Obstruction of Justice Sentences in 2020: Federal Court vs. Courts-Martial
Nearly every 2020 court-martial conviction for obstruction of justice included confinement: 32 of 33 (97%), with a median of 10 months. In federal fiscal year 2020, 76 of 107 people sentenced under guideline §2J1.2 (71%) received a prison term, and the median prison term was 12 months. Confinement w
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In brief: Nearly every 2020 court-martial conviction for obstruction of justice included confinement: 32 of 33 (97%), with a median of 10 months. In federal fiscal year 2020, 76 of 107 people sentenced under guideline §2J1.2 (71%) received a prison term, and the median prison term was 12 months. Confinement was ordered more often at court-martial, and the median length was a little lower.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 107 people sentenced in federal court in fiscal year 2020, 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.
Calendar Year and Fiscal Year
Court-martial numbers here are by trial date in calendar year 2020. The federal numbers cover fiscal year 2020, from October 1, 2019 to September 30, 2020.
The military count is convictions for obstruction of justice (Article 131b). The federal count is people sentenced under the obstruction guideline. These are related offenses, but the groups were not selected the same way.
Court-Martial Sentences in 2020
There were 33 convictions: 6 in the Air Force, 12 in the Navy, and 15 in the Marine Corps. The median adjudged confinement was 10 months. A quarter of sentences reached 14 months or more.
Among 31 enlisted members convicted, 22 (71%) received a punitive discharge. That includes 5 dishonorable and 17 bad-conduct discharges. One officer was convicted and not dismissed. General courts-martial heard 16 of the 33 convictions (48%).
Federal Prison Terms in Fiscal Year 2020
Of the 107 people sentenced federally, 76 (71%) went to prison and 20 (19%) received probation only. The median prison term was 12 months. A quarter received 33 months or more, and a quarter received 5.8 months or less.
A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 3 people (3%).
| Courts-martial, 2020 | Federal court, FY2020 | |
|---|---|---|
| Convictions or people sentenced | 33 | 107 |
| Sentenced to confinement or prison | 97% | 71% |
| Median confinement or prison | 10 months | 12 months |
| A quarter received this or more | 14 months | 33 months |
| Pleaded guilty | 24 of 31 with a plea recorded (77%) | 91% |
| Mandatory minimum applied | See the caveats | 3 of 107 with the information (3%) |
What Happened After a Plea, and After a Trial
At court-martial, 24 of 31 convictions with a plea recorded (77%) were guilty pleas. Guilty pleas carried a median confinement of 10 months (24 cases with confinement). Contested cases ending in conviction carried a median of 6.5 months (6 cases with confinement), which is lower than the guilty plea median in this small group.
In federal court, 97 of 107 (91%) pleaded guilty and 10 were convicted after a trial. The median prison term was 12 months after a guilty plea and 40 months after a trial. The trial median rests on 7 people sent to prison. Written plea agreements were part of 95% of federal guilty pleas; 5% were straight pleas.
Position Against the Guideline Range
Below-range sentences without a government request were the most common federal result in fiscal year 2020, at 44% (47). Within-range sentences made up 27% (29), and below-range sentences at the government's request made up 25% (27). Above-range sentences were 4% (4).
Supervised release followed for 70 people (65%), with a median of 36 months. Fines were ordered for 27 (25%), and restitution for 15 (14%). In criminal history category I were 72%, and 5% were in category VI. Military records have no criminal history field.
Federal Figures by Year
For all years, the data counts 329 court-martial convictions from 2016 to 2025, with median confinement of 10 months, and 1,256 people sentenced federally in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, with a median prison term of 18 months.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 131 | 15 months | 82% |
| 2017 | 130 | 14 months | 92% |
| 2018 | 136 | 18 months | 88% |
| 2019 | 131 | 12 months | 86% |
| 2020 | 107 | 12 months | 91% |
| 2021 | 85 | 18.3 months | 86% |
| 2022 | 111 | 21 months | 88% |
| 2023 | 163 | 24 months | 55% |
| 2024 | 148 | 27 months | 80% |
| 2025 | 114 | 18 months | 85% |
Cautions
Court-martial confinement is as adjudged, before clemency or appeal, and federal prison terms are as imposed, not as served. The groups are small, especially the contested and trial subgroups. The records do not explain any sentence and cannot show whether the cases were alike.
How We Counted
Courts-martial with a trial date in 2020 ending in a conviction for obstruction of justice (Article 131b) (33). Federal: people sentenced in fiscal year 2020 under guideline §2J1.2 (obstruction of justice) (107), 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.
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.
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 Sentences in 2019: Federal Court vs. Courts-Martial (previous or next year)
- Obstruction of Justice Sentences in 2021: Federal Court vs. Courts-Martial (previous or next year)
- Obstruction of Justice Sentences Since the 2023 Military Sentencing Reform: What the Data Shows So Far
- Obstruction of Justice: Federal Sentences vs. Air Force Courts-Martial
- Obstruction of Justice: Federal Sentences vs. Army Courts-Martial
- Obstruction of Justice: Federal Sentences vs. Marine Corps Courts-Martial, 2016–2025
- Obstruction of Justice: Federal Sentences vs. Navy Courts-Martial, 2016–2025
- Obstruction of Justice: Courts-Martial at Camp Lejeune vs. Federal Court in the Eastern District of North Carolina
- Obstruction of Justice: Courts-Martial at Camp Pendleton vs. Federal Court in the Southern District of California
- Obstruction of Justice: Courts-Martial at Fort Bliss vs. Federal Court in the Western District of Texas
- 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.