MCAS Yuma, Arizona, 2019–2023: Charges, Verdicts, and Sentences in 27 Cases
MCAS Yuma, Arizona tried 27 courts-martial from 2019–2023. Article 134, the general article, was charged in 38% of cases with charges listed, compared with 18% across the Navy and Marine Corps. The median confinement was 7 months, compared with 6 months service-wide.
Understanding Trends in Military Practice · 6 min read
Trends › By Installation › MCAS Yuma, Arizona › 2019–2023
Short answer: MCAS Yuma, Arizona tried 27 courts-martial from 2019–2023. Article 134, the general article, was charged in 38% of cases with charges listed, compared with 18% across the Navy and Marine Corps. The median confinement was 7 months, compared with 6 months service-wide.
Almost All of the Accused Were Junior Enlisted
Of the accused whose rank is listed, 23 were junior enlisted members (E-1 to E-4), 1 was an NCO, and 0 were officers. That makes the Yuma cases more junior than the Navy and Marine Corps as a whole.
As a result, the discharge, confinement, and plea figures here describe junior enlisted members almost entirely.
The General Article Was the Most Common Charge
Of the 27 records, 26 list their charges. Article 134 covers conduct prejudicial to good order and discipline or service-discrediting conduct. It appeared in 10 cases (38%), compared with 18% service-wide. Article 107, false official statements, appeared in 4 (15%, compared with 8%). Article 86, AWOL, appeared in 3 (12%, compared with 5%).
Several common charges appeared less often. Article 128, assault, appeared in 6 cases, or 23%, compared with 31% service-wide. Drug charges under Article 112a appeared in 3 (12%), compared with 25%. Article 120, rape and sexual assault, appeared in 2 (8%), compared with 14%. Each article counts once per case, so 1 case can appear in several rows.
| UCMJ Article | Cases | Share here | Share, Navy and Marine Corps-wide |
|---|---|---|---|
| Art. 134 General article | 10 | 38% | 18% |
| Art. 128 Assault | 6 | 23% | 31% |
| Art. 92 Failure to obey order or regulation | 5 | 19% | 18% |
| Art. 107 False official statements | 4 | 15% | 8% |
| Art. 112a Wrongful use, possession of controlled substances | 3 | 12% | 25% |
| Art. 86 AWOL | 3 | 12% | 5% |
| Art. 120c Other sexual misconduct | 2 | 8% | 4% |
| Art. 120 Rape and sexual assault | 2 | 8% | 14% |
More Sentences Longer Than One Year
Of 25 convictions, 22 included confinement. The median confinement was 7 months, longer than the 6 months across the Navy and Marine Corps. A quarter of the confinement sentences were 2 years or longer.
Sentences longer than one year were more common than service-wide: 8 of 25 convictions (32%), compared with 24%. All 8 were more than 1 year but under 5 years. That band held 19% of convictions service-wide. None were 5 years or more.
Shorter sentences were less common than elsewhere. Sentences under 6 months were 7 convictions (28%), compared with 35%. Convictions with no confinement were 3 (12%), compared with 17%. These are adjudged sentences, before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal, and each covers every charge in its case.
| Adjudged confinement | Convictions | Share here | Share, Navy and Marine Corps-wide |
|---|---|---|---|
| No confinement | 3 | 12% | 17% |
| Under 6 months | 7 | 28% | 35% |
| 6 months to 1 year | 7 | 28% | 24% |
| More than 1 year, under 5 years | 8 | 32% | 19% |
| 5 years or more | 0 | 0% | 5% |
General and Special Courts-Martial
A general court-martial can impose any lawful sentence, including long confinement and a dishonorable discharge. General courts-martial heard 12 cases (44%). In those cases, 92% of convictions included confinement, with a median of 2 years.
Special courts-martial heard 15 cases. In those cases, 85% of convictions included confinement, with a median of 6 months. A special court-martial is capped at one year of confinement and cannot impose a dishonorable discharge.
Punitive Discharges
For enlisted members, a punitive discharge is a bad-conduct or dishonorable discharge. Of 24 enlisted members convicted at Yuma, 14 received one (58%). That is lower than the 63% across the Navy and Marine Corps. Of those 14, 4 were dishonorable discharges. A sentence without a punitive discharge does not rule out a later administrative separation.
Pleas Where the Records Show Them
A case is contested when the accused pleads not guilty to at least 1 charge. Only 11 of the 27 records list a plea: 7 guilty pleas and 4 contested cases. The contested share was 36%, higher than the 31% across the Navy and Marine Corps, but it is based on few records.
Navy and Marine Corps records before December 2020 often omit the plea, so these counts use only the records that list it. None of the 4 contested cases that reached a verdict ended in a full acquittal.
Yuma Compared With Great Lakes and Cherry Point
Great Lakes, Illinois and MCAS Cherry Point, North Carolina each tried 34 cases in the same years. Their contested shares were 24% and 41%, compared with 36% at Yuma. The median confinement was 5 months at Great Lakes and 1 year at Cherry Point, compared with 7 months at Yuma. Punitive discharges for enlisted members were similar at all 3: 58% at Yuma, 55% at Great Lakes, and 54% at Cherry Point.
| Installation | Cases | Contested | Full acquittals (decided contested) | Median confinement | Punitive discharge (enlisted) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MCAS Yuma, Arizona | 27 | 36% | 0 of 4 | 7 months | 58% |
| Great Lakes, Illinois | 34 | 24% | 1 of 8 | 5 months | 55% |
| MCAS Cherry Point, North Carolina | 34 | 41% | 0 of 7 | 1 year | 54% |
Compared With 2017–2018
Yuma had 13 cases in 2017–2018, about 6 a year. Since then, it has had about 5 a year, counting full years only. The median confinement went from 6 months to 7 months. Convictions with confinement went from 69% to 88%. Punitive discharges for enlisted members went from 62% to 58%. The general court-martial share went from 38% to 44%.
The earlier records do not include plea information. In small groups, a few cases can change these figures, so the changes show direction only.
| 2017–2018 | 2019–2023 | |
|---|---|---|
| Cases | 13 | 27 |
| Contested (of pleas recorded) | — | 36% |
| Convictions with confinement | 69% | 88% |
| Median confinement | 6 months | 7 months |
| Punitive discharge (enlisted) | 62% | 58% |
| General courts-martial | 38% | 44% |
By Year, and What Is Not Here
Trials took place from January 2019 through July 2023: 7 in 2019, 8 in 2020, 5 in 2021, 1 in 2022, and 6 in 2023. That is 1% of the 1,991 Navy and Marine Corps courts-martial in those years.
The records give trial dates, not offense dates. They do not describe the evidence or plea terms. Cases handled by nonjudicial punishment or administrative separation are not included.
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 2019–2023 (27 cases), compared with all 1,991 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)
- What Was Tried at MCAS Yuma, Arizona, 2017–2018? 13 Courts-Martial (another period)
- Great Lakes, Illinois Courts-Martial, 2019–2023: What 34 Cases Show (same years, similar size)
- What Was Tried at MCAS Cherry Point, North Carolina, 2019–2023? 34 Courts-Martial (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)
Military Judges Who Presided Over Cases at MCAS Yuma, Arizona, 2019–2023
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.