What Sentence Follows a Navy-Marine Corps General Article Conviction?

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Based on 615 cases · 2017–2025 · Navy and Marine Corps records · data updated October 24, 2026

Median Confinement Was 1.5 Years

Article 134 is the general article. This post covers only cases that ended in a conviction on at least one charge and included Article 134. It compares them with every Navy and Marine Corps conviction in the same years.

Of 615 convictions, 535 included confinement. The median confinement was 1.5 years, longer than the 6 months for all convictions. A quarter of the sentences were 3 years or longer. These are adjudged sentences, before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal. Each sentence covers every charge in the case.

Most Sentences Were Longer Than 1 Year

Confinement longer than one year was imposed in 317 of 615 convictions (52%), compared with 25% for all Navy and Marine Corps convictions. Sentences between 1 and 5 years made up 38% of these convictions, compared with 18%. Sentences of 5 years or more made up 14%, compared with 7%.

Short sentences were less common. Sentences under 6 months made up 19% of convictions here, compared with 35% service-wide. No confinement was imposed in 13%, compared with 18%.

Most Cases Were General Courts-Martial

Of the 615 cases, 436 were general courts-martial (71%), compared with 41% for all Navy and Marine Corps convictions. A general court-martial can impose any lawful sentence, including long 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 2 years at general courts-martial and 3 months at special courts-martial. The contested shares were about the same: 26% at general courts-martial and 24% at special courts-martial.

More Dishonorable Than Bad-Conduct Discharges

Of 578 convicted enlisted members, 433 received a punitive discharge: 233 dishonorable discharges and 200 bad-conduct discharges. That is 75%, higher than the 62% across all Navy and Marine Corps convictions. Of 28 convicted officers or warrant officers, 17 were dismissed.

A sentence without a punitive discharge does not rule out a later administrative separation. These records do not track administrative separations.

Other Charges in These Cases

Article 134 was the only charge in 234 of the 615 cases. In the other cases, the most common other charges were Article 128 (assault) in 99 cases, Article 92 (orders violation) in 85, Article 80 (attempt) in 81, Article 120b (child sexual abuse) in 80, and Article 120 (sexual assault) in 58.

Each sentence covers the whole case, so the long sentences here reflect all the guilty findings together. The records do not say which specific Article 134 offense was charged in each case. This post cannot separate one kind of Article 134 offense from another.

Pleas and Partial Acquittals

Of the 480 records that list the plea, 358 were guilty pleas and 122 were contested. A contested case is one where the accused pleaded not guilty to at least one charge. The contested share was 25%, about the same as the 24% for all convictions.

Every case here ended with at least one conviction, so there are no full acquittals. Of the contested cases, 30 ended in a partial acquittal: not guilty of at least one charge but guilty of another. Navy and Marine Corps records before December 2020 often omit the plea, so the plea counts use only the records that list one.

Rank, Installations, and Case Counts

The accused were 362 junior enlisted members (E-1 to E-4), 216 NCOs (E-5 to E-9), and 28 officers or warrant officers. That group was more senior than all Navy and Marine Corps convictions, where 65% were junior enlisted.

Camp Lejeune, North Carolina had the most cases (96). Camp Pendleton, California had 69, San Diego, California 53, Norfolk, Virginia 50, and Okinawa, Japan 47. Together these five account for 51% of the total. Larger installations try more cases of every kind.

The yearly count was 63 in 2017, 68 in 2018, 48 in 2019, 48 in 2020, 106 in 2021, 70 in 2022, 67 in 2023, 79 in 2024, and 66 in 2025.

Law Changes and the Limits of the Records

The Military Justice Act of 2016 took effect on January 1, 2019. Since December 28, 2023, special trial counsel decide whether to prosecute covered offenses. New sentencing parameters apply to offenses after December 27, 2023. These rules depend on offense dates, which the records do not include.

The records also do not include the evidence, the plea terms, or conduct handled outside a court-martial.

For what the offense covers and how it is defended, see Article 134 on the law firm's website. Dates and sources for the law changes: UCMJ change timeline.

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.