How Navy-Marine Corps Sexual Assault Cases Ended in 2023

Trends › By Offense › Article 120 › Navy-Marine Corps, 2023

Based on 33 cases · 2023 · Navy and Marine Corps records · data updated October 24, 2026

Most of the Accused Pleaded Not Guilty

Every case in this group has a plea on record: 24 not-guilty or mixed pleas and 9 guilty pleas. A case is contested when the accused pleads not guilty to at least one charge. That makes 73% of these cases contested.

Across all Navy and Marine Corps cases in 2023, the contested share was 32%. In 2023, sexual assault cases were contested much more often than the average court-martial.

How Contested Cases Ended

All 24 contested cases reached a verdict. In 14, the accused was found not guilty of every charge, a full-acquittal rate of 58%. In 3 more, the result was a partial acquittal: not guilty of at least one charge or specification but guilty of another.

The full-acquittal rate for the service was 22%. Contested Article 120 cases ended in a full acquittal much more often than contested courts-martial in general.

Nearly All Cases Were General Courts-Martial

Of the 33 cases, 30 were general courts-martial and 3 were special courts-martial. The general court-martial share of 91% compares with 46% in all Navy and Marine Corps cases in 2023.

The court level affects the possible sentence. A general court-martial can impose any lawful sentence, including long confinement and a dishonorable discharge or dismissal. A special court-martial caps confinement at one year and cannot impose a dishonorable discharge.

Confinement After a Conviction

Of the 33 cases, 19 ended in a conviction on at least one charge. Confinement was part of 84% of them. Half of the terms were 1.5 years or less, and a quarter were 3 years or more. The median for the Navy and Marine Corps as a whole was 6 months.

These figures are adjudged sentences, the punishment set at trial before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal. Each sentence covers every charge in the case, including assault and other charges brought with Article 120.

Punitive Discharges and a Dismissal

Of 17 convicted enlisted members, 14 received a punitive discharge: 10 dishonorable discharges and 4 bad-conduct discharges. That is 82%, compared with 63% across all Navy and Marine Corps cases in 2023.

The records show 1 convicted officer or warrant officer, who was sentenced to dismissal. A sentence without a punitive discharge does not rule out a later administrative separation, which is not in these records.

Who Was Accused

Junior enlisted members (E-1 to E-4) made up 61% of the accused, NCOs 29%, and officers 10%. Across the service, junior enlisted members were 65% of the accused. The rank mix here was about the same as in all Navy and Marine Corps cases.

In a group of 33 cases, the 10% officer share is only a few people. The records do not show the officers' grades or duties.

Fewer Kinds of Other Charges

At least one other article was charged in 27 of the 33 cases. Article 128 (assault) was the most common, in 19 cases. Article 134 (general article) appeared in 3, and Article 120c (indecent recording and exposure), Article 125 (kidnapping), and Article 92 (orders violation) in 2 each.

Year Over Year

The number of cases was almost the same: 32 in 2022 and 33 in 2023. The contested share went from 47% to 73%, and the general court-martial share from 69% to 91%. Median confinement went from 8 months to 1.5 years.

Full acquittals in decided contested cases went from 10 of 15 to 14 of 24. Convictions that included confinement went from 91% to 84%. Punitive discharges for convicted enlisted members were 82% in both years. Small groups can change by a few cases, so these figures show direction only.

Installations and Missing Information

San Diego, California, tried 9 of these cases, and Norfolk, Virginia, tried 7. Yokosuka, Japan, tried 3, and Camp Pendleton, California, and Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, tried 2 each. Those installations account for 70% of the 33 cases. Larger bases try more cases of every kind.

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 do not appear.

No sentence-range table is available for this year. The confinement figures therefore come from the median, the quarter mark, and the share of convictions with any confinement.

For what the offense covers and how it is defended, see Article 120 on the law firm's website. Dates and sources for the law changes: UCMJ change timeline.

Compare: federal court. Sexual Abuse of an Adult: Federal Cases vs. Article 120 Courts-Martial

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.