Federal Trials vs. Courts-Martial in 2018: How Often Each Ended in Acquittal
In fiscal year 2018, federal bench trials ended in an acquittal more often than jury trials: 83 of 218 (38%). Jury trials ended in an acquittal in 237 of 1,661 cases (14%). Across all 1,879 trials, 320 ended in an acquittal (17%), compared with 90 full acquittals in 239 contested courts-martial (38%
Understanding Trends in Military Practice · 6 min read
Trends › Federal Prosecution Analysis › Are Courts-Martial More Likely to End in Acquittal Than Fede › Acquittals in 2018
In brief: In fiscal year 2018, federal bench trials ended in an acquittal more often than jury trials: 83 of 218 (38%). Jury trials ended in an acquittal in 237 of 1,661 cases (14%). Across all 1,879 trials, 320 ended in an acquittal (17%), compared with 90 full acquittals in 239 contested courts-martial (38%).
This post uses the Federal Judicial Center's records of 79,704 federal defendants whose cases ended in fiscal year 2018, 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 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.
Federal Bench Trials and Jury Trials in 2018
In fiscal year 2018, the federal courts decided 1,879 trials. A jury heard 1,661 of them, and a judge heard 218. Acquittals followed in 237 of the jury trials (14%) and 83 of the bench trials (38%).
The combined figure is 320 acquittals, or 17% of trials. That figure combines jury and bench trials, and the bench rate is higher than the jury rate.
In a bench trial, the judge decides guilt without a jury. In a jury trial, the jury decides. The records do not show why defendants chose one or the other.
How Most Federal Cases Ended
The Federal Judicial Center counted 79,704 defendants whose cases ended in this year. Guilty pleas totaled 71,550 (90%). Dismissals totaled 6,275 (8%). Trials were 1,879 cases (2%).
Convictions, by plea or by verdict, totaled 73,109 (92%).
Most federal cases therefore end without any trial. A trial acquittal is a rare event within the whole federal caseload, and the 17% figure applies only to the small group of cases that were tried.
Court-Martial Results in 2018
The records show 239 contested courts-martial with a trial date in 2018 and a verdict. Of these, 90 ended in a full acquittal (38%). Another 13 (5%) were partial acquittals.
By service, the Air Force had 62 full acquittals in 173 cases, and the Navy had 28 in 61. The Marine Corps had 0 in 5. No Army records exist for this year.
The Air Force count is the largest among these services, so the overall court-martial rate follows the Air Force result more closely than the others. The Marine Corps count of 5 is too small for a rate.
Forum in Court-Martial Cases
Members decided 177 cases and acquitted fully in 62 (35%). A judge alone decided 11 cases, with 6 full acquittals (55%). Enlisted members acquitted fully in 35 of 57 cases (61%). Officer members did so in 27 of 120 (23%).
Another 51 cases list no forum, and 22 of them ended in a full acquittal (43%).
What the 38% and the 38% Mean
Both the federal bench trial rate and the court-martial full-acquittal rate were 38% this year, but they measure different things. One counts judge-decided federal trials. The other counts all contested courts-martial, whichever forum decided them.
A matching percentage therefore says nothing about whether the systems resemble each other. A grand jury indictment is required for a federal felony, and no grand jury exists for a court-martial. Partial acquittals also appear only in the court-martial count.
Year-by-Year Table
The table lists both series from 2016 through 2025.
| 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 Remains Unknown
The records cannot show why federal judges acquitted more often than juries, or why court-martial panels differed. They report counts only. Federal data also does not record partial acquittals, so that category cannot be compared.
How We Counted
Courts-martial: contested cases with a verdict and a trial date in 2018 (239). Federal: defendants whose cases ended in fiscal year 2018 (79,704; 1,879 trials), Federal Judicial Center.
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 (the background article)
- Federal Prosecution Analysis (all federal posts)
- How the Federal Comparison Data Was Built (sources and method)
- Are Courts-Martial More Likely to End in Acquittal Than Federal Trials? (overview)
- Federal Trials vs. Courts-Martial in 2017: How Often Each Ended in Acquittal (previous or next year)
- Federal Trials vs. Courts-Martial in 2019: How Often Each Ended in Acquittal (previous or next year)
- Forum Selection (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.