> ## 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.

# What Happens to Navy-Marine Corps NCOs (E-5 to E-9) Facing Obstruction Charges?
- URL: https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/navy-marine-corps-article-131b-ncos/
- Published: 2026-10-28T08:18:57.000Z
- Updated: 2026-11-03T01:46:09.000Z
- Description: Navy and Marine Corps records list 59 courts-martial from 2017–2025 that charged NCOs (E-5 to E-9) with obstruction under Article 131b (numbered since 2019). Among cases with a recorded plea, 51% were contested, compared with 31% for all Navy and Marine Corps Article 131b cases.
- Author: Jocelyn C. Stewart
- Tags: Understanding Trends, Article 131b, Navy-Marine Corps

[Trends](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/) › [By Offense](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/by-offense/) › [Article 131b](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/article-131b-courts-martial/) › NCOs (E-5 to E-9)

**Short answer:** Navy and Marine Corps records list 59 courts-martial from 2017–2025 that charged NCOs (E-5 to E-9) with obstruction under Article 131b (numbered since 2019). Among cases with a recorded plea, 51% were contested, compared with 31% for all Navy and Marine Corps Article 131b cases. The median confinement was 1.2 years, longer than the 10 months in the broader group.

Based on 59 cases · 2017–2025 · Navy and Marine Corps records · data updated October 24, 2026

## NCOs Contested More Often

Of the 59 records, 41 list a plea. Of those, 21 were contested and 20 were guilty pleas. A contested case is one with a not-guilty plea to at least one charge, either a full not-guilty plea or a mixed plea.

The contested share was 51%, higher than the 31% for all Navy and Marine Corps obstruction cases. Navy and Marine Corps records before December 2020 often omit the plea. The share therefore reflects only the cases where the plea was recorded.

## Verdicts in Contested Cases

Of the 21 contested cases that reached a verdict, 14% ended in a full acquittal. That is about the same as the 12% for all Navy and Marine Corps Article 131b cases. Partial acquittals were more common. In 6 cases, the accused was found not guilty of at least one charge or specification but guilty of another.

## More Long Sentences Than Service-Wide

There were 56 convictions, and 73% of them included confinement. The median confinement was 1.2 years, compared with a 10-month median across all Navy and Marine Corps Article 131b cases. A quarter of the confinement sentences were 2.8 years or longer.

Sentences here were more often at the low and high ends. No confinement was more common, at 27% of convictions compared with 15%. Sentences under 6 months were less common: 14% compared with 25%. Sentences from 6 months to 1 year were also less common: 16% compared with 26%.

Confinement longer than one year was imposed in 24 of 56 convictions (43%), compared with 35% in the comparison group. Sentences of 5 years or more made up 12% here and 7% overall. These are adjudged sentences that cover every charge, before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal.

| Adjudged confinement            | Convictions | Share here | Share, all Navy and Marine Corps Article 131b cases |
| ------------------------------- | ----------- | ---------- | --------------------------------------------------- |
| No confinement                  | 15          | 27%        | 15%                                                 |
| Under 6 months                  | 8           | 14%        | 25%                                                 |
| 6 months to 1 year              | 9           | 16%        | 26%                                                 |
| More than 1 year, under 5 years | 17          | 30%        | 27%                                                 |
| 5 years or more                 | 7           | 12%        | 7%                                                  |

## Punitive Discharges Were Less Common

Of convictions in this group, 61% included a punitive discharge: 23 bad-conduct discharges and 11 dishonorable discharges. Across all Navy and Marine Corps Article 131b cases, the share was 76%.

A sentence without a punitive discharge does not rule out a later administrative separation. Administrative separations do not appear in these records.

## Most Cases Were General Courts-Martial

General courts-martial tried 35 of the 59 cases (59%). Special courts-martial tried the other 24\. A general court-martial can impose long confinement and a dishonorable discharge. A special court-martial is limited to one year of confinement.

The median confinement was 1.7 years at general courts-martial and 5 months at special courts-martial. The contested share was 57% at general courts-martial and 44% at special courts-martial.

Junior enlisted members made up 64% of the accused across all Navy and Marine Corps Article 131b cases. Every accused in this group was an NCO, so it is the more senior part of the cases.

## Other Charges in These Cases

Of the 59 cases, 54 also charged other articles. Article 92 (orders violation) was the most common, in 24 cases. Article 134 (general article) appeared in 19, Article 81 (conspiracy) in 13, Article 107 (false official statement) in 12, and Article 128 (assault) in 11.

A court-martial sentence covers every charge with a guilty finding. A long sentence in one of these cases may reflect the orders violation, conspiracy, or assault charges as well as the obstruction charge. The records do not divide the sentence by charge.

## Case Counts and Installations

The yearly count was 3 in 2017, 12 in both 2018 and 2019, and 7 in 2020\. It was 3 in 2021, 6 in 2022, 3 in 2023, 4 in 2024, and 9 in 2025\. The last trial was in December 2025.

Norfolk, Virginia tried the most cases, with 11\. San Diego, California and Camp Lejeune, North Carolina had 8 each, Camp Pendleton, California had 7, and Quantico, Virginia had 3\. These five installations account for 63% of the 59 cases. Larger installations try more cases of every kind.

## Law Changes and the Limits of the Records

The Military Justice Act of 2016 took effect on January 1, 2019\. New sentencing parameters apply when every guilty finding is for an offense after December 27, 2023\. The records give trial dates but not offense dates, so cases tried from 2024 on include cases under both the old and new rules.

The records do not include the evidence, the plea terms, or any obstruction allegation handled by nonjudicial punishment or administrative separation. With 59 cases in total, a few outcomes can change any percentage here.

Dates and sources for the law changes mentioned here: [UCMJ change timeline](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/ucmj-change-timeline/).

### How We Counted

Navy and Marine Corps courts-martial tried 2017–2025 that charged NCOs (E-5 to E-9) under Article 131b (59 cases), compared with every Navy and Marine Corps Article 131b case.

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 131b (Obstruction, Numbered Since 2019): Court-Martial Data and Trends](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/article-131b-courts-martial/) (hub)
- [Navy-Marine Corps Courts-Martial: Data and Trends](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/navy-marine-corps-courts-martial/) (hub)
- [Army Obstruction Cases Against Junior Enlisted (E-1 to E-4): Outcomes and Sentences](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/army-article-131b-junior-enlisted/)
- [Army Obstruction Cases Against NCOs (E-5 to E-9): Outcomes and Sentences](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/army-article-131b-ncos/)
- [What Happens to Air Force Junior Enlisted (E-1 to E-4) Facing Obstruction Charges?](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/air-force-article-131b-junior-enlisted/)
- [How Has Article 131b Changed in Army Courts-Martial Since 2021?](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/army-article-131b-trend-2021-2025/)
- [Air Force Article 131b Cases by the Numbers, 2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/air-force-article-131b-trend-2016-2025/)
- [Search every case in Military Trial Results](https://www.bodiesburied.com/military-trial-results/) (members)

**Compare: federal court.** [Obstruction of Justice and Perjury: Federal vs. Court-Martial Sentences](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-obstruction-perjury-vs-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](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.