> ## 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. # Navy-Marine Corps Article 81 Cases in 2021 - URL: https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/navy-marine-corps-article-81-2021/ - Published: 2026-10-28T08:17:54.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-30T08:12:03.000Z - Description: Navy and Marine Corps courts-martial in 2021 included 46 cases charging Article 81 (conspiracy). - Author: Jocelyn C. Stewart - Tags: Understanding Trends, Article 81, Navy-Marine Corps [Trends](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/) › [By Offense](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/by-offense/) › [Article 81](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/article-81-courts-martial/) › Navy-Marine Corps, 2021 **Short answer:** Navy and Marine Corps courts-martial in 2021 included 46 cases charging Article 81 (conspiracy). Only 1 of 13 contested cases that reached a verdict ended in a full acquittal (8%), compared with 26% across the service, and 81% of convicted enlisted members received a punitive discharge, compared with 64% for all Navy and Marine Corps cases that year. Based on 46 cases · 2021 · Navy and Marine Corps records · data updated October 24, 2026 ## Few Contested Cases Ended in a Full Acquittal A case is contested when the accused pleads not guilty to at least one charge. Of 13 contested conspiracy cases that reached a verdict, 1 ended in a full acquittal (8%). For all Navy and Marine Corps cases in 2021, the full-acquittal rate was 26%. Another 2 contested cases ended in a partial acquittal, meaning not guilty of at least one charge or specification but guilty of another. ## How the Accused Pleaded The plea is recorded in 45 of the 46 cases. Of those, 32 accused pleaded guilty and 13 contested. The contested share was 29%, slightly lower than the 32% for all Navy and Marine Corps cases in 2021. Navy and Marine Corps records before December 2020 often omit the plea, but nearly every record here lists one. Contested shares for earlier years of this offense are based on fewer recorded pleas than this year's figure. ## Shorter Terms Than the Service Median There were 45 convictions, and confinement was part of 87% of them. The median confinement was 6 months, slightly lower than the 7 months for all Navy and Marine Corps cases in 2021. These figures are adjudged sentences, announced at trial before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal. Each one covers all the charges in a case. ## Sentence Lengths by Band Most sentences were 1 year or less. The under 6 months band and the 6 months to 1 year band each had 15 convictions (33%). The under 6 months share was the same as the 33% service share. The 6 months to 1 year share was higher than the 26% service figure. Only 9 of 45 convictions (20%) carried more than one year, less often than the 26% across the service. Of those, 8 (18%) were between 1 and 5 years, and 1 (2%) was 5 years or more. Another 6 convictions (13%) had no confinement, about the same as the 15% service share. | Adjudged confinement | Convictions | Share here | Share, all Navy and Marine Corps cases in 2021 | | ------------------------------- | ----------- | ---------- | ---------------------------------------------- | | No confinement | 6 | 13% | 15% | | Under 6 months | 15 | 33% | 33% | | 6 months to 1 year | 15 | 33% | 26% | | More than 1 year, under 5 years | 8 | 18% | 21% | | 5 years or more | 1 | 2% | 5% | ## Mostly Special Courts-Martial Special courts-martial heard 29 of the cases and general courts-martial heard 17\. The general share was 37%. A special court-martial caps confinement at one year and cannot impose a dishonorable discharge; a general court-martial can impose long confinement and a dishonorable discharge. The median confinement was 1.2 years at the general level and 5 months at the special level. Cases were contested somewhat more often at general courts-martial, 35%, than at special courts-martial, 25%. ## Bad-Conduct Discharges Most Common Of 43 convicted enlisted members, 35 received a punitive discharge: 29 bad-conduct and 6 dishonorable. Across the Navy and Marine Corps in 2021, the share was 64%. The 1 convicted officer or warrant officer was dismissed. A sentence without a punitive discharge can still be followed by an administrative separation, which the court-martial records do not show. ## Conspiracy Never Charged Alone Every one of the 46 cases charged at least one other article with conspiracy. Article 112a (drug) appeared in 28 of them. Article 92 (orders violation) appeared in 11, Article 131b (obstruction) in 10, Article 107 (false official statement) in 9, and Article 134 (general article) in 7\. Each sentence covers all of these charges together. ## Who Was Charged, and Where Among the accused with rank recorded, 39 were junior enlisted (E-1 to E-4), 5 were NCOs (E-5 to E-9), and 1 was an officer or warrant officer. Junior enlisted members made up 69% of all Navy and Marine Corps accused in 2021, so this group was more junior. Camp Pendleton, California tried 10 of these cases, Norfolk, Virginia 9, Camp Lejeune, North Carolina 7, Great Lakes, Illinois 4, and Twentynine Palms, California 3\. Those five account for 72% of the cases. Larger installations try more cases of every kind, so a high count alone does not show a problem at any one base. ## Change From 2020 The number of cases went from 26 to 46, and the contested share went from 14% to 29%. Full acquittals in contested cases that reached a verdict went from 0 of 2 to 1 of 13\. Convictions with confinement went from 100% to 87%. Median confinement went from 7 months to 6 months, and enlisted punitive discharges went from 73% to 81%. The general court-martial share was about the same, 38% and then 37%. In groups of this size, a few cases can change each figure, so the changes show direction only. | | 2020 | 2021 | | ----------------------------------- | -------- | -------- | | Cases | 26 | 46 | | Contested (of pleas recorded) | 14% | 29% | | Full acquittals (decided contested) | 0 of 2 | 1 of 13 | | Convictions with confinement | 100% | 87% | | Median confinement | 7 months | 6 months | | Punitive discharge (enlisted) | 73% | 81% | | General courts-martial | 38% | 37% | ## What the Records Do Not Show The records show charges, pleas, findings, and sentences. They do not show the evidence, the terms of any plea agreement, offense dates, or conduct handled through nonjudicial punishment or administrative separation. Only trial dates appear, so some of these 2021 trials may involve conduct from earlier years. The confinement figures are adjudged sentences, so they do not show time actually served after any plea cap or clemency. 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 with a trial date in 2021 that charged Article 81 (46 cases), compared with all Navy and Marine Corps cases that year and with 2020. 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 81 (Conspiracy): Court-Martial Data and Trends](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/article-81-courts-martial/) (hub) - [By Year](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/by-year/) (hub) - [How Navy-Marine Corps Conspiracy Cases Ended in 2020](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/navy-marine-corps-article-81-2020/) (previous / next) - [How Navy-Marine Corps Conspiracy Cases Ended in 2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/navy-marine-corps-article-81-2025/) (previous / next) - [Fewer or More? Conspiracy Charges at Navy-Marine Corps Courts-Martial, 2017–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/navy-marine-corps-article-81-trend-2017-2025/) (the full trend) - [Conspiracy at Navy-Marine Corps Courts-Martial, 2017: The Year in Numbers](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/navy-marine-corps-article-81-2017/) - [How Navy-Marine Corps Conspiracy Cases Ended in 2018](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/navy-marine-corps-article-81-2018/) - [How Navy-Marine Corps Conspiracy Cases Ended in 2019](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/navy-marine-corps-article-81-2019/) - [How Much Confinement for an Article 81 Conviction in the Navy-Marine Corps?](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/navy-marine-corps-article-81-sent-2017-2025/) - [Search every case in Military Trial Results](https://www.bodiesburied.com/military-trial-results/) (members) ← Previous: [How Navy-Marine Corps Conspiracy Cases Ended in 2020](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/navy-marine-corps-article-81-2020/)Next: [How Navy-Marine Corps Conspiracy Cases Ended in 2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/navy-marine-corps-article-81-2025/) → **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.