How Navy-Marine Corps Orders Violation Cases Ended in 2024

Trends › By Offense › Article 92 › Navy-Marine Corps, 2024

Based on 62 cases · 2024 · Navy and Marine Corps records · data updated October 24, 2026

Many Convictions Had No Confinement

Of 53 convictions on at least one charge, 29 included confinement and 24 (45%) did not. Across all Navy and Marine Corps cases in 2024, only 25% of convictions had no confinement.

The median confinement was 3 months, and a quarter of terms were 4 months or longer. These are adjudged sentences, set at trial before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal. Each covers all the charges in the case.

Few Long Terms

Under 6 months was the other large band, with 23 convictions (43%), compared with 38% across the service. Only 3 convictions (6%) were between 6 months and 1 year, compared with 15%.

Only 3 of 53 convictions (6%) carried more than 1 year, compared with 22% across the service. Of those, 1 (2%) was between 1 and 5 years and 2 (4%) were 5 years or more.

Most Cases Were Special Courts-Martial

Of the 62 cases, 52 were special courts-martial and only 10 were general courts-martial. The general court-martial share was 16%, lower than the 38% across the service.

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 2 months at special courts-martial.

More Contested Cases, More Full Acquittals

The plea is listed in 59 of the 62 records: 33 guilty pleas and 26 contested cases (a not-guilty or mixed plea). The contested share was 44%, higher than the 34% across the service.

All 26 contested cases reached a verdict, and 31% ended in a full acquittal, higher than the 27% across the service. Another 7 ended in a partial acquittal, where the accused was found not guilty of at least one charge or specification and guilty of another.

There were 8 full acquittals out of 26 contested cases that reached a verdict, compared with 2 of 19 the year before. In groups this small, a few verdicts can change the rate by a large amount. The records cannot show why more of these cases ended in a full acquittal.

Discharges and Dismissals

A punitive discharge followed 46% of enlisted convictions: 19 bad-conduct discharges and 3 dishonorable discharges. That is lower than the 58% across the Navy and Marine Corps. Of the 2 convicted officers or warrant officers, 1 was dismissed.

A sentence without a punitive discharge can still be followed by an administrative separation, which does not appear in these records.

Absence and Maltreatment Among the Other Charges

Article 92 was the only charge in 16 of the 62 cases. Article 112a (drug) was the most common other charge, in 10 cases. Article 86 (AWOL) was charged in 9, Article 128 (assault) in 6, Article 134 (general article) in 5, and Article 93 (maltreatment) in 4. Sentences cover these charges along with the orders violation.

The records give one sentence per case. The lighter sentences described above cannot be attributed to the orders violation alone.

2024 Compared With 2023

There were 62 cases in 2024, compared with 56 in 2023. The contested share was 44%, compared with 35%. Full acquittals in contested cases that reached a verdict were 2 of 19 in 2023 and 8 of 26 in 2024.

Sentences were lighter on every measure. The median confinement was 3 months, compared with 5 months. Convictions with confinement were 55%, compared with 64%. Enlisted punitive discharges were 46%, compared with 52%. The general court-martial share was 16%, compared with 25%. A few cases can change figures for small groups, so these changes show direction, not exact size.

Rank and Location

Junior enlisted members (E-1 to E-4) were 50% of the accused, NCOs were 47%, and officers were 3%. Across the service, junior enlisted members were 58%, so the accused here were somewhat more senior.

Camp Lejeune, North Carolina tried 11 of the cases and San Diego, California tried 10. Camp Pendleton, California tried 6, Marine Corps Base Hawaii, Kaneohe Bay 5, and Washington, D.C. 4. Together these locations account for 58% of the 62. Larger installations try more cases of every kind, so these counts do not single out a base.

Old and New Rules in the Same Year

Since December 28, 2023, special trial counsel rather than commanders decide whether to prosecute covered offenses such as sexual assault, domestic violence, and murder. When every guilty finding is for an offense after December 27, 2023, the military judge sets the sentence within new sentencing parameters.

Both rules depend on the offense date, which the records do not include. The 2024 trials therefore include cases under both old and new rules. The records also omit the evidence, plea terms, and anything resolved 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.