Navy-Marine Corps Cases Charging Both Article 86 and Article 90

Trends › By Offense › Article 86 › Navy-Marine Corps, with Article 90

Based on 14 cases · 2021–2026 · Navy and Marine Corps records · data updated October 24, 2026

Contested More Often

13 of the 14 records list the plea. 7 accused pleaded guilty, and 6 contested at least one charge. The contested share was 46%. Across all Navy and Marine Corps Article 86 cases in 2021–2026, it was 31%.

Contested here means a not-guilty plea or a mixed plea, in which the accused pleads not guilty to at least one charge.

6 Trials in 2026

The cases were tried from February 2021 through September 2026. There were 2 in 2021, 3 in 2022, 0 in 2023, 1 in 2024, 2 in 2025, and 6 in 2026.

The 2026 count covers only part of the year and is still the largest yearly count in this group. The records give trial dates, not offense dates.

Confinement

13 cases ended in a conviction on at least one charge. 8 of those 13 sentences included confinement (62%).

The median confinement was 5 months, longer than the 3 months in Navy and Marine Corps Article 86 cases overall. A quarter of the terms were 1 year or longer. These are adjudged sentences, set at trial before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal, and they cover every charge in the case.

Bad-Conduct Discharges Only

7 of 11 convicted enlisted members received a punitive discharge. All 7 were bad-conduct discharges, and there were 0 dishonorable discharges. In all Navy and Marine Corps Article 86 cases in 2021–2026, the share was 59%.

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

Mostly Special Courts-Martial

The records show 2 general courts-martial and 11 special courts-martial, with 1 case not listed. The general share was 15%, compared with 17% in all Navy and Marine Corps Article 86 cases in 2021–2026.

A special court-martial caps confinement at one year and can impose a bad-conduct discharge but not a dishonorable discharge.

Who Was Charged

Among the accused with rank recorded, 8 were junior enlisted members (E-1 to E-4), 3 were NCOs (E-5 to E-9), and 1 was an officer or warrant officer. In Navy and Marine Corps Article 86 cases overall, 80% were junior enlisted, so this group is more senior.

Other Charges

No case charged Article 86 alone, compared with 10 of 94 in Navy and Marine Corps Article 86 cases overall. Besides Article 90, the most common charges were Article 112a (drug) in 4 cases, Article 91 (insubordination) in 4, Article 134 (general article) in 3, and Article 87a (resisting apprehension) in 3.

Rule Changes and Limits

Since December 28, 2023, the decision whether to prosecute covered offenses such as sexual assault, domestic violence, and murder has belonged to special trial counsel, not commanders. Separately, when each guilty finding is for an offense after December 27, 2023, the military judge sets the sentence within new sentencing parameters. Without offense dates, the trials from 2024 on cannot be sorted into old-rule and new-rule cases.

The records do not describe the evidence or the plea terms, and they leave out nonjudicial punishment and administrative separations.

For what the offense covers and how it is defended, see Article 86 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.