What Was Tried at Malmstrom AFB, Montana, 2016–2018? 12 Courts-Martial
The records hold 12 courts-martial at Malmstrom AFB, Montana from 2016–2018. Assault (Article 128) was charged in 40% of the cases with charges listed, compared with 11% in the rest of the Air Force.
Understanding Trends in Military Practice · 5 min read
Trends › By Installation › Malmstrom AFB, Montana › 2016–2018
Short answer: The records hold 12 courts-martial at Malmstrom AFB, Montana from 2016–2018. Assault (Article 128) was charged in 40% of the cases with charges listed, compared with 11% in the rest of the Air Force. A punitive discharge followed 40% of enlisted convictions, lower than the 55% across the Air Force.
Assault and Larceny Were Charged More Often
Charges are listed for 10 of the 12 cases. Article 112a (wrongful use or possession of controlled substances) and Article 128 (assault) were each charged in 4 of them, or 40%. The drug share was lower than the 48% in the rest of the Air Force. The assault share was higher than the 11% elsewhere.
Article 121 (larceny) was charged in 3 cases (30%), compared with 7% in the rest of the Air Force. Article 107, Article 134, Article 90, and Article 120 were each charged in 1 case. A case with several articles is counted under each one.
| UCMJ Article | Cases | Share here | Share, the rest of the Air Force |
|---|---|---|---|
| Art. 112a Wrongful use, possession of controlled substances | 4 | 40% | 48% |
| Art. 128 Assault | 4 | 40% | 11% |
| Art. 121 Larceny | 3 | 30% | 7% |
| Art. 107 False official statements | 1 | 10% | 7% |
| Art. 134 General article | 1 | 10% | 25% |
| Art. 90 Willfully disobeying superior officer | 1 | 10% | 1% |
| Art. 120 Rape and sexual assault | 1 | 10% | 9% |
Fewer Punitive Discharges Than Air Force-Wide
Of 10 enlisted members convicted, 4 received a bad-conduct or dishonorable discharge (40%). Across the Air Force the rate was 55%. Only 1 of the 4 was a dishonorable discharge.
A punitive discharge is a bad-conduct or dishonorable discharge for an enlisted member. A sentence without one does not rule out a later administrative separation.
Confinement in Most Convictions
Confinement was part of 80% of the 10 convictions. The median confinement was 4 months, the same as the Air Force median of 4 months. A quarter of the sentences with confinement were 2.5 years or longer.
These are adjudged sentences, set at trial before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal. Each sentence covers every charge in the case.
Members Heard Most Cases
Members decided guilt in 8 of the 12 cases: 7 enlisted panels and 1 officer panel. A military judge alone decided the other 4 (33%). The accused usually chooses between a judge alone and a panel of members.
General courts-martial made up 50% of the cases (6 of 12), and special courts-martial made up the rest. A general court-martial can impose long confinement and a dishonorable discharge. A special court-martial caps confinement at 1 year and cannot impose a dishonorable discharge.
Full Acquittals
Of the 12 cases, 2 ended in a full acquittal (17%), compared with 20% across the Air Force. Air Force records from 2016 to 2019 rarely list a guilty plea, so this rate is measured against all cases, not only contested cases.
No Officers Among the Accused
The accused were 10 junior enlisted members and 2 NCOs. No officer was tried here in these years. The group was more junior than the Air Force as a whole.
Hill AFB and Moody AFB in the Same Years
Hill AFB, Utah and Moody AFB, Georgia each tried 20 Air Force cases in the same years. Hill had a longer median confinement, 6 months, and a punitive discharge rate of 53%. Moody had the same median as Malmstrom, 4 months, and a higher punitive discharge rate, 67%.
| Installation | Cases | Contested | Full acquittals (decided contested) | Median confinement | Punitive discharge (enlisted) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Malmstrom AFB, Montana | 12 | — | — | 4 months | 40% |
| Hill AFB, Utah | 20 | — | — | 6 months | 53% |
| Moody AFB, Georgia | 20 | — | — | 4 months | 67% |
Timing and Limits of the Records
The 12 trials ran from April 2016 to January 2018: 6 in 2016, 5 in 2017, and 1 in 2018. They make up 1% of the 991 Air Force courts-martial in those years. With this few cases, 1 or 2 cases can move any percentage on this page.
All of these trials came before the Military Justice Act of 2016 took effect on January 1, 2019. Its fixed panel sizes, judge-alone special courts-martial, and written plea agreements did not apply here.
The records cover only cases that reached a courtroom, not nonjudicial punishment or administrative separations. They do not describe the evidence or plea terms. The records give trial dates, not offense dates.
Dates and sources for the law changes mentioned here: UCMJ change timeline.
How We Counted
Every court-martial in the data tried at Malmstrom AFB, Montana with a trial date in 2016–2018 (12 cases), compared with all 991 Air Force 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
- Malmstrom AFB, Montana: Court-Martial Data and Trends (hub)
- Air Force Courts-Martial: Data and Trends (hub)
- By Installation (hub)
- Malmstrom AFB, Montana Courts-Martial, 2019–2023: What 13 Cases Show (another period)
- Eglin AFB, Florida Courts-Martial, 2016–2018: What 12 Cases Show (same years, similar size)
- Inside 12 Courts-Martial at Robins AFB, Georgia, 2016–2018 (same years, similar size)
- Andersen AFB, Guam Courts-Martial, 2016–2018: What 13 Cases Show
- Aviano AB, Italy Courts-Martial, 2016–2018: What 16 Cases Show
- Aviano AB, Italy, 2019–2023: Charges, Verdicts, and Sentences in 17 Cases
- Barksdale AFB, Louisiana, 2016–2018: Charges, Verdicts, and Sentences in 27 Cases
- Search every case in Military Trial Results (members)
Military Judges Who Presided Over Cases at Malmstrom AFB, Montana, 2016–2018
- Joseph S. Kiefer
- Jennifer E. Powell
- Natalie D. Richardson
- Mark F. Rosenow
- Shelly W. Schools
- Brendon K. Tukey
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.