What Was Tried at MCAS Yuma, Arizona, 2017–2018? 13 Courts-Martial
All 13 courts-martial at MCAS Yuma, Arizona in 2017–2018 ended in a conviction on at least one charge. Article 128 (assault) was charged in 62% of the cases, compared with 35% in the rest of the Navy and Marine Corps.
Understanding Trends in Military Practice · 5 min read
Trends › By Installation › MCAS Yuma, Arizona › 2017–2018
Short answer: All 13 courts-martial at MCAS Yuma, Arizona in 2017–2018 ended in a conviction on at least one charge. Article 128 (assault) was charged in 62% of the cases, compared with 35% in the rest of the Navy and Marine Corps. A punitive discharge followed for 62% of convicted enlisted members, slightly lower than the 67% service-wide.
Assault and Orders Violations Led the Charges
Every one of the 13 records lists the charges. Article 128 (assault) appeared in 8 cases (62%), compared with 35% across the Navy and Marine Corps. Article 92 (failure to obey an order or regulation) appeared in 4 cases (31%), compared with 15%.
Article 120 (rape and sexual assault) was charged in 3 cases (23%), compared with 18%. Article 114 (dueling) and Article 119b (child endangerment, numbered since 2019) were each charged in 2 cases (15%). Article 120c, Article 89, and Article 93 were each charged once. A case with 3 articles is counted in 3 rows.
| UCMJ Article | Cases | Share here | Share, the Navy and Marine Corps as a whole |
|---|---|---|---|
| Art. 128 Assault | 8 | 62% | 35% |
| Art. 92 Failure to obey order or regulation | 4 | 31% | 15% |
| Art. 120 Rape and sexual assault | 3 | 23% | 18% |
| Art. 114 Dueling | 2 | 15% | 1% |
| Art. 119b Child endangerment, numbered since 2019 | 2 | 15% | 1% |
| Art. 120c Other sexual misconduct | 1 | 8% | 4% |
| Art. 89 Disrespect toward superior officer; assault of superior officer | 1 | 8% | 1% |
| Art. 93 Cruelty and maltreatment | 1 | 8% | 1% |
NCOs Made Up Most of the Accused
Of the 13 accused, 8 were NCOs (E-5 to E-9) and 5 were junior enlisted members (E-1 to E-4). No officer or warrant officer was tried. Across the Navy and Marine Corps, 64% of the accused were junior enlisted, so this group was more senior.
Conviction and Confinement
All 13 cases ended in a conviction on at least one charge. Confinement was part of 9 of those sentences (69%). The median confinement was 6 months, slightly shorter than the 7 months in the rest of the Navy and Marine Corps.
A quarter of the sentences with confinement were 2 years or longer. These are adjudged sentences, before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal. Each sentence covers all the charges in its case.
Bad-Conduct and Dishonorable Discharges
Of the 13 convicted enlisted members, 8 received a bad-conduct or dishonorable discharge (62%). In all Navy and Marine Corps cases in those years the rate was 67%. Dishonorable discharges made up 3 of the 8.
Without a punitive discharge, a service member can still face an administrative separation later.
Court Level
There were 5 general courts-martial and 8 special courts-martial. The general court-martial share was 38%, lower than the 45% across the Navy and Marine Corps. A special court-martial caps confinement at 1 year and cannot impose a dishonorable discharge.
Parris Island and Pensacola in the Same Years
Parris Island, South Carolina tried 20 cases and Pensacola, Florida tried 23. The median confinement was 2 years at Parris Island and 5 months at Pensacola, compared with 6 months at Yuma. Punitive discharge rates were 63% at Parris Island and 55% at Pensacola.
| Installation | Cases | Contested | Full acquittals (decided contested) | Median confinement | Punitive discharge (enlisted) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MCAS Yuma, Arizona | 13 | — | — | 6 months | 62% |
| Parris Island, South Carolina | 20 | 0 of 1 | — | 2 years | 63% |
| Pensacola, Florida | 23 | 13% | 2 of 3 | 5 months | 55% |
Dates, Rules, and Missing Information
Yuma had 7 cases in 2017 and 6 in 2018, from February 2017 to October 2018. They make up 1% of the 1,002 Navy and Marine Corps courts-martial in those years. All of them were tried before the Military Justice Act of 2016 took effect on January 1, 2019.
Navy and Marine Corps records before December 2020 often omit the plea and the forum, so this page does not report contested shares or who decided guilt. The records also do not show the evidence, plea terms, or misconduct handled without 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 MCAS Yuma, Arizona with a trial date in 2017–2018 (13 cases), compared with all 1,002 Navy and Marine Corps 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
- MCAS Yuma, Arizona: Court-Martial Data and Trends (hub)
- Navy-Marine Corps Courts-Martial: Data and Trends (hub)
- By Installation (hub)
- MCAS Yuma, Arizona, 2019–2023: Charges, Verdicts, and Sentences in 27 Cases (another period)
- Inside 13 Courts-Martial at MCAS Cherry Point, North Carolina, 2017–2018 (same years, similar size)
- Parris Island, South Carolina, 2017–2018: Charges, Verdicts, and Sentences in 20 Cases (same years, similar size)
- Bremerton, Washington Courts-Martial, 2024–2026: What 52 Cases Show
- Bremerton, Washington, 2013–2018: Charges, Verdicts, and Sentences in 221 Cases
- Bremerton, Washington, 2019–2023: Charges, Verdicts, and Sentences in 153 Cases
- Camp Lejeune, North Carolina Courts-Martial, 2019–2023: What 283 Cases Show
- Search every case in Military Trial Results (members)
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.