Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, 2020–2023 vs. 2024–2026: A Side-by-Side Look
Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson had 14 Army courts-martial from February 2024 to May 2026, and 13 of them were guilty pleas. Article 128b (domestic violence) was charged in 36% of cases, compared with 25% across the Army.
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Short answer: Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson had 14 Army courts-martial from February 2024 to May 2026, and 13 of them were guilty pleas. Article 128b (domestic violence) was charged in 36% of cases, compared with 25% across the Army. A punitive discharge followed 55% of enlisted convictions, compared with 73% Army-wide.
Guilty Pleas and Plea Agreements
Of the 14 cases, 13 were guilty pleas and 1 was contested. The contested share, 7%, was lower than the 21% across the Army and the 25% at the base in 2020–2023. The 1 contested case ended in a full acquittal.
Army records note whether a guilty plea came with a plea agreement, though not its terms. Here, 12 of the 13 guilty pleas are recorded with an agreement, and 1 has no entry.
Domestic Violence Charges
All 14 records list charges. Article 128b (domestic violence) appeared in 5 cases (36%), compared with 25% Army-wide. Article 134, the general article, appeared in 4 cases (29%), compared with 21%. Article 80 (attempts) appeared in 2 cases (14%), compared with 8%. Article 131b (obstructing justice) appeared in 1 case.
| UCMJ Article | Cases | Share here | Share, the whole Army docket |
|---|---|---|---|
| Art. 128b Domestic violence | 5 | 36% | 25% |
| Art. 134 General article | 4 | 29% | 21% |
| Art. 80 Attempts | 2 | 14% | 8% |
| Art. 90 Willfully disobeying superior officer | 1 | 7% | 6% |
| Art. 113 Drunken or reckless operation of vehicle | 1 | 7% | 3% |
| Art. 92 Failure to obey order or regulation | 1 | 7% | 10% |
| Art. 131b Obstructing justice | 1 | 7% | 5% |
| Art. 121 Larceny | 1 | 7% | 7% |
Confinement in Every Conviction
All 13 convictions included confinement. The median was 5 months, the same as in 2020–2023 and shorter than the 6 months across the Army. A quarter of the terms were 1 year or longer. These are adjudged sentences, before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal.
| 2020–2023 | 2024–2026 | |
|---|---|---|
| Cases | 32 | 14 |
| Contested (of pleas recorded) | 25% | 7% |
| Full acquittals (decided contested) | 2 of 6 | 1 of 1 |
| Convictions with confinement | 82% | 100% |
| Median confinement | 5 months | 5 months |
| Punitive discharge (enlisted) | 65% | 55% |
| General courts-martial | 62% | 55% |
Punitive Discharges
A punitive discharge followed 55% of enlisted convictions: 5 bad-conduct discharges and 1 dishonorable discharge. The Army share was 73%, and the base share in 2020–2023 was 65%. The records show 2 convicted officers or warrant officers, and neither was dismissed. A sentence without a punitive discharge does not rule out a later administrative separation.
Rank, Court Level, and Forum
The accused were 9 junior enlisted soldiers, 3 NCOs, and 2 officers. The group is more junior than the Army as a whole.
General courts-martial heard 6 of the 11 cases with a court level listed (55%), compared with 69% Army-wide and 62% at the base in 2020–2023. The court level is not listed for 3 cases. A special court-martial caps confinement at 1 year and cannot impose a dishonorable discharge. A military judge alone decided all 13 cases with the forum listed.
Case Counts and Similar Installations
The base had 32 cases in 2020–2023, about 8 a year. Since 2024 the pace has been about 5 a year: 7 cases in 2024, 3 in 2025, and 4 so far in 2026, a partial year.
Fort Leavenworth tried 20 cases and Joint Base San Antonio-Fort Sam Houston tried 21 in the same years. Fort Leavenworth had more contested cases (35%) and a longer median confinement (1.2 years). Joint Base San Antonio-Fort Sam Houston had a contested share of 5% and a median of 4 months.
| Installation | Cases | Contested | Full acquittals (decided contested) | Median confinement | Punitive discharge (enlisted) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson | 14 | 7% | 1 of 1 | 5 months | 55% |
| Fort Leavenworth | 20 | 35% | 1 of 7 | 1.2 years | 81% |
| Joint Base San Antonio-Fort Sam Houston | 21 | 5% | 0 of 1 | 4 months | 41% |
Rule Changes and Gaps in the Records
Since December 28, 2023, special trial counsel, not commanders, decide whether to prosecute covered offenses, including domestic violence. For cases where every guilty finding is for an offense after December 27, 2023, the military judge sets the sentence within new parameters. The records give trial dates, not offense dates, so 2024 and later trials include both old-rule and new-rule cases.
Nonjudicial punishment, administrative separations, the evidence, and plea terms are not in these records.
Dates and sources for the law changes mentioned here: UCMJ change timeline.
How We Counted
Every court-martial tried at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in 2020–2023 (32) and 2024–2026 (14).
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
- Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson: Court-Martial Data and Trends (hub)
- By Installation (hub)
- Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson Courts-Martial, 2020–2023: What 32 Cases Show
- Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson Courts-Martial, 2024–2026: What 14 Cases Show
- Camp Humphreys, 2020–2023 vs. 2024–2026: A Side-by-Side Look
- Fort Benning, 2021–2023 vs. 2024–2026: A Side-by-Side Look
- Fort Bliss, 2020–2023 vs. 2024–2026: A Side-by-Side Look
- Fort Bragg, 2020–2023 vs. 2024–2026: A Side-by-Side Look
- Fort Campbell Before and After 2024: How Its Courts-Martial Changed
- Search every case in Military Trial Results (members)
Military Judges Who Presided Over Cases at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, 2024–2026
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.