Obstruction of Justice Convictions of NCOs (E-5 to E-9): Courts-Martial Compared With Federal Court
Courts-martial convicted 119 NCOs (E-5 to E-9) of obstruction of justice under Article 131b with trial dates from 2016 to 2025. Confinement was adjudged in 76% of those convictions, about the same as the 74% prison rate for federal cases under guideline §2J1.2. The median was 12 months in courts-mar
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In brief: Courts-martial convicted 119 NCOs (E-5 to E-9) of obstruction of justice under Article 131b with trial dates from 2016 to 2025. Confinement was adjudged in 76% of those convictions, about the same as the 74% prison rate for federal cases under guideline §2J1.2. The median was 12 months in courts-martial and 18 months in federal court.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 1,256 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.
How Often Did NCOs Receive Confinement?
Of the 119 NCO convictions, 91 (76%) included confinement. NCOs had a median of 12 months of adjudged confinement, and 32 months or more was the top quarter of sentences.
For the federal comparison, the Sentencing Commission counted 1,256 people under §2J1.2 (obstruction of justice) across fiscal years 2016 to 2025. Prison went to 930 of them (74%), and 212 (17%) got probation only. Federal prison terms had a median of 18 months, with 36 months or more for the top quarter and 8 months or less for the bottom quarter.
| Courts-martial: NCOs (E-5 to E-9) | Federal court, FY2016–FY2025 | |
|---|---|---|
| Convictions or people sentenced | 119 | 1,256 |
| Sentenced to confinement or prison | 76% | 74% |
| Median confinement or prison | 12 months | 18 months |
| A quarter received this or more | 32 months | 36 months |
| Pleaded guilty | 72 of 114 with a plea recorded (63%) | 82% |
| Mandatory minimum applied | See the caveats | 1% |
Were Guilty Pleas Less Common Among NCOs?
A plea was recorded for 114 of the 119 NCO convictions, and 72 of those (63%) were guilty pleas. In federal court, 1,031 of 1,256 people (82%) pleaded guilty, and 225 were convicted after a trial. Guilty pleas were less common among NCOs than in federal court.
After a guilty plea, the median confinement for NCOs was 8 months, based on 66 cases with confinement. In contested cases that ended in conviction, it was 19 months, based on 22 cases with confinement. A contested case is one where the accused pleaded not guilty to at least one charge.
Federal court shows the same direction. The median prison term was 15 months after a guilty plea and 33 months after a trial, based on 198 people convicted at trial and sent to prison.
What Discharges and Court Levels Applied?
Punitive discharges went to 73 of the 119 NCOs (61%), made up of 25 dishonorable discharges and 48 bad-conduct discharges. Another measure of severity is court level: 77 of the 119 convictions (65%) were at a general court-martial.
By service, the Army had 47 of these convictions, the Navy 34, the Marine Corps 28, and the Air Force 10. A federal sentence has no counterpart to a punitive discharge, so that part of a court-martial sentence cannot be compared.
Did NCO Sentences Change Between Periods?
For trials in 2016 to 2019, the median confinement was 12 months, based on 24 cases with confinement. For trials in 2020 to 2025, it was 8.9 months, based on 67 cases. The later median is lower, and it rests on more cases.
For all ranks together, the records show 329 convictions, a median confinement of 10 months, and confinement in 85% of convictions. NCOs received confinement less often than that, and their median was higher.
What Cannot Be Matched Between Courts-Martial and Federal Court?
Federal records have no rank. The federal figures cover everyone sentenced under §2J1.2, so they describe the whole group and not NCO-equivalent defendants. Criminal history is the nearest federal measure of record, and courts-martial have no criminal history field.
Court-martial sentences are those announced at trial, before clemency or appeal, and federal terms are those imposed, not served. A mandatory minimum applied to 14 federal defendants (1%), and the court-martial records do not report an equivalent.
The records do not list the conduct charged, any plea agreement, or the reasons for a sentence. Whether rank, the offense, or the court accounts for a difference is outside what they can show.
How We Counted
Courts-martial with trial dates in 2016 to 2025 ending in a conviction for obstruction of justice (Article 131b) where the accused was an NCO (e-5 to e-9) (119). Federal: 1,256 people sentenced under guideline §2J1.2 (obstruction of justice) (U.S. Sentencing Commission). Federal records have no rank; criminal history is the nearest federal measure of record, and courts-martial have no criminal history field.
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)
- Obstruction of Justice and Perjury: Federal vs. Court-Martial Sentences (overview)
- Obstruction of Justice Convictions of Junior Enlisted (E-1 to E-4): Courts-Martial Compared With Federal Court
- Obstruction of Justice Convictions of Officers and Warrant Officers: Courts-Martial Compared With Federal Court
- Obstruction of Justice Sentences Since the 2023 Military Sentencing Reform: What the Data Shows So Far
- Obstruction of Justice Charges: Federal Trial Acquittals vs. Contested Army Courts-Martial
- Obstruction of Justice Charges: How Often Federal Trials and Courts-Martial End in Acquittal
- Obstruction of Justice Charges: Federal Trial Acquittals vs. Contested Marine Corps Courts-Martial
- How Has Article 131b Changed in Army Courts-Martial Since 2021? (court-martial data)
- How Much Confinement for an Article 131b Conviction in the Army? (court-martial data)
- How Often Are Contested Army Article 131b Cases Acquitted? (court-martial data)
- Pleading Guilty to Article 131b in the Army: What Sentences Followed? (court-martial data)
- Air Force Article 131b Cases by the Numbers, 2016–2025 (court-martial data)
- What Sentence Follows an Air Force Obstruction Conviction? (court-martial data)
- Pleading Guilty to Article 131b in the Air Force: What Sentences Followed? (court-martial data)
- Is Navy-Marine Corps Obstruction Prosecution Rising or Falling? Article 131b, 2017–2025 (court-martial data)
- How Much Confinement for an Article 131b Conviction in the Navy-Marine Corps? (court-martial data)
- Not Guilty Pleas in Navy-Marine Corps Article 131b Cases: What Happened at Trial (court-martial data)
- Pleading Guilty to Article 131b in the Navy-Marine Corps: What Sentences Followed? (court-martial data)
- Article 131b (Obstruction, Numbered Since 2019): Court-Martial Data and Trends (court-martial data)
- Article 131b UCMJ: Obstructing Justice (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.