Obstruction at Navy-Marine Corps Courts-Martial, 2020: The Year in Numbers
All 27 Navy and Marine Corps courts-martial in 2020 that charged Article 131b (obstruction) ended with a conviction on at least one charge. Of those sentences, 26 included confinement (96%).
Understanding Trends in Military Practice · 5 min read
Trends › By Offense › Article 131b › Navy-Marine Corps, 2020
Short answer: All 27 Navy and Marine Corps courts-martial in 2020 that charged Article 131b (obstruction) ended with a conviction on at least one charge. Of those sentences, 26 included confinement (96%). The median confinement was 11 months, compared with 6 months across all Navy and Marine Corps cases in 2020.
Almost Every Sentence Included Confinement
Each of the 27 cases ended in a conviction. Only 1 conviction (4%) included no confinement. Across all Navy and Marine Corps cases in 2020, 15% of convictions included no confinement.
The median confinement was 11 months, compared with a 6-month median service-wide. For this offense in 2019, the median was 8 months. These are adjudged sentences: the sentences announced at trial, before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal.
Sentence Ranges
Confinement longer than one year was imposed in 10 of 27 convictions (37%). That was more often than the 26% across all Navy and Marine Corps cases in 2020. Of those 10, 8 were between 1 and 5 years and 2 were 5 years or more.
Sentences from 6 months to 1 year made up 10 convictions (37%), compared with 23% service-wide. Sentences under 6 months made up 6 convictions (22%), compared with 36%. Most sentences here were 6 months or longer.
| Adjudged confinement | Convictions | Share here | Share, all Navy and Marine Corps cases in 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|
| No confinement | 1 | 4% | 15% |
| Under 6 months | 6 | 22% | 36% |
| 6 months to 1 year | 10 | 37% | 23% |
| More than 1 year, under 5 years | 8 | 30% | 20% |
| 5 years or more | 2 | 7% | 6% |
Every Case Included Other Charges
Every 2020 case charged Article 131b with at least one other article. Article 112a (drug) was the most common other charge, in 12 cases. Article 107 (false official statement) and Article 92 (orders violation) appeared in 10 each, Article 128 (assault) in 8, and Article 134 (general article) in 5.
An adjudged sentence covers every charge in a case. When obstruction was charged with drug use or a false statement, the confinement and discharge figures reflect all of those charges. They do not measure the sentence for obstruction alone.
Sentences Were Longer at General Courts-Martial
Of the 27 cases, 13 were general courts-martial (48%), compared with 41% for all Navy and Marine Corps cases in 2020. The other 14 were special courts-martial.
A general court-martial can impose any lawful sentence, including more than one year of confinement and a dishonorable discharge. A special court-martial is limited to one year of confinement and cannot impose a dishonorable discharge. The median confinement was 1.7 years at the general courts-martial here and 7 months at the special courts-martial.
Most Convicted Enlisted Members Received a Punitive Discharge
Of 25 convicted enlisted members, 19 received a bad-conduct or dishonorable discharge (76%). That was more often than the 62% across all Navy and Marine Corps cases in 2020. Of those 19 discharges, 4 were dishonorable.
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.
Changes From 2019
Cases fell from 29 to 27. Median confinement rose from 8 months to 11 months. The share of convictions with confinement rose from 89% to 96%. Punitive discharges for convicted enlisted members fell from 85% to 76%. The contested share rose from 25% to 33%, and the general court-martial share rose from 45% to 48%.
In small groups, a few cases can change each figure noticeably. These changes show direction, not firm trends.
| 2019 | 2020 | |
|---|---|---|
| Cases | 29 | 27 |
| Contested (of pleas recorded) | 25% | 33% |
| Full acquittals (decided contested) | 1 of 3 | 0 of 4 |
| Convictions with confinement | 89% | 96% |
| Median confinement | 8 months | 11 months |
| Punitive discharge (enlisted) | 85% | 76% |
| General courts-martial | 45% | 48% |
Pleas in the Records That List Them
Only 12 of the 27 records list the plea: 8 guilty pleas and 4 not-guilty or mixed pleas. A contested case is one where the accused pleads not guilty to at least one charge. The contested share was 33%, compared with 30% across the service.
Navy and Marine Corps records before December 2020 often omit the plea. This figure is based on only 12 records and is a rough indicator. The 4 contested cases that reached a verdict all ended with a conviction on at least one charge.
Rank and Installations
By rank, the accused included 18 junior enlisted members, 7 NCOs, and 1 officer. That group was more junior than all Navy and Marine Corps cases in 2020. Junior enlisted members were the largest group of the accused.
Camp Lejeune, North Carolina and Camp Pendleton, California each tried 4 cases. Norfolk, Virginia tried 3, and Parris Island, South Carolina and San Diego, California tried 2 each. Together they account for 56% of the total. Larger installations try more cases of every kind.
What the Records Do Not Show
The records show the charges, pleas, findings, and sentences. They do not show the evidence or the plea terms. Conduct handled outside a court-martial, such as through nonjudicial punishment, is not included.
Dates and sources for the law changes mentioned here: UCMJ change timeline.
How We Counted
Navy and Marine Corps courts-martial with a trial date in 2020 that charged Article 131b (27 cases), compared with all Navy and Marine Corps cases that year and with 2019.
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 131b (Obstruction, Numbered Since 2019): Court-Martial Data and Trends (hub)
- By Year (hub)
- Navy-Marine Corps Article 131b Cases in 2019 (previous / next)
- How Navy-Marine Corps Obstruction Cases Ended in 2021 (previous / next)
- Is Navy-Marine Corps Obstruction Prosecution Rising or Falling? Article 131b, 2017–2025 (the full trend)
- How Navy-Marine Corps Obstruction Cases Ended in 2018
- How Navy-Marine Corps Obstruction Cases Ended in 2022
- How Much Confinement for an Article 131b Conviction in the Navy-Marine Corps?
- Search every case in Military Trial Results (members)
Compare: federal court. Obstruction of Justice and Perjury: Federal vs. Court-Martial Sentences
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.