Theft and Fraud: Courts-Martial at Marine Corps Base Hawaii vs. Federal Court in the District of Hawaii
Marine Corps courts-martial at Marine Corps Base Hawaii, Kaneohe Bay recorded 17 convictions for larceny, theft, and fraud under Article 121 from 2017 to 2024, and the median adjudged confinement was 8 months. The federal court for the District of Hawaii sentenced 135 people under guideline §2B1.1 i
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In brief: Marine Corps courts-martial at Marine Corps Base Hawaii, Kaneohe Bay recorded 17 convictions for larceny, theft, and fraud under Article 121 from 2017 to 2024, and the median adjudged confinement was 8 months. The federal court for the District of Hawaii sentenced 135 people under guideline §2B1.1 in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, and the median prison term was 26 months (2.2 years). The federal cases are from the whole district, not the base, and most did not involve service members.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 135 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.
Who Is Counted in the District of Hawaii?
The District of Hawaii had 135 federal sentences under this guideline in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. The count covers everyone sentenced there for theft, embezzlement, fraud, or property damage. Most were civilians.
Marine Corps Base Hawaii is located in the district. Courts-martial at the base are tried in military courts, and the records give no reason to think those cases would have gone to the federal court.
Sentences at Kaneohe Bay
The records list the trial location as "Kaneohe Bay", "Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii", "MCB Hawaii", or "Marine Corps Base Hawaii". All 17 convictions were Marine Corps cases.
Confinement was part of 16 of the 17 sentences (94%). A quarter received 12.2 months or more. The 8-month median is higher than the 5-month median across all 626 court-martial convictions for this offense in the data.
The median was 8 months in both trial periods: 2016 to 2019 (7 cases with confinement) and 2020 to 2025 (9 cases). Of the 17 enlisted Marines convicted, 13 (76%) received a punitive discharge, made up of 2 dishonorable and 11 bad-conduct discharges. A general court-martial heard 6 of the 17 cases (35%).
| Courts-martial at Marine Corps Base Hawaii | Federal court, District of Hawaii | |
|---|---|---|
| Convictions or people sentenced | 17 | 135 |
| Sentenced to confinement or prison | 94% | 81% |
| Median confinement or prison | 8 months | 26 months |
| A quarter received this or more | 12.2 months | 49.5 months |
| Pleaded guilty | 15 of 16 with a plea recorded (94%) | 91% |
| Mandatory minimum applied | See the caveats | 24 of 135 with the information (18%) |
Federal Trials and Guilty Pleas
In the district, 12 of the 135 were convicted after a trial, and 123 (91%) pleaded guilty. The median prison term after a trial was 108.5 months, based on all 12 people convicted at trial. After a guilty plea, the median was 22.5 months.
Among the federal guilty pleas, 88% had a written plea agreement and 12% were straight pleas.
At the base, 15 of the 16 convictions with a plea recorded (94%) were guilty pleas, with a median confinement of 7 months across 14 cases. Only 1 contested conviction included confinement, a term of 12 months.
How Federal Judges Sentenced
Of the 135, 110 (81%) went to prison and 20 (15%) received probation only. A quarter of the prison terms were 12 months or less, and a quarter were 49.5 months or more. The district median of 26 months was higher than the all-district median of 21 months across 53,639 people.
Within the guideline range were 50% of the federal sentences (68). Below the range were 24% (33) at the government's request and 18% (24) without one. Above the range were 7% (10). A mandatory minimum applied to 24 people (18%).
Fines, Restitution, and Supervision
A fine was ordered for 20 of the 135 people (15%). Restitution was ordered for 109 (81%), and the same number, 109 (81%), were ordered to serve supervised release, with a median term of 36 months.
Cautions
Court-martial sentences are as adjudged, before clemency or appeal. Federal prison terms are as imposed, not as served. Court-martial years are by trial date, and federal years are fiscal years starting October 1.
Federal records place 76% of the district's defendants in criminal history category I and less than 1% in category VI. Court-martial records have no criminal history field. With 17 convictions at the base and 12 federal trials, single cases can move these medians.
How We Counted
Courts-martial with trial dates in 2016 to 2025 whose recorded trial location is Marine Corps Base Hawaii, Kaneohe Bay, ending in a conviction for larceny, theft, and fraud (Article 121; federal guideline §2B1.1) (17). Federal: people sentenced in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 in the District of Hawaii (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Hawaii") under primary guideline §2B1.1 (theft, embezzlement, fraud, and property damage) (135). 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.
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)
- Theft and Fraud by Dollar Loss: Federal Sentences vs. Article 121 Courts-Martial (overview)
- Federal Sentences in the District of Hawaii, FY2016–2025 (the federal district)
- Child Sexual Abuse and Enticement: Courts-Martial at Marine Corps Base Hawaii vs. Federal Court in the District of Hawaii (same installation)
- Theft and Fraud: Courts-Martial at Bremerton vs. Federal Court in the Western District of Washington (other installations)
- Theft and Fraud: Courts-Martial at Camp Lejeune vs. Federal Court in the Eastern District of North Carolina (other installations)
- Theft and Fraud: Courts-Martial at Camp Pendleton vs. Federal Court in the Southern District of California (other installations)
- Theft and Fraud: Courts-Martial at Fort Hood vs. Federal Court in the Western District of Texas (other installations)
- Theft and Fraud: Federal Sentences vs. Air Force Courts-Martial, 2016–2025
- Theft and Fraud: Federal Sentences vs. Army Courts-Martial
- Theft and Fraud: Federal Sentences vs. Marine Corps Courts-Martial
- Army Article 121 Cases by the Numbers, 2021–2025 (court-martial data)
- Article 121 Sentences in the Army: Confinement and Discharges, 2021–2025 (court-martial data)
- Fighting an Army Larceny Charge: How Contested Cases Ended (court-martial data)
- Guilty Pleas in Army Larceny Cases: How Often, and What Came Next (court-martial data)
- Air Force Article 121 Cases by the Numbers, 2016–2025 (court-martial data)
- What Sentence Follows an Air Force Larceny Conviction? (court-martial data)
- Pleading Guilty to Article 121 in the Air Force: What Sentences Followed? (court-martial data)
- How Has Article 121 Changed in Navy-Marine Corps Courts-Martial Since 2017? (court-martial data)
- Article 121 Sentences in the Navy-Marine Corps: Confinement and Discharges, 2017–2025 (court-martial data)
- Not Guilty Pleas in Navy-Marine Corps Article 121 Cases: What Happened at Trial (court-martial data)
- Guilty Pleas in Navy-Marine Corps Larceny Cases: How Often, and What Came Next (court-martial data)
- Article 121 (Larceny): Court-Martial Data and Trends (court-martial data)
- Article 121 UCMJ: Larceny and Wrongful Appropriation (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.