JB Andrews, Maryland Before and After 2019: How Its Courts-Martial Changed
The accused at JB Andrews, Maryland in 2019–2023 were more senior than across the Air Force: junior enlisted members were 33% of the 21 accused, compared with 64% Air Force-wide, and officers were 24%. Punitive discharges for convicted enlisted members went from 73% in 2016–2018 to 50%.
Understanding Trends in Military Practice · 6 min read
Trends › By Installation › JB Andrews, Maryland › Before and after 2019
Short answer: The accused at JB Andrews, Maryland in 2019–2023 were more senior than across the Air Force: junior enlisted members were 33% of the 21 accused, compared with 64% Air Force-wide, and officers were 24%. Punitive discharges for convicted enlisted members went from 73% in 2016–2018 to 50%. The median confinement was 4 months, the same as the Air Force median.
NCOs and Officers Made Up Most of the Accused
Of the accused at JB Andrews from 2019 to 2023, 33% were junior enlisted members (E-1 to E-4), 43% were NCOs, and 24% were officers. Across the Air Force in the same years, junior enlisted members were 64% of the accused.
General courts-martial, the level that can impose long confinement and a dishonorable discharge or dismissal, heard 12 of the 21 cases (57%). In 2016–2018 the share was 61%. Special courts-martial heard the other cases. A special court-martial caps confinement at one year and cannot impose a dishonorable discharge.
Bad-Conduct Discharges Only
Of 14 convicted enlisted members, 7 received a punitive discharge (50%). All 7 were bad-conduct discharges, and there were 0 dishonorable discharges. The share was 73% at JB Andrews in 2016–2018 and 56% across the Air Force in 2019–2023.
1 convicted officer or warrant officer appears in the records and was dismissed. Dismissal is the officer equivalent of a punitive discharge. A sentence without a punitive discharge does not rule out a later administrative separation.
| 2016–2018 | 2019–2023 | |
|---|---|---|
| Cases | 18 | 21 |
| Contested (of pleas recorded) | — | 50% |
| Convictions with confinement | 86% | 80% |
| Median confinement | 5 months | 4 months |
| Punitive discharge (enlisted) | 73% | 50% |
| General courts-martial | 61% | 57% |
Pleas and Full Acquittals
The plea is listed in 14 of the 21 records: 7 guilty pleas and 7 not-guilty or mixed pleas. A contested case is one in which the accused pleaded not guilty to at least one charge. The contested share of 50% matched the Air Force share.
Of the 21 cases, 6 ended in a full acquittal (29%), compared with 24% Air Force-wide. Air Force records from 2016 to 2019 rarely list a guilty plea, so this rate is measured against all cases. Among contested cases that reached a verdict, 5 of 7 ended in a full acquittal.
Confinement at the Air Force Median
Of 15 convictions, 12 included confinement (80%), compared with 86% in 2016–2018. The median confinement was 4 months, the same as across the Air Force and lower than the 5 months at JB Andrews in 2016–2018.
A quarter of the terms with confinement were 1.1 years or longer. These are adjudged sentences, the sentence given at trial. They come before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal, and each covers every charge in its case.
Drug and Assault Charges
Charges are listed for 15 of the 21 cases. Article 112a, covering wrongful use and possession of controlled substances, appeared in 7 (47%), compared with 41% Air Force-wide. Article 128 (assault) appeared in 4 (27%), compared with 19%.
Article 115, Article 128b (domestic violence), Article 107 (false official statements), Article 134 (the general article), and Article 86 (AWOL) each appeared in 2 cases (13%). Article 115 covered malingering before 2019 and communicating threats since. The Article 128b and Article 86 shares were higher than the 5% Air Force-wide for each, and the Article 134 share was lower than the 21% Air Force-wide. Article 109 (property other than military; waste, spoilage, destruction) appeared in 1 case.
| UCMJ Article | Cases | Share here | Share, the whole Air Force docket |
|---|---|---|---|
| Art. 112a Wrongful use, possession of controlled substances | 7 | 47% | 41% |
| Art. 128 Assault | 4 | 27% | 19% |
| Art. 115 Malingering before 2019, communicating threats since | 2 | 13% | 4% |
| Art. 128b Domestic violence | 2 | 13% | 5% |
| Art. 107 False official statements | 2 | 13% | 6% |
| Art. 134 General article | 2 | 13% | 21% |
| Art. 86 AWOL | 2 | 13% | 5% |
| Art. 109 Property other than military; waste, spoilage, destruction | 1 | 7% | 1% |
Who Decided Guilt
A military judge alone decided guilt in 14 of 20 cases with the forum listed (70%). Members heard 6: 4 enlisted panels and 2 officer panels. In most cases the accused chooses whether a judge or members decide guilt.
Yearly Counts and Similar Bases
The 21 cases ran from May 2019 to July 2023: 5 in 2019, 3 in 2020, 5 in 2021, 5 in 2022, and 3 in 2023. JB Andrews had 18 cases in 2016–2018. Counting full years only, that is about 6 a year before 2019 and about 4 a year after. Percentages in groups this small can change by a lot with a few cases.
FE Warren AFB, Wyoming and JB Lewis-McChord, Washington each tried 21 cases in these years. Each of these bases had a median confinement of 4 months. The punitive discharge rate was 64% at FE Warren and 69% at JB Lewis-McChord. JB Lewis-McChord had a contested share of 80%, and FE Warren had 44%.
| Installation | Cases | Contested | Full acquittals (decided contested) | Median confinement | Punitive discharge (enlisted) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| JB Andrews, Maryland | 21 | 50% | 5 of 7 | 4 months | 50% |
| FE Warren AFB, Wyoming | 21 | 44% | 5 of 7 | 4 months | 64% |
| JB Lewis-McChord, Washington | 21 | 80% | 4 of 8 | 4 months | 69% |
What the Records Do Not Cover
Trial records show the charges, pleas, findings, and sentence. The evidence, the plea terms, offense dates, and conduct handled outside a court-martial are not included. Air Force records rarely list charges in full acquittals and never report plea agreements.
Dates and sources for the law changes mentioned here: UCMJ change timeline.
How We Counted
Every court-martial tried at JB Andrews, Maryland in 2016–2018 (18) and 2019–2023 (21).
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
- JB Andrews, Maryland: Court-Martial Data and Trends (hub)
- By Installation (hub)
- JB Andrews, Maryland, 2019–2023: Charges, Verdicts, and Sentences in 21 Cases
- Inside 18 Courts-Martial at JB Andrews, Maryland, 2016–2018
- Inside 10 Courts-Martial at JB Andrews, Maryland, 2024–2026
- Andersen AFB, Guam Before and After 2019: How Its Courts-Martial Changed
- Aviano AB, Italy, 2016–2018 vs. 2019–2023: A Side-by-Side Look
- Aviano AB, Italy, 2019–2023 vs. 2024–2026: A Side-by-Side Look
- Davis-Monthan AFB, Arizona, 2016–2018 vs. 2019–2023: A Side-by-Side Look
- Search every case in Military Trial Results (members)
Military Judges Who Presided Over Cases at JB Andrews, Maryland, 2019–2023
- W. Shane Cohen
- Bryon T. Gleisner
- Christina M. Jimenez
- Brian C. Mason
- Matthew N. McCall
- Andrew R. Norton
- Dayle P. Percle
- Shaun S. Speranza
- Charles G. Warren
- Bryan D. Watson
- Charles E. Wiedie 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.