Murder: Federal Sentences vs. Air Force Courts-Martial
The Air Force had 10 courts-martial that ended in a murder conviction under Article 118, with trial dates from 2016 to 2022. The median adjudged confinement was 287.8 months (24 years). In federal court, the median prison term for 3,243 people sentenced for murder in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 was 29
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In brief: The Air Force had 10 courts-martial that ended in a murder conviction under Article 118, with trial dates from 2016 to 2022. The median adjudged confinement was 287.8 months (24 years). In federal court, the median prison term for 3,243 people sentenced for murder in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 was 292 months (24.3 years). Of the service medians, the Air Force median is the closest to the federal one.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 3,243 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.
Air Force Murder Convictions and Their Sentences
Every Air Force conviction was at a general court-martial, and every one had confinement (100%). A quarter of the sentences were 410.7 months or more, and 2 were confinement for life.
All 10 enlisted members convicted received a punitive discharge (100%), and every one was a dishonorable discharge.
| Air Force courts-martial | Federal court, FY2016–FY2025 | |
|---|---|---|
| Convictions or people sentenced | 10 | 3,243 |
| Sentenced to confinement or prison | 100% | more than 99% |
| Median confinement or prison | 287.8 months | 292 months |
| A quarter received this or more | 410.7 months | 470 months |
| Pleaded guilty | 2 of 6 with a plea recorded (2 of 6) | 77% |
| Mandatory minimum applied | See the caveats | 44% |
Earlier Trials Against Later Trials
Trials in 2016 to 2019 had a median confinement of 359.8 months, based on 5 cases with confinement. Trials in 2020 to 2025 had a median of 215.9 months, based on 3 cases.
Air Force trial dates in this count end in 2022, so the later period is short. The records cannot show whether the later cases differed in kind or only in number.
Pleas Are Mostly Missing in the Air Force Records
A plea was recorded for only 6 of the 10 convictions, and 2 of those 6 were guilty pleas. Air Force plea information is missing for most trials before 2020.
The median confinement was 269.8 months after a guilty plea, based on 2 cases. In contested cases that ended in conviction it was 215.9 months, based on 3 cases. These groups are too small for a reliable comparison.
The Federal Side
Federal court sentenced 3,243 people for first degree murder (§2A1.1) or second degree murder (§2A1.2) in the Sentencing Commission data. Of them, 3,239 received a prison term, and 683 received life sentences.
The longest quarter of terms were 470 months or more, and the shortest quarter were 180 months or less. A mandatory minimum applied to 1,434 people (44%).
Federal Pleas, Trials, and the Guideline Range
Guilty pleas made up 2,482 of the federal cases (77%), with 761 convictions after a trial. After a guilty plea the median term was 240 months, and after a trial it was 470 months.
Relative to the guideline range, 1,304 sentences (40%) fell within it and 160 (5%) fell above it. Sentences below it numbered 1,366 (42%) at the government's request and 411 (13%) without one.
Other Services
Medians in the other services were 215.9 months for the Army (14 convictions), 95.9 months for the Navy (12), and 56.5 months for the Marine Corps (4).
The Air Force group is the smallest but one, and each service's convictions fall in different years.
| Service | Convictions, 2016–2025 | With confinement | Median confinement | Punitive discharge (enlisted) | Guilty pleas (where recorded) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Army | 14 | 100% | 215.9 months | 79% | 77% |
| Air Force | 10 | 100% | 287.8 months | 100% | 2 of 6 |
| Navy | 12 | 92% | 95.9 months | 70% | 50% |
| Marine Corps | 4 | 3 of 4 | 56.5 months | 3 of 3 | 1 of 3 |
What the Records Cannot Show
Court-martial sentences are as adjudged at trial, before any clemency or appeal. Federal prison terms are those imposed, not time served. The Air Force trial dates end in 2022, while the federal years run through fiscal year 2025.
The records do not show the facts of any case, or the reasons for a sentence. With 10 convictions, the Air Force median is a description of those cases only.
How We Counted
Air Force courts-martial with trial dates in 2016 to 2025 ending in a conviction for murder (Article 118) (10). Federal: 3,243 people sentenced under guideline §2A1.1 (first degree murder) or §2A1.2 (second degree murder), 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)
- Murder and Manslaughter: Federal vs. Court-Martial Sentences, 2016–2025 (overview)
- Murder: Federal Sentences vs. Army Courts-Martial
- Murder: Federal Sentences vs. Navy Courts-Martial, 2016–2025
- Murder Charges: How Often Federal Trials and Courts-Martial End in Acquittal
- Guilty Pleas in Murder Cases: Federal Court vs. Courts-Martial
- Murder Convictions of Junior Enlisted (E-1 to E-4): Courts-Martial Compared With Federal Court
- Murder Convictions of NCOs (E-5 to E-9): Courts-Martial Compared With Federal Court
- Article 118 Sentences in the Air Force: Confinement and Discharges, 2016–2025 (court-martial data)
- Article 118 (Murder): Court-Martial Data and Trends (court-martial data)
- Air Force Courts-Martial: Data and Trends (court-martial data)
- Article 118 UCMJ: Murder (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.