The Navy-Marine Corps Court-Martial Year, 2020
The Navy and Marine Corps records list 401 courts-martial for 2020. Of 53 contested cases that reached a verdict, 18 ended in a full acquittal (34%), compared with 58% in the other services in 2020. Article 128 (assault) was charged in 36% of cases, compared with 18% in the other services.
Understanding Trends in Military Practice · 6 min read
Short answer: The Navy and Marine Corps records list 401 courts-martial for 2020. Of 53 contested cases that reached a verdict, 18 ended in a full acquittal (34%), compared with 58% in the other services in 2020. Article 128 (assault) was charged in 36% of cases, compared with 18% in the other services.
Fewer Full Acquittals
A full acquittal means the accused was found not guilty of every charge. In 2020, 18 of 53 contested Navy and Marine Corps cases that reached a verdict ended in a full acquittal (34%). In 2019, the figure was 35 of 64. In the other services in 2020, it was 58%. Another 5 cases ended in a partial acquittal: not guilty of at least one charge and guilty of another.
These figures are based on a partial count. Navy and Marine Corps records before December 2020 often omit the plea, and only 175 of the 401 records list one. The contested cases counted here are only those with a plea on file.
Fewer Contested Cases
Of the 175 cases with a recorded plea, 122 accused pleaded guilty and 53 contested at least one charge. The contested share was 30%. In the other services in 2020, 46% of cases were contested. A contested case includes any not-guilty or mixed plea.
Cases charging Article 112a ended in a guilty plea 90% of the time (46 of 51), the highest among the most common charges. Cases charging Article 120 ended in a guilty plea 29% of the time (8 of 28). The records do not explain any accused's choice.
Assault and Attempt Charges Were More Common
Shares here use the 377 cases whose records list charges, and a case can be counted under several articles. Article 128 (assault) was charged in 36% of cases, compared with 18% in the other services in 2020. Article 80 (attempt) was charged in 11%, compared with 1%.
Article 112a (drug) was charged in 30% of cases, compared with 49% in the other services. Article 134 (general article) was charged in 13%, compared with 22%. Article 120 (sexual assault) was charged in 16% of Navy and Marine Corps cases, compared with 7%.
| UCMJ Article | Cases | Share here | Share, the other services in 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Art. 128 Assault | 135 | 36% | 18% |
| Art. 112a Wrongful use, possession of controlled substances | 112 | 30% | 49% |
| Art. 92 Failure to obey order or regulation | 66 | 18% | 15% |
| Art. 120 Rape and sexual assault | 59 | 16% | 7% |
| Art. 134 General article | 48 | 13% | 22% |
| Art. 107 False official statements | 44 | 12% | 7% |
| Art. 80 Attempts | 40 | 11% | 1% |
| Art. 120b Rape and sexual assault of a child | 33 | 9% | 7% |
Results by Article
Article 112a cases most often ended in a conviction on that article (110 of 112, or 98%). Article 120 cases least often did (45 of 59, or 76%). A case can include a conviction on one article and an acquittal on another, so the rows overlap.
The median confinement was 2 years for Article 120 convictions, 9 months for Article 128, 6 months for Article 92, and 5 months for Article 112a.
| Article | Cases charging it | Convicted of it (share) | Median confinement when convicted of it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Art. 128 Assault | 135 | 117 (87%) | 9 months |
| Art. 112a Wrongful use, possession of controlled substances | 112 | 110 (98%) | 5 months |
| Art. 92 Failure to obey order or regulation | 66 | 63 (95%) | 6 months |
| Art. 120 Rape and sexual assault | 59 | 45 (76%) | 2 years |
Confinement Adjudged
Of 366 convictions, 310 included confinement. The median confinement was 6 months, longer than the 4 months in the other services in 2020. These are adjudged sentences, before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal, and each covers all charges in a case.
Terms longer than 1 year were more common than in the other services: 94 of 366 convictions (26%), compared with 20%. 56 convictions (15%) had no confinement, compared with 7% in the other services in 2020. Terms under 6 months were 36% of convictions here, compared with 59%.
| Adjudged confinement | Convictions | Share here | Share, the other services in 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|
| No confinement | 56 | 15% | 7% |
| Under 6 months | 130 | 36% | 59% |
| 6 months to 1 year | 86 | 23% | 13% |
| More than 1 year, under 5 years | 73 | 20% | 15% |
| 5 years or more | 21 | 6% | 5% |
Sentences by Court Level
General courts-martial, which can impose long confinement and a dishonorable discharge, were 41% of the year's cases (164 of 401). Special courts-martial, which can impose no more than 1 year of confinement, were the rest.
At the 164 general courts-martial, the median confinement was 1.5 years and 40% of cases were contested. At the 237 special courts-martial, the median was 4 months and 23% of cases were contested.
Discharges After Conviction
A punitive discharge followed 62% of enlisted convictions (154 bad-conduct, 63 dishonorable), compared with 51% in the other services in 2020. Of 10 convicted officers or warrant officers, 3 were dismissed. A service member sentenced without a punitive discharge can still face administrative separation.
Rank and Installations
Junior enlisted members (E-1 to E-4) were 64% of the accused, NCOs were 33%, and officers were 3%. In the other services in 2020, junior enlisted members were 62%.
Camp Pendleton, California (57), Camp Lejeune, North Carolina (51), Bremerton, Washington (38), Norfolk, Virginia (29), and San Diego, California (27) tried the most cases. Together they account for 50% of the 401. Larger installations try more cases of every kind.
2020 Compared With 2019
There were 401 cases in 2020, compared with 455 in 2019. The contested share was 30%, compared with 28%. The median confinement was 6 months in both years. The enlisted punitive discharge share was 62%, compared with 60%. A few cases can change figures for small groups, so these changes show direction only.
The records list trial dates, not offense dates. They do not describe the evidence or the plea terms, and they do not cover nonjudicial punishment or administrative separations.
| 2019 | 2020 | |
|---|---|---|
| Cases | 455 | 401 |
| Contested (of pleas recorded) | 28% | 30% |
| Full acquittals (decided contested) | 35 of 64 | 18 of 53 |
| Convictions with confinement | 82% | 85% |
| Median confinement | 6 months | 6 months |
| Punitive discharge (enlisted) | 60% | 62% |
| General courts-martial | 43% | 41% |
Dates and sources for the law changes mentioned here: UCMJ change timeline.
How We Counted
Every Navy and Marine Corps court-martial in the data with a trial date in 2020 (401 cases), compared with the other services in 2020 and with 2019.
Source: public court-martial records (Article 140a, UCMJ) in Military Trial Results, data updated October 24, 2026. Definitions, sources, and known gaps: how this data was built. Errors: content@bodiesburied.com.
Related Analysis
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- Navy-Marine Corps Courts-Martial in 2019: Year in Review (previous / next)
- How 2021 Went at Navy-Marine Corps Courts-Martial (previous / next)
- Navy-Marine Corps Courts-Martial in 2022: Year in Review
- Navy-Marine Corps Courts-Martial in 2023: Year in Review
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- Search every case in Military Trial Results (members)
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.