-Martial Compared With Federal Court
- Is Army Kidnapping Prosecution Rising or Falling? Article 125, 2021–2025 (court-martial data)
- Army Courts-Martial: Data and Trends (court-martial data)
- Article 125 UCMJ: Kidnapping (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.