Article 121 With Article 92 in the Navy and Marine Corps: What the Records Show

Trends › By Offense › Article 121 › Navy-Marine Corps, with Article 92

Based on 28 cases · 2021–2026 · Navy and Marine Corps records · data updated October 24, 2026

13 of 27 Accused Contested the Charges

The plea is listed in 27 of the 28 records. Of those, 14 accused pleaded guilty and 13 contested at least one charge. A contested case is one with a not-guilty or mixed plea. The contested share, 48%, was higher than the 24% for all Navy and Marine Corps Article 121 cases from 2021–2026.

Of the 13 contested cases, 4 ended in a partial acquittal (31%). In a partial acquittal, the accused is found not guilty of at least one charge or specification and guilty of another. The records do not say why an accused pleaded guilty or went to trial.

Punitive Discharges Were More Common

A punitive discharge followed 67% of the enlisted convictions: 12 bad-conduct discharges and 4 dishonorable discharges. In all Navy and Marine Corps Article 121 cases, the rate was 52%.

The records include 1 convicted officer or warrant officer, who was not dismissed. A sentence without a punitive discharge does not rule out a later administrative separation.

Most Terms Were Short, but Long Terms Were More Frequent

Confinement was part of 75% of the 28 convictions. Half of the confinement terms were 4 months or less. In the Navy and Marine Corps as a whole, the median was 5 months.

Confinement of more than one year came in 6 of the 28 convictions (21%), compared with 9% for all Navy and Marine Corps Article 121 cases. Under 6 months was the largest band, with 11 convictions (39%). Terms from 6 months to 1 year were less common here: 4 convictions (14%), compared with 26%. No conviction carried 5 years or more, and 7 (25%) carried no confinement.

These are adjudged sentences, before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal. Each one covers every charge in the case.

General Courts-Martial Accounted for the Long Terms

There were 10 general courts-martial and 18 special courts-martial. The general share, 36%, compares with 23% in the Navy and Marine Corps as a whole. A general court-martial can impose any lawful sentence, including long confinement and a dishonorable discharge.

At the general courts-martial, 80% of convictions included confinement, and the median was 2 years. At the special courts-martial, 72% included confinement, and the median was 3 months. A special court-martial cannot adjudge more than one year of confinement or a dishonorable discharge. Since 2019, a special court-martial can also be tried by a military judge alone, with a six-month confinement cap and no punitive discharge.

False Statements Often Came With the Larceny

No case charged Article 121 alone. Besides Article 92, the most frequent other charges were Article 107 (false official statement) in 12 cases, Article 134 (general article) in 8, Article 112a (drug) in 6, and Article 131b (obstruction) in 5. In all Navy and Marine Corps Article 121 cases, 47 of 160 charged larceny by itself.

Who Was Charged

Junior enlisted members (E-1 to E-4) made up 60% of the accused, NCOs 36%, and officers 4%. In Navy and Marine Corps Article 121 cases overall, junior enlisted members were 57%. The rank mix here is close to the mix in all Navy and Marine Corps Article 121 cases.

Years and Installations

The 28 cases run from February 2021 to October 2026. There were 10 in 2021, 2 in 2022, 6 in 2023, 3 in 2024, 5 in 2025, and 2 in 2026. The 2026 count is a partial year.

Camp Lejeune, North Carolina tried 9 cases. MCAS Cherry Point, North Carolina and Camp Pendleton, California tried 3 each, and Quantico, Virginia and Parris Island, South Carolina tried 2 each. These five installations account for 68% of the 28 cases. Larger installations try more cases of every type.

Law Changes and What the Records Omit

Since December 28, 2023, special trial counsel, not commanders, decide whether to prosecute covered offenses such as sexual assault, domestic violence, and murder. When every guilty finding is for an offense after December 27, 2023, the military judge sets the sentence under new sentencing parameters. Both depend on the offense date, which these records do not give.

Only cases that reached a court-martial are counted. Matters handled by nonjudicial punishment, administrative separation, or no action do not appear, and the records do not describe the evidence or the plea terms.

For what the offense covers and how it is defended, see Article 121 on the law firm's website. Dates and sources for the law changes: UCMJ change timeline.

Compare: federal court. Theft and Fraud by Dollar Loss: Federal Sentences vs. Article 121 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.