Guilty Pleas in 2024: Federal Court vs. Courts-Martial
In 2024, 702 of 1,046 courts-martial with a plea on record (67%) were guilty pleas. In federal court in fiscal year 2024, 59,922 of 61,678 people sentenced (97%) pleaded guilty, and 220 of 1,723 federal trials (13%) ended in an acquittal.
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Trends › Federal Prosecution Analysis › Guilty Pleas in Federal Court vs. Courts-Martial, Year by Ye › Guilty Pleas in 2024
In brief: In 2024, 702 of 1,046 courts-martial with a plea on record (67%) were guilty pleas. In federal court in fiscal year 2024, 59,922 of 61,678 people sentenced (97%) pleaded guilty, and 220 of 1,723 federal trials (13%) ended in an acquittal.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 61,678 people sentenced in federal court in fiscal year 2024 and the Federal Judicial Center's records of 74,684 federal defendants whose cases ended in fiscal year 2024, compared with court-martial results from this site's Military Trial Results data (updated November 2, 2026). 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.
What Did Courts-Martial Record in 2024?
The 2024 count has 1,046 courts-martial with a trial date that year and a plea on record. Guilty pleas were 702 (67%).
By service, the Army had 350 guilty pleas in 478 cases, the Air Force had 107 in 195, the Navy had 99 in 165, and the Marine Corps had 146 in 208.
The rate rose from 64% in 2023 and was followed by 70% in 2025. The records do not show the reasons for the change.
| Year | Courts-martial: guilty pleas | Federal sentenced: pleaded guilty | Federal cases ended: pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 176 of 356 (49%) | 97% | 89% |
| 2017 | 361 of 578 (62%) | 97% | 90% |
| 2018 | 336 of 575 (58%) | 97% | 90% |
| 2019 | 329 of 539 (61%) | 98% | 90% |
| 2020 | 465 of 663 (70%) | 98% | 91% |
| 2021 | 753 of 1,214 (62%) | 98% | 90% |
| 2022 | 688 of 1,099 (63%) | 97% | 89% |
| 2023 | 634 of 997 (64%) | 97% | 89% |
| 2024 | 702 of 1,046 (67%) | 97% | 91% |
| 2025 | 669 of 959 (70%) | 98% | 92% |
What Did the Sentencing Commission Count in Fiscal Year 2024?
The Commission counted 61,678 people sentenced. A total of 1,756 were convicted at trial. A written plea agreement was part of 76% of the guilty pleas.
This group includes only convicted people, so no acquittal or dismissal is in it.
How Did the Rest of the Federal Caseload End?
The Federal Judicial Center counted 74,684 defendants whose cases ended. Guilty pleas were 67,902 (91%), dismissals were 5,059 (7%), and trials were 1,723 (2%).
Overall, 69,405 defendants (93%) were convicted, by plea or at trial.
How Often Did 2024 Federal Trials End in Acquittal?
Among the 1,723 trials, 220 ended in an acquittal (13%). Jury trials numbered 1,491, with 159 acquittals (11%). Bench trials numbered 232, with 61 acquittals (26%).
The bench trial acquittal rate was again higher than the jury trial rate.
How Does 2024 Fit With Nearby Years?
The court-martial rate was 64% in 2023, 67% in 2024, and 70% in 2025. The count of cases with a plea on record was 997, 1,046, and 959.
The Sentencing Commission share was 97% in 2023 and 2024 and 98% in 2025. The Federal Judicial Center share was 89% in 2023, 91% in 2024, and 92% in 2025.
Dismissals were 7% of federal cases that ended in 2024.
What Is the Difference Between a Jury Trial and a Bench Trial?
A jury trial has a jury decide guilt. A bench trial has a judge decide guilt without a jury. The 1,491 jury trials in fiscal year 2024 ended in acquittal 11% of the time. The 232 bench trials ended in acquittal 26% of the time.
Defendants may choose a bench trial, and the records do not show how that choice relates to the strength of a case.
Why Do 97% and 91% Both Describe 2024?
The 97% figure is the share of the 61,678 sentenced people who pleaded guilty. The 91% figure is the share of the 74,684 defendants whose cases ended, which also includes dismissals and acquittals. Both are correct for fiscal year 2024, and they count different groups.
What the 2024 Comparison Leaves Out
The court-martial rate and the federal rate describe different groups. The first uses calendar-year trial dates and includes all recorded pleas. The second uses fiscal years and either counts only sentenced people or counts every case that ended.
The records cannot show the offenses behind the pleas or the reasons for them.
How We Counted
Courts-martial with a trial date in 2024 and a plea recorded (1,046). Federal: people sentenced in fiscal year 2024 (61,678, U.S. Sentencing Commission) and defendants whose cases ended that fiscal year (74,684, 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.
Plea agreements work differently. In federal court, most plea agreements do not bind the judge on the sentence. Since 2019, a military plea agreement can set a minimum and maximum sentence that the military judge must follow if the judge accepts the agreement. The federal numbers count anyone who pleaded guilty, with or without a written agreement.
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)
- Guilty Pleas in Federal Court vs. Courts-Martial, Year by Year (overview)
- Guilty Pleas in 2023: Federal Court vs. Courts-Martial (previous or next year)
- Guilty Pleas in 2025: Federal Court vs. Courts-Martial (previous or next year)
- 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.