> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.bodiesburied.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # How Navy-Marine Corps Larceny Cases Ended in 2017 - URL: https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/navy-marine-corps-article-121-2017/ - Published: 2026-10-28T08:17:13.000Z - Updated: 2026-11-03T01:46:32.000Z - Description: In 2017, 46 Navy and Marine Corps courts-martial charged Article 121 (larceny), and 44 ended in a conviction on at least one charge. 89% of those convictions included confinement. The median confinement was 10 months, compared with 8 months for all Navy and Marine Corps cases. - Author: Jocelyn C. Stewart - Tags: Understanding Trends, Article 121, Navy-Marine Corps [Trends](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/) › [By Offense](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/by-offense/) › [Article 121](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/article-121-courts-martial/) › Navy-Marine Corps, 2017 **Short answer:** In 2017, 46 Navy and Marine Corps courts-martial charged Article 121 (larceny), and 44 ended in a conviction on at least one charge. 89% of those convictions included confinement. The median confinement was 10 months, compared with 8 months for all Navy and Marine Corps cases. 79% of convicted enlisted members received a punitive discharge, compared with 68% for all Navy and Marine Corps cases. Based on 46 cases · 2017 · Navy and Marine Corps records · data updated October 24, 2026 ## Most Cases Were Special Courts-Martial Most larceny cases in 2017 were special courts-martial. Of the 46 cases, 32 were special courts-martial and 14 were general courts-martial. The general court-martial share was 30%, compared with 44% for all Navy and Marine Corps cases. The court level limits the sentence. A special court-martial caps confinement at one year and cannot impose a dishonorable discharge. A general court-martial can impose any lawful sentence. The median confinement was 1.5 years at the 14 general courts-martial and 6 months at the 32 special courts-martial. ## Most Convictions Included Confinement 89% of the 44 convictions included confinement. The median confinement was 10 months, slightly higher than the 8-month median for all Navy and Marine Corps cases. A quarter of terms were 1.5 years or more. These figures are adjudged sentences, the punishment set at trial before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal. Each one covers every charge in the case. That includes the conspiracy, drug, and other charges often filed with larceny. ## Most Terms Were 6 Months to 1 Year 18 convictions (41%) included 6 months to 1 year of confinement, compared with 23% for all Navy and Marine Corps cases. This was the most common range. Another 11 (25%) included under 6 months, and 5 (11%) had no confinement. 10 of 44 convictions (23%) included more than one year of confinement, less often than the 31% for all Navy and Marine Corps cases. Of those, 8 were between 1 and 5 years and 2 were 5 years or more. Only a general court-martial can adjudge more than one year. | Adjudged confinement | Convictions | Share here | Share, all Navy and Marine Corps cases in 2017 | | ------------------------------- | ----------- | ---------- | ---------------------------------------------- | | No confinement | 5 | 11% | 10% | | Under 6 months | 11 | 25% | 37% | | 6 months to 1 year | 18 | 41% | 23% | | More than 1 year, under 5 years | 8 | 18% | 20% | | 5 years or more | 2 | 5% | 10% | ## Most Discharges Were Bad-Conduct Discharges 79% of enlisted convictions included a punitive discharge, meaning a bad-conduct or dishonorable discharge. There were 26 bad-conduct discharges and 8 dishonorable discharges. For all Navy and Marine Corps cases in 2017, the rate was 68%. The records list 1 convicted officer or warrant officer, who was not dismissed. A sentence without a punitive discharge does not rule out a later administrative separation, which these records do not track. ## Every Recorded Plea Was Guilty Only 11 of the 46 records list a plea, and all 11 were guilty pleas. A case is contested when the accused pleads not guilty to at least one charge. For all Navy and Marine Corps cases in 2017, 26% were contested. Navy and Marine Corps records before December 2020 often omit the plea, so the cases without one cannot be classified. The records for this group give no count of contested verdicts or acquittals. ## Who Was Charged Among the accused with rank recorded, 31 were junior enlisted members, 12 were NCOs, and 1 was an officer. This group is more junior than all Navy and Marine Corps cases in 2017. ## Other Charges in These Cases Article 121 was the only charge in 14 of the 46 cases. Article 81 (conspiracy) was the most common other charge, in 11, followed by Article 112a (drug) in 9, Article 92 (orders violation) in 8, Article 107 (false official statement) in 7, and Article 130 (housebreaking) in 5. ## How 2017 Differed From 2016 There were 26 cases in 2016 and 46 in 2017\. Median confinement was 7 months in 2016 and 10 months in 2017\. Punitive discharges for convicted enlisted members went from 65% to 79%. The general court-martial share went from 23% to 30%. Convictions with confinement went from 92% to 89%. The recorded contested share went from 4% to 0%, but both years have incomplete plea records. In small groups, a few cases can change the figures a great deal, so these changes show direction only. | | 2016 | 2017 | | ----------------------------- | -------- | --------- | | Cases | 26 | 46 | | Contested (of pleas recorded) | 4% | 0% | | Convictions with confinement | 92% | 89% | | Median confinement | 7 months | 10 months | | Punitive discharge (enlisted) | 65% | 79% | | General courts-martial | 23% | 30% | ## Installations, Later Reforms, and Limits Camp Lejeune, North Carolina had 13 of these cases, Marine Corps Base Hawaii, Kaneohe Bay had 6, Camp Pendleton, California and Twentynine Palms, California had 5 each, and Okinawa, Japan had 3\. Those installations account for 70% of the 46 cases. Larger bases try more cases of every kind. All of these trials came before the Military Justice Act of 2016 took effect on January 1, 2019, so its fixed panel sizes, judge-alone special courts-martial, and written plea agreements did not apply. The records give trial dates, not offense dates. They do not show the evidence, plea terms, or larceny handled by nonjudicial punishment or administrative separation. For what the offense covers and how it is defended, see [Article 121 on the law firm's website](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/practice-areas/court-martial/article-121/?ref=bodiesburied.com). Dates and sources for the law changes: [UCMJ change timeline](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/ucmj-change-timeline/). ### How We Counted Navy and Marine Corps courts-martial with a trial date in 2017 that charged Article 121 (46 cases), compared with all Navy and Marine Corps cases that year and with 2016. Source: public court-martial records (Article 140a, UCMJ) in [Military Trial Results](https://www.bodiesburied.com/military-trial-results/), data updated October 24, 2026\. Definitions, sources, and known gaps: [how this data was built](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/how-the-military-trial-results-data-was-built/). Errors: content@bodiesburied.com. ## Related Analysis - [Article 121 (Larceny): Court-Martial Data and Trends](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/article-121-courts-martial/) (hub) - [By Year](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/by-year/) (hub) - [Larceny at Navy-Marine Corps Courts-Martial, 2018: The Year in Numbers](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/navy-marine-corps-article-121-2018/) (previous / next) - [How Has Article 121 Changed in Navy-Marine Corps Courts-Martial Since 2017?](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/navy-marine-corps-article-121-trend-2017-2025/) (the full trend) - [How Navy-Marine Corps Larceny Cases Ended in 2020](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/navy-marine-corps-article-121-2020/) - [How Navy-Marine Corps Larceny Cases Ended in 2021](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/navy-marine-corps-article-121-2021/) - [How Navy-Marine Corps Larceny Cases Ended in 2024](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/navy-marine-corps-article-121-2024/) - [Larceny at Navy-Marine Corps Courts-Martial, 2023: The Year in Numbers](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/navy-marine-corps-article-121-2023/) - [Article 121 Sentences in the Navy-Marine Corps: Confinement and Discharges, 2017–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/navy-marine-corps-article-121-sent-2017-2025/) - [Article 121 explained on the law firm's website](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/practice-areas/court-martial/article-121/?ref=bodiesburied.com) - [Search every case in Military Trial Results](https://www.bodiesburied.com/military-trial-results/) (members) Next: [Larceny at Navy-Marine Corps Courts-Martial, 2018: The Year in Numbers](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/navy-marine-corps-article-121-2018/) → **Compare: federal court.** [Theft and Fraud by Dollar Loss: Federal Sentences vs. Article 121 Courts-Martial](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-theft-fraud-dollar-loss-vs-article-121/) **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](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/?ref=bodiesburied.com). This analysis is for education and information only. It is not legal advice, and every case is different.