Inside 14 Courts-Martial at Fort Jackson, 2021–2023
The records show 14 courts-martial at Fort Jackson from 2021 to 2023. Only 27% of convicted enlisted members received a punitive discharge, compared with 73% across the Army.
Understanding Trends in Military Practice · 5 min read
Trends › By Installation › Fort Jackson › 2021–2023
Short answer: The records show 14 courts-martial at Fort Jackson from 2021 to 2023. Only 27% of convicted enlisted members received a punitive discharge, compared with 73% across the Army. Article 92 (failure to obey an order or regulation) was charged in 36% of cases, and Article 93a (prohibited activities with a recruit or trainee) in 29%.
Orders and Recruit-Related Charges
All 14 records list charges. Article 92 (failure to obey an order or regulation) appears in 5 cases (36%), compared with 15% across the Army. Article 93a (prohibited activities with a recruit or trainee) appears in 4 (29%), compared with 1%.
Article 128 (assault) also appears in 4 cases (29%), about the same as the 31% Army share. Article 120 (rape and sexual assault) appears in 3 (21%), compared with 25%. Article 112a (drug use or possession) appears in 2. Article 86 (AWOL), Article 128b (domestic violence), and Article 107 (false official statements) each appear in 1. One case can count under several articles.
| UCMJ Article | Cases | Share here | Share, the whole Army docket |
|---|---|---|---|
| Art. 92 Failure to obey order or regulation | 5 | 36% | 15% |
| Art. 93a Prohibited activities with recruit or trainee | 4 | 29% | 1% |
| Art. 128 Assault | 4 | 29% | 31% |
| Art. 120 Rape and sexual assault | 3 | 21% | 25% |
| Art. 112a Wrongful use, possession of controlled substances | 2 | 14% | 11% |
| Art. 86 AWOL | 1 | 7% | 5% |
| Art. 128b Domestic violence | 1 | 7% | 13% |
| Art. 107 False official statements | 1 | 7% | 8% |
Fewer Punitive Discharges
Among 11 convicted enlisted members, 3 received a bad-conduct or dishonorable discharge (27%). 1 of those was dishonorable. In the rest of the Army, the rate was 73%.
3 convicted officers appear here, and 2 were dismissed. Dismissal is the officer form of a punitive discharge. A sentence without one does not rule out a later administrative separation.
A More Senior Group of Accused
Only 3 of the accused were junior enlisted (E-1 to E-4). 8 were NCOs (E-5 to E-9) and 3 were officers. Across the Army, 57% of the accused were junior enlisted.
Shorter Confinement
Confinement was part of 57% of the 14 convictions. The median term was 4 months, compared with 6 months across the Army. A quarter of the terms were 1 year or longer.
These are adjudged sentences, as imposed at trial before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal. Each one covers all the charges in its case.
Pleas, Panels, and Court Level
13 of the 14 records list a plea. 11 accused pleaded guilty and 2 contested at least one charge, a contested share of 15% compared with 34% across the Army. Neither of the 2 contested cases ended in a full acquittal.
7 of the 11 guilty pleas are recorded with a plea agreement, and 4 have no entry. Army records show whether an agreement existed, not its terms.
A military judge alone decided 11 cases (79%), and enlisted panels decided 3. The records list 7 general and 5 special courts-martial, with 2 not listed. The general share of 58% is lower than the 75% across the Army.
Compared With Fort Huachuca and Fort Sam Houston
Fort Huachuca and Joint Base San Antonio-Fort Sam Houston each tried 22 cases in these years. Their punitive discharge rates for enlisted convictions were 52% and 92%. Their median confinement was 6 months and 3 months.
| Installation | Cases | Contested | Full acquittals (decided contested) | Median confinement | Punitive discharge (enlisted) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fort Jackson | 14 | 15% | 0 of 2 | 4 months | 27% |
| Fort Huachuca | 22 | 27% | 0 of 6 | 6 months | 52% |
| Joint Base San Antonio-Fort Sam Houston | 22 | 41% | 6 of 9 | 3 months | 92% |
Dates and What Is Missing
The trials ran from January 2021 to December 2023: 6 in 2021, 3 in 2022, and 5 in 2023. They are 1% of the 1,498 Army courts-martial in those years.
The records show charges, pleas, findings, and sentences. They do not show the evidence, plea terms, or conduct handled outside a court-martial.
Dates and sources for the law changes mentioned here: UCMJ change timeline.
How We Counted
Every court-martial in the data tried at Fort Jackson with a trial date in 2021–2023 (14 cases), compared with all 1,498 Army trials in those years. Dates are trial dates.
Source: public court-martial records (Article 140a, UCMJ) in Military Trial Results, data updated October 24, 2026. Definitions, sources, and known gaps: how this data was built. Errors: content@bodiesburied.com.
Related Analysis
- Army Courts-Martial: Data and Trends (hub)
- By Installation (hub)
- Joint Base San Antonio-Fort Sam Houston Courts-Martial, 2021–2023: What 22 Cases Show (same years, similar size)
- Fort Leonard Wood, 2021–2023: Charges, Verdicts, and Sentences in 27 Cases (same years, similar size)
- Camp Humphreys, 2020–2023: Charges, Verdicts, and Sentences in 69 Cases
- Fort Bliss, 2020–2023: Charges, Verdicts, and Sentences in 102 Cases
- Fort Bragg Courts-Martial, 2020–2023: What 143 Cases Show
- Fort Carson, 2024–2026: Charges, Verdicts, and Sentences in 45 Cases
- Fort Drum, 2020–2023: Charges, Verdicts, and Sentences in 72 Cases
- Search every case in Military Trial Results (members)
Military Judges Who Presided Over Cases at Fort Jackson, 2021–2023
- Alyssa S. Adams
- Trevor I. Barna
- John H. Cook
- Jacqueline L. Emanuel
- Tyler J. Heimann
- Charles L. Pritchard Jr.
Names and links only. Each judge's record of pleas, findings, and sentences is on their Know Your Judge page, part of the Court-Martial Characters membership.
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.