Orders Violation at Navy-Marine Corps Courts-Martial, 2017: The Year in Numbers

Trends › By Offense › Article 92 › Navy-Marine Corps, 2017

Based on 81 cases · 2017 · Navy and Marine Corps records · data updated October 24, 2026

More Cases Than in 2016

There were 81 cases in 2017, compared with 20 cases in 2016. The records show the change but not the reasons for it.

Of the 81 cases, 72 ended in a conviction on at least one charge, and 63 of those sentences included confinement. The median confinement was 8 months, the same as the 8 months for all Navy and Marine Corps cases in 2017. A quarter of sentences were 1.2 years or longer.

These are adjudged sentences: the punishment announced at trial, before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal. Time actually served can differ.

Usually One Charge Among Several

Article 92 was the only charge in 14 of the 81 cases. Article 112a (drug) was also charged in 26 cases and Article 128 (assault) in 25. Article 107 (false official statement) was charged in 12, Article 81 (conspiracy) in 9, and Article 121 (larceny) in 8.

A court-martial sentence covers all charges together. The confinement and discharge figures on this page describe cases where an orders violation was one of several charges.

Sentence Lengths Were Close to the Service

The sentence bands were close to those across the service. Under 6 months: 28 convictions (39%), compared with 37% across the service. 6 months to 1 year: 16 (22%), compared with 23%. No confinement: 9 (12%), compared with 10%.

19 of 72 convictions (26%) carried more than 1 year, slightly less often than the 31% across the service. Of those, 14 (19%) were between 1 and 5 years and 5 (7%) were 5 years or more.

Sentences by Court Level

Special courts-martial tried 50 of the cases and general courts-martial tried 31, so the general court-martial share was 38%. A special court-martial can impose no more than 1 year of confinement and cannot impose a dishonorable discharge. A general court-martial can impose any lawful sentence.

The median confinement was 1.5 years at general courts-martial and 3 months at special courts-martial. The overall median combines these 2 very different groups.

Discharges for Enlisted Members and Officers

A punitive discharge followed 64% of enlisted convictions, slightly lower than the 68% across the service. There were 34 bad-conduct discharges and 11 dishonorable discharges.

Neither of the 2 convicted officers or warrant officers was dismissed. A member sentenced without a punitive discharge can still face administrative separation later, but it would not appear in these records.

Pleas, and the 2016 Comparison

Only 11 of the 81 records list a plea, because Navy and Marine Corps records before December 2020 often omit it. Of those, 9 were guilty pleas and 2 were contested (a not-guilty or mixed plea). The contested share was 18%.

The contested share was 18% in 2016 as well. Full acquittals in contested cases that reached a verdict were 0 of 3 in 2016 and 1 of 2 in 2017. The median confinement was 4 months in 2016 and 8 months in 2017. Convictions with confinement were 75% in 2016 and 88% in 2017. Enlisted punitive discharges were 47% and 64%. The general court-martial share was 25% and 38%. The 2016 group is small, so these changes show direction more than size.

Who Was Charged

Among the accused with rank recorded, 50 were junior enlisted members (E-1 to E-4), 20 were NCOs (E-5 to E-9), and 3 were officers or warrant officers. This is similar to all Navy and Marine Corps cases in 2017, where 66% of the accused were junior enlisted members.

Orders violations were charged at every rank level, and the officer count here is small. Officers and warrant officers face dismissal rather than a discharge, so their outcomes are reported separately from the enlisted discharge figures above.

Most Cases Were at Marine Corps Bases

Camp Pendleton, California tried 19 of these cases, the most of any installation. Camp Lejeune, North Carolina tried 10, Marine Corps Base Hawaii, Kaneohe Bay 8, and Twentynine Palms, California and Okinawa, Japan 7 each. Together these locations account for 63% of the 81 cases. Larger installations try more cases of every kind, so a high count does not by itself mark a base as unusual.

The Rules at the Time, and the Gaps

Every trial here took place before the Military Justice Act of 2016 took effect on January 1, 2019. Fixed panel sizes, judge-alone special courts-martial limited to 6 months of confinement without a punitive discharge, and written plea agreements came later.

The records show charges, pleas, findings, and sentences. They do not include the evidence, plea terms, offense dates, or conduct handled through nonjudicial punishment or administrative separation.

For what the offense covers and how it is defended, see Article 92 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.