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What Fort Riley Tried in 2024

Fort Riley tried 18 courts-martial in 2024. Article 92 (orders violation) was charged in 39% of cases, compared with 12% in the rest of the Army. Every conviction included confinement, and the median confinement was 4 months, compared with 6 months Army-wide.

Understanding Trends in Military Practice · 5 min read

Trends › By Installation › Fort Riley › 2024

Short answer: Fort Riley tried 18 courts-martial in 2024. Article 92 (orders violation) was charged in 39% of cases, compared with 12% in the rest of the Army. Every conviction included confinement, and the median confinement was 4 months, compared with 6 months Army-wide.

Based on 18 cases · 2024 · Army records · data updated October 24, 2026

Orders, AWOL, and Drunk Driving Charges

All 18 records list charges, and each article counts once per case. Article 92 (orders violation) appeared in 7 cases (39%), compared with 12% across all Army cases in 2024.

Article 128b (domestic violence) and Article 128 (assault) each appeared in 5 cases (28%), compared with 23% Army-wide. Article 112a (wrongful use, possession of controlled substances) appeared in 4 cases (22%), compared with 8%. Article 86 (AWOL) and Article 113 (drunken or reckless operation of vehicle) each appeared in 3 cases (17%), compared with 4%.

UCMJ ArticleCasesShare hereShare, the whole Army docket
Art. 92 Failure to obey order or regulation739%12%
Art. 128b Domestic violence528%23%
Art. 128 Assault528%23%
Art. 112a Wrongful use, possession of controlled substances422%8%
Art. 134 General article422%21%
Art. 86 AWOL317%4%
Art. 113 Drunken or reckless operation of vehicle317%4%
Art. 120 Rape and sexual assault211%15%

Confinement in Every Conviction

Of 17 convictions, all 17 carried confinement. The median confinement was 4 months, shorter than the 6 months in the rest of the Army. A quarter of the sentences were 11 months or longer.

These are adjudged sentences, set at trial before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal. Each covers every charge in the case.

Punitive Discharges

A punitive discharge for an enlisted member is a bad-conduct or a dishonorable discharge. At Fort Riley, 81% of enlisted convictions led to one: 10 bad-conduct and 3 dishonorable. In the rest of the Army the share was 72%.

The 1 convicted officer or warrant officer was dismissed. A sentence without a punitive discharge does not rule out a later administrative separation.

Pleas and Panels

In 13 cases the accused pleaded guilty, and 5 were contested, meaning a not-guilty or mixed plea. The contested share, 28%, is about the same as the 27% in the rest of the Army. All 13 guilty pleas are recorded with a plea agreement. Of the 5 contested cases that reached a verdict, 1 ended in a full acquittal.

A military judge alone decided 14 cases, and enlisted panels heard 4. Members heard 22% of the cases, compared with 15% Army-wide.

Rank and Court Level

By rank, the accused were 13 junior enlisted members, 4 NCOs, and 1 officer, a more junior group than the Army as a whole.

There were 14 general and 4 special courts-martial. The general share, 78%, compares with 75% across the Army. A special court-martial caps confinement at one year and cannot impose a dishonorable discharge.

Kaiserslautern and Fort Campbell

Kaiserslautern (Europe) tried 25 cases in 2024 and Fort Campbell tried 27. Fort Riley had the highest contested share of the 3, 28%, compared with 24% and 15%. Its median confinement, 4 months, was shorter than the 9 months and 8 months at the other installations.

InstallationCasesContestedFull acquittals (decided contested)Median confinementPunitive discharge (enlisted)
Fort Riley1828%1 of 54 months81%
Kaiserslautern (Europe)2524%1 of 69 months87%
Fort Campbell2715%2 of 48 months91%

New Rules and Missing Details

Since December 28, 2023, special trial counsel, not commanders, decide whether to prosecute covered offenses such as sexual assault, domestic violence, and murder. When every guilty finding is for an offense after December 27, 2023, the military judge sets the sentence within new sentencing parameters. These records give no offense dates, so 2024 trials include cases under both sets of rules.

Cases resolved by nonjudicial punishment, administrative separation, or no action are not included. The records do not describe the evidence or the plea terms.

Dates and sources for the law changes mentioned here: UCMJ change timeline.

How We Counted

Every court-martial tried at Fort Riley with a trial date in 2024 (18 cases).

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.

Military Judges Who Presided Over Cases at Fort Riley, 2024

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.

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