> ## 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 2024 - URL: https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/navy-marine-corps-article-121-2024/ - Published: 2026-10-28T08:17:19.000Z - Updated: 2026-11-03T01:46:30.000Z - Description: All 30 Navy and Marine Corps courts-martial charging Article 121 (larceny) in 2024 ended in a conviction on at least one charge. Only 19 of those sentences (63%) included confinement. The median confinement was 3 months, shorter than the 5 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, 2024 **Short answer:** All 30 Navy and Marine Corps courts-martial charging Article 121 (larceny) in 2024 ended in a conviction on at least one charge. Only 19 of those sentences (63%) included confinement. The median confinement was 3 months, shorter than the 5 months for all Navy and Marine Corps cases. 44% of convicted enlisted members received a punitive discharge, compared with 58% for all Navy and Marine Corps cases. Based on 30 cases · 2024 · Navy and Marine Corps records · data updated October 24, 2026 ## Convictions Without Confinement Of the 30 convictions, 11 (37%) had no confinement. That is higher than the 25% for all Navy and Marine Corps cases in 2024\. Among the 19 that included confinement, the median was 3 months, and a quarter were 8 months or longer. These are adjudged sentences, set at trial before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal. Each covers every charge in the case, including the conspiracy, burglary, and other charges sometimes filed with larceny. In 2024, every case ended in a conviction, but 37% of convictions had no confinement. Most confinement terms were a few months. ## Length of Confinement 12 convictions (40%) included under 6 months of confinement, about the same as the 38% for all Navy and Marine Corps cases. 5 (17%) included 6 months to 1 year. Only 2 convictions (7%) included more than one year, both between 1 and 5 years, compared with 22% for all Navy and Marine Corps cases. Confinement of more than a year is available only at a general court-martial. Few of these cases were general courts-martial. | Adjudged confinement | Convictions | Share here | Share, all Navy and Marine Corps cases in 2024 | | ------------------------------- | ----------- | ---------- | ---------------------------------------------- | | No confinement | 11 | 37% | 25% | | Under 6 months | 12 | 40% | 38% | | 6 months to 1 year | 5 | 17% | 15% | | More than 1 year, under 5 years | 2 | 7% | 15% | | 5 years or more | 0 | 0% | 7% | ## Most Cases at Special Courts-Martial 6 cases were general courts-martial and 24 were special courts-martial. The general court-martial share was 20%, compared with 38% for all Navy and Marine Corps cases. A special court-martial caps confinement at one year and cannot impose a dishonorable discharge. A general court-martial can impose any lawful sentence, including long confinement and a dishonorable discharge or dismissal. ## Punitive Discharges Were Less Common Among 27 convicted enlisted members, 12 received a bad-conduct or dishonorable discharge (44%), less often than the 58% for all Navy and Marine Corps cases. Only 1 of the 12 was dishonorable. The records list 2 convicted officers or warrant officers, and neither was dismissed. A sentence without a punitive discharge does not rule out a later administrative separation, which these records do not track. ## Guilty Pleas Far Outnumbered Contested Cases Every case lists a plea: 24 guilty pleas and 6 not-guilty or mixed pleas. That makes 20% contested, lower than the 34% for all Navy and Marine Corps cases in 2024\. A case is contested when the accused pleads not guilty to at least one charge. 0 of 6 contested cases that reached a verdict ended in a full acquittal, the same count as in 2023\. With so few contested cases, a single acquittal would change the result. ## Rank of the Accused Junior enlisted members (E-1 to E-4) made up 52% of the accused, NCOs 41%, and officers 7%. For all Navy and Marine Corps cases in 2024, junior enlisted members were 58%. NCOs and officers made up a larger part of this group than of all Navy and Marine Corps cases. ## Larceny Was Often the Only Charge Article 121 was the only charge in 13 of the 30 cases. The other articles charged included Article 107 (false official statement) and Article 81 (conspiracy) in 4 each, and Article 129 (burglary and unlawful entry), Article 80 (attempt), and Article 128 (assault) in 3 each. A sentence covers every charge. The sentence figures include both the cases with other charges and the cases charging larceny alone. The records do not separate them. ## Compared With 2023 There were 31 cases in 2023 and 30 in 2024\. Median confinement went from 5 months to 3 months. Convictions with confinement went from 80% to 63%. Punitive discharges for enlisted members went from 48% to 44%, and the contested share went from 23% to 20%. The general court-martial share went from 16% to 20%. These are small groups, and a few cases can change any figure. The changes show direction, not precise size. | | 2023 | 2024 | | ----------------------------------- | -------- | -------- | | Cases | 31 | 30 | | Contested (of pleas recorded) | 23% | 20% | | Full acquittals (decided contested) | 0 of 6 | 0 of 6 | | Convictions with confinement | 80% | 63% | | Median confinement | 5 months | 3 months | | Punitive discharge (enlisted) | 48% | 44% | | General courts-martial | 16% | 20% | ## Installations, New Rules, and Limits Marine Corps Base Hawaii, Kaneohe Bay had 5 of these cases, Pearl Harbor, Hawaii and San Diego, California had 4 each, and Camp Pendleton, California and Camp Lejeune, North Carolina had 3 each. Together they account for 63% of the 30 cases. Larger installations try more cases of every kind. Since December 28, 2023, special trial counsel decide whether to prosecute covered offenses. When every guilty finding is for an offense after December 27, 2023, the military judge sets the sentence within new sentencing parameters. Both rules depend on offense dates, which these records do not give. 2024 trials include both old-rule and new-rule cases. The records also do not show the evidence, plea terms, or larceny resolved through 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 2024 that charged Article 121 (30 cases), compared with all Navy and Marine Corps cases that year and with 2023. 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, 2023: The Year in Numbers](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/navy-marine-corps-article-121-2023/) (previous / next) - [Navy-Marine Corps Article 121 Cases in 2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/navy-marine-corps-article-121-2025/) (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 2017](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/navy-marine-corps-article-121-2017/) - [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/) - [Larceny at Navy-Marine Corps Courts-Martial, 2018: The Year in Numbers](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/navy-marine-corps-article-121-2018/) - [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) ← Previous: [Larceny at Navy-Marine Corps Courts-Martial, 2023: The Year in Numbers](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/navy-marine-corps-article-121-2023/)Next: [Navy-Marine Corps Article 121 Cases in 2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/navy-marine-corps-article-121-2025/) → **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.