Navy-Marine Corps Article 107 Cases in 2023
Of the 19 Navy and Marine Corps courts-martial charging Article 107 (false official statement) in 2023, 67% of those with a plea recorded were contested, compared with 32% for all Navy and Marine Corps cases that year.
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Trends › By Offense › Article 107 › Navy-Marine Corps, 2023
Short answer: Of the 19 Navy and Marine Corps courts-martial charging Article 107 (false official statement) in 2023, 67% of those with a plea recorded were contested, compared with 32% for all Navy and Marine Corps cases that year. Among convicted enlisted members, 77% received a punitive discharge, compared with 63% across the service.
Contested Cases Were the Norm
The plea is listed in 18 of the 19 records. In those, 12 of the accused contested at least one charge and 6 pleaded guilty. A contested case includes a not-guilty plea or a mixed plea, where the accused pleads guilty to some charges and not guilty to others.
The contested share was 67%. For all Navy and Marine Corps cases in 2023, it was 32%.
How the 12 Contested Cases Ended
Each of the 12 contested cases reached a verdict. Full acquittals, meaning not guilty on every charge, came in 2 of them (17%). Another 2 (17%) ended in a partial acquittal: not guilty of at least one charge or specification and guilty of another.
The full-acquittal rate was lower than the 22% for all Navy and Marine Corps cases in 2023.
Punitive Discharges
Of 13 convicted enlisted members, 10 received a bad-conduct or dishonorable discharge (77%). That was more often than the 63% for all Navy and Marine Corps cases in 2023. Of those 10 discharges, 2 were dishonorable.
The records show 1 convicted officer or warrant officer, who was sentenced to dismissal, the officer equivalent of a punitive discharge. When a sentence has no punitive discharge, an administrative separation can still follow.
Confinement
Confinement was part of 76% of the 17 convictions. Half of those terms were 6 months or less, and the median for all Navy and Marine Corps cases in 2023 was also 6 months. Among the sentences with confinement, a quarter were 2 years or longer.
The figures are adjudged sentences, before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal. A sentence covers all charges in the case.
Orders Violations and Larceny Were Common Companions
Article 107 was the only charge in 2 of the 19 cases. Article 92 (orders violation) appeared in 7, Article 121 (larceny) in 5, Article 86 (AWOL) in 4, Article 128 (assault) in 3, and Article 134 (general article) in 2.
Junior Enlisted Members Made Up Most of the Accused
Junior enlisted members (E-1 to E-4) were 88% of the accused, higher than the 65% for all Navy and Marine Corps cases in 2023. NCOs and officers were 6% each.
There were 9 general courts-martial and 10 special courts-martial. The general share, 47%, was about the same as the 46% across the service. A general court-martial can impose long confinement and a dishonorable discharge. A special court-martial cannot.
Limits
The records give trial dates, not offense dates. They do not describe the evidence or the plea terms. They do not show false statements handled by nonjudicial punishment or administrative separation.
For what the offense covers and how it is defended, see Article 107 on the law firm's website. Dates and sources for the law changes: UCMJ change timeline.
How We Counted
Navy and Marine Corps courts-martial with a trial date in 2023 that charged Article 107 (19 cases), compared with all Navy and Marine Corps cases that year and with 2022.
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
- Article 107 (False Official Statements): Court-Martial Data and Trends (hub)
- By Year (hub)
- Navy-Marine Corps Article 107 Cases in 2022 (previous / next)
- How Navy-Marine Corps False Official Statement Cases Ended in 2024 (previous / next)
- How Has Article 107 Changed in Navy-Marine Corps Courts-Martial Since 2017? (the full trend)
- False Official Statement at Navy-Marine Corps Courts-Martial, 2017: The Year in Numbers
- False Official Statement at Navy-Marine Corps Courts-Martial, 2018: The Year in Numbers
- False Official Statement at Navy-Marine Corps Courts-Martial, 2021: The Year in Numbers
- How Navy-Marine Corps False Official Statement Cases Ended in 2020
- Article 107 explained on the law firm's website
- 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.