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# Are Courts-Martial More Likely to End in Acquittal Than Federal Trials?
- URL: https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-trial-acquittal-rates-vs-courts-martial/
- Published: 2026-11-03T01:37:40.000Z
- Updated: 2026-11-03T01:37:40.000Z
- Description: From 2016 to 2025, 38% of contested courts-martial that reached a verdict ended in a full acquittal: 1,104 of 2,870. In federal court over fiscal years 2016 to 2025, 15% of trials ended in an acquittal: 2,534 of 16,849. Courts-martial ended in acquittal more often, but the numbers do not count the s
- Author: Jocelyn C. Stewart
- Tags: Understanding Trends, Federal

[Trends](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/) › [Federal Prosecution Analysis](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal/) › Trial Acquittal Rates

**In brief:** From 2016 to 2025, 38% of contested courts-martial that reached a verdict ended in a full acquittal: 1,104 of 2,870\. In federal court over fiscal years 2016 to 2025, 15% of trials ended in an acquittal: 2,534 of 16,849\. Courts-martial ended in acquittal more often, but the numbers do not count the same group of cases, and the sections below explain the difference.

Updated November 2, 2026 · Sources: U.S. Sentencing Commission and Federal Judicial Center, fiscal years 2016–2025 · Military Trial Results

This post uses the Federal Judicial Center's records of 753,808 federal defendants whose cases ended in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, compared with court-martial results from this site's Military Trial Results data (updated November 2, 2026). The series also draws on the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 659,036 people sentenced in fiscal years 2016 to 2025\. It is part of the [Federal Prosecution Analysis](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal/) series, which builds on [Military Moves Toward Sentencing Guidelines to Mirror the Federal System](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/military-sentencing-guidelines-federal-system/). How the numbers were built: [How the Federal Comparison Data Was Built](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-data-methodology/).

## Are Courts-Martial More Likely to End in Acquittal?

Among the 2,870 contested courts-martial in the Army, Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps that reached a verdict, 1,104 ended in a full acquittal (38%). Another 614 (21%) were partial acquittals. A partial acquittal means the accused was found not guilty of at least one charge and guilty of another.

Federal court reports acquittals differently. Of 16,849 federal trials, 2,534 ended in an acquittal (15%). The federal data does not report partial acquittals separately, so the 15% cannot be split into full and partial results.

Courts-martial acquittal rates were higher than federal trial rates in every year from 2016 to 2025, as the year-by-year table shows. The court-martial rate was 49% in 2020, which was the highest year. The federal rate was 18% in 2021, which was the highest federal year. The court-martial rate was 35% in 2022, which was the lowest year.

| Year | Courts-martial: full acquittals | Federal trials: acquittals |
| ---- | ------------------------------- | -------------------------- |
| 2016 | 71 of 179 (40%)                 | 291 of 1,853 (16%)         |
| 2017 | 87 of 217 (40%)                 | 276 of 1,874 (15%)         |
| 2018 | 90 of 239 (38%)                 | 320 of 1,879 (17%)         |
| 2019 | 90 of 210 (43%)                 | 287 of 1,950 (15%)         |
| 2020 | 81 of 167 (49%)                 | 199 of 1,425 (14%)         |
| 2021 | 166 of 459 (36%)                | 196 of 1,081 (18%)         |
| 2022 | 144 of 411 (35%)                | 290 of 1,669 (17%)         |
| 2023 | 146 of 362 (40%)                | 263 of 1,840 (14%)         |
| 2024 | 123 of 340 (36%)                | 220 of 1,723 (13%)         |
| 2025 | 106 of 286 (37%)                | 192 of 1,555 (12%)         |

## What Does Each Side Count?

The court-martial number counts contested cases. A case is contested when the accused pleads not guilty to at least one charge. Only contested cases that reached a verdict are included, and the data covers trial dates from 2016 to 2025.

The federal number counts trials only. The Federal Judicial Center data covers 753,808 federal defendants whose cases ended in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, and 16,849 of them (2%) went to trial. The rest pleaded guilty (678,652, or 90%) or had their cases dismissed (58,307, or 8%).

This is the main reason the comparison needs care. A federal trial is rare. In the court-martial data, 31% of all courts-martial were contested and reached a verdict: 2,870 of 9,284\. A much larger share of court-martial cases reached a contested verdict than federal cases reached trial, so the groups of cases are not alike.

## Who Decides Guilt Changes the Court-Martial Rate

Courts-martial can be decided by a judge alone or by members, who act as the jury. The full acquittal rate differed by forum. With a judge alone, 219 of 861 cases ended in a full acquittal (25%). With members, 664 of 1,541 did (43%).

Members can be enlisted or officers. Panels with enlisted members acquitted fully in 490 of 957 cases (51%). Panels with officer members did so in 174 of 584 cases (30%). Another 468 cases list no forum, and 221 of them ended in a full acquittal (47%).

Federal trials also differ by forum. Jury trials numbered 14,615, with 1,838 acquittals (13%). Bench trials, which a judge decides, numbered 2,234, with 696 acquittals (31%). Bench trials had a higher acquittal rate than jury trials in federal court. For courts-martial, judge-alone cases had a lower full acquittal rate than cases decided by members.

## How Do the Services Compare?

The court-martial rate is not the same across the services. The Marine Corps rate was 13%, which is lower than the Army rate of 38% and the Navy rate of 42%. The services also differ in how many contested cases reached a verdict, as the table shows.

The federal numbers have no similar breakdown by service. They cover all offenses in all federal courts.

| Service      | Contested cases with a verdict | Full acquittals | Share |
| ------------ | ------------------------------ | --------------- | ----- |
| Army         | 724                            | 277             | 38%   |
| Air Force    | 1,234                          | 530             | 43%   |
| Navy         | 622                            | 259             | 42%   |
| Marine Corps | 290                            | 38              | 13%   |

## Why Courts-Martial and Federal Court Screen Cases Differently

A federal felony needs a grand jury indictment, and federal prosecutors decide which cases to bring. A court-martial has no grand jury. An Article 32 hearing officer reviews the charges, but the officer's conclusions are recommendations.

The records cannot show whether this difference in screening affects acquittal rates. They also cannot show whether the cases that reach a verdict in one system are stronger or weaker than in the other. They also do not show how the dismissals and guilty pleas in each system relate to the cases that reach trial.

## What the Records Cannot Show

The comparison uses all offenses together. Federal court and courts-martial do not hear the same mix of offenses, and this post does not match offenses between the systems.

The federal data uses fiscal years, which run from October 1 to September 30\. The court-martial data uses trial dates by calendar year. Neither data set describes the evidence in a case or the reasons for a verdict.

### How We Counted

Courts-martial: contested cases (not-guilty or mixed plea) with a verdict, trial dates 2016 to 2025, all four services (2,870). Federal: every defendant whose case ended in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 (753,808; 16,849 trials), Federal Judicial Center, counted as in Table D-4.

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.

**How "plea" and "trial" are counted.** In the federal sentencing numbers, "trial" means the person was convicted after a trial, including people who pleaded guilty to some counts and went to trial on others. People acquitted at trial are not in these numbers at all (see "Who is in each set of numbers"). In the federal case data, the trial rate counts both convictions and acquittals at trial among all defendants whose cases ended, including dismissed cases. Military numbers count contested cases that reached a verdict. These denominators are not the same, and each post states the one it uses.

**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.

## Related Analysis

- [Military Moves Toward Sentencing Guidelines to Mirror the Federal System](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/military-sentencing-guidelines-federal-system/) (the background article)
- [Federal Prosecution Analysis](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal/) (all federal posts)
- [How the Federal Comparison Data Was Built](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-data-methodology/) (sources and method)
- [Guilty Pleas in Federal Court vs. Courts-Martial, Year by Year](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-guilty-plea-rates-vs-courts-martial/)
- [Child Pornography Sentences: Federal Court vs. Courts-Martial, 2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-child-pornography-sentences-vs-courts-martial/)
- [Federal Law Has No Crime of Drug Use: How Article 112a Cases Compare](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-no-crime-of-drug-use-article-112a/)
- [Drug Distribution and Importation: Federal vs. Court-Martial Sentences, 2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-drug-distribution-importation-vs-article-112a/)
- [Sexual Abuse of an Adult: Federal Cases vs. Article 120 Courts-Martial](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-sexual-abuse-adult-vs-article-120/)
- [Child Sexual Abuse and Enticement: Federal Cases vs. Article 120b Courts-Martial](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-child-sexual-abuse-enticement-vs-article-120b/)
- [Theft and Fraud by Dollar Loss: Federal Sentences vs. Article 121 Courts-Martial](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-theft-fraud-dollar-loss-vs-article-121/)
- [Acquittal Rates: Federal Trials vs. Contested Army Courts-Martial, 2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-trial-acquittal-rate-vs-army-courts-martial/)
- [Acquittal Rates: Federal Trials vs. Contested Air Force Courts-Martial, 2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-trial-acquittal-rate-vs-air-force-courts-martial/)
- [Acquittal Rates: Federal Trials vs. Contested Navy Courts-Martial, 2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-trial-acquittal-rate-vs-navy-courts-martial/)
- [Acquittal Rates: Federal Trials vs. Contested Marine Corps Courts-Martial, 2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-trial-acquittal-rate-vs-marine-corps-courts-martial/)
- [Federal Trials vs. Courts-Martial in 2016: How Often Each Ended in Acquittal](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-vs-court-martial-acquittal-rates-2016/)
- [Federal Trials vs. Courts-Martial in 2017: How Often Each Ended in Acquittal](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-vs-court-martial-acquittal-rates-2017/)
- [Federal Trials vs. Courts-Martial in 2018: How Often Each Ended in Acquittal](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-vs-court-martial-acquittal-rates-2018/)
- [Federal Trials vs. Courts-Martial in 2019: How Often Each Ended in Acquittal](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-vs-court-martial-acquittal-rates-2019/)
- [Forum Selection](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/forum-selection/?ref=bodiesburied.com) (law firm reference page)
- [Article 32(b) Preliminary Hearings](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/article-32b-preliminary-hearings/?ref=bodiesburied.com) (law firm reference page)
- [Army Courts-Martial: Data and Trends](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/army-courts-martial/) (court-martial data)
- [U.S. Sentencing Commission, Individual Offender Datafiles](https://www.ussc.gov/research/datafiles/commission-datafiles?ref=bodiesburied.com) (source)
- [Federal Judicial Center, Integrated Database (criminal defendants)](https://www.fjc.gov/research/idb?ref=bodiesburied.com) (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](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/?ref=bodiesburied.com). This analysis is for education and information only. It is not legal advice, and every case is different.