July 2025 at Navy-Marine Corps Courts-Martial: 35 Cases
In July 2025, 9 of the 18 contested Navy and Marine Corps courts-martial that reached a verdict ended in a full acquittal (50%), compared with 27% for all of 2025. The records list 35 cases for the month. Of those with a plea recorded, 56% were contested, compared with 37% for the year.
Understanding Trends in Military Practice · 6 min read
Short answer: In July 2025, 9 of the 18 contested Navy and Marine Corps courts-martial that reached a verdict ended in a full acquittal (50%), compared with 27% for all of 2025. The records list 35 cases for the month. Of those with a plea recorded, 56% were contested, compared with 37% for the year.
Full Acquittals in 9 of 18 Contested Cases
Of 18 contested cases that reached a verdict, 9 ended in a full acquittal (50%), meaning not guilty of every charge. Another 2 (11%) were partial acquittals: not guilty of at least one charge or specification, but guilty of another.
The full acquittal rate was higher than the 27% in the Navy and Marine Corps across 2025. A single month with 18 contested verdicts is a small group, and a few outcomes would change the rate by a large amount.
More Contested Cases Than the Year
A case is contested when the accused pleads not guilty to at least one charge. Pleas are recorded in 32 of the 35 cases: 14 accused pleaded guilty, and 18 cases were contested.
The contested share was 56%, higher than the 37% for the year. The share was higher at both court levels: 60% of general courts-martial and 55% of special courts-martial were contested.
More Drug and Sexual Assault Charges
All 35 records list charges, and each article counts once per case. Article 134 (general article) was the most common, in 9 cases (26%), compared with 21% for the year. Article 92 (failure to obey order or regulation) was in 7 cases (20%), compared with its 24% annual share.
These articles had the largest differences from the year. Article 112a (wrongful use, possession of controlled substances) appeared in 7 cases (20%), compared with 10%, and Article 120 (rape and sexual assault) in 5 (14%), compared with 5%.
Article 128 (assault) appeared in 6 cases (17%), Article 128b (domestic violence) in 4 (11%), Article 107 (false official statements) in 3 (9%), and Article 81 (conspiracy) in 2 (6%), all about the same as their yearly shares.
| UCMJ Article | Cases | Share here | Share, the Navy and Marine Corps for all of 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Art. 134 General article | 9 | 26% | 21% |
| Art. 92 Failure to obey order or regulation | 7 | 20% | 24% |
| Art. 112a Wrongful use, possession of controlled substances | 7 | 20% | 10% |
| Art. 128 Assault | 6 | 17% | 16% |
| Art. 120 Rape and sexual assault | 5 | 14% | 5% |
| Art. 128b Domestic violence | 4 | 11% | 11% |
| Art. 107 False official statements | 3 | 9% | 7% |
| Art. 81 Conspiracy | 2 | 6% | 6% |
Sentences After the 23 Convictions
There were 23 convictions on at least one charge. Of those sentences, 16 included confinement (70%). The median confinement was 4 months, the same as the median for the year.
These are adjudged sentences: the terms announced at trial, before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal, and covering every charge in the case.
Few Terms Over a Year
Only 2 of the 23 convictions (9%) included more than one year of confinement, less often than the 16% for 2025. Of those, 1 was between 1 and 5 years, and 1 was 5 years or more.
Most sentences were short or included no confinement. Terms under 6 months made up 43% of convictions, compared with 37% for the year, and sentences with no confinement made up 30%, compared with 31%.
Only a general court-martial can adjudge more than one year. A special court-martial is capped at one year and cannot impose a dishonorable discharge. At the 12 general courts-martial, the median confinement was 1.4 years. At the 23 special courts-martial, the median was 4 months.
| Adjudged confinement | Convictions | Share here | Share, the Navy and Marine Corps for all of 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| No confinement | 7 | 30% | 31% |
| Under 6 months | 10 | 43% | 37% |
| 6 months to 1 year | 4 | 17% | 16% |
| More than 1 year, under 5 years | 1 | 4% | 11% |
| 5 years or more | 1 | 4% | 5% |
Punitive Discharges About the Same as the Year
Of convicted enlisted members, 43% received a bad-conduct or dishonorable discharge (6 bad-conduct, 3 dishonorable), about the same as 46% for all of 2025. A sentence without a punitive discharge does not rule out an administrative separation later.
July 2024 to July 2025
The number of cases rose from 30 to 35. The contested share rose from 33% to 56%. Full acquittals in contested cases that reached a verdict went from 2 of 9 to 9 of 18.
Sentence measures changed less. Convictions with confinement went from 62% to 70%. The median confinement was 4 months in both months. Punitive discharges for convicted enlisted members went from 42% to 43%. The general court-martial share rose from 27% to 34%. In monthly counts this small, a few cases can change a percentage, so these changes show direction, not precise size.
| July 2024 | July 2025 | |
|---|---|---|
| Cases | 30 | 35 |
| Contested (of pleas recorded) | 33% | 56% |
| Full acquittals (decided contested) | 2 of 9 | 9 of 18 |
| Convictions with confinement | 62% | 70% |
| Median confinement | 4 months | 4 months |
| Punitive discharge (enlisted) | 42% | 43% |
| General courts-martial | 27% | 34% |
Rank, Court Level, and Location
Junior enlisted members (E-1 to E-4) were 68% of the accused, and NCOs were 32%. No officers were tried. For the year, junior enlisted made up 62%. General courts-martial were 12 of the 35 cases (34%), compared with 36% for 2025.
San Diego, California, had 5 cases. Camp Pendleton, California, had 4, and Quantico, Virginia, had 3. Okinawa, Japan, and Jacksonville, Florida, had 2 each. These five account for 46% of the month's cases. Larger installations try more cases of every kind.
Rule Changes and Record Gaps
Since December 28, 2023, special trial counsel, not commanders, decide whether to prosecute covered offenses such as sexual assault, domestic violence, and murder. A military judge sets the sentence under new parameters when every guilty finding is for an offense after December 27, 2023. Both depend on the offense date, which the records do not give, so this month can include cases under both the old and new rules. The records cannot show whether either change affected the month's results.
Trial records show charges, pleas, findings, and sentences. They do not include the evidence, plea terms, or conduct handled outside a court-martial.
Dates and sources for the law changes mentioned here: UCMJ change timeline.
How We Counted
Navy and Marine Corps courts-martial with a trial date in July 2025 (35 cases), compared with the whole year.
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
- Navy-Marine Corps Courts-Martial: Data and Trends (hub)
- By Year (hub)
- What the Navy-Marine Corps Tried in June 2025 (previous / next)
- What the Navy-Marine Corps Tried in August 2025 (previous / next)
- Navy-Marine Corps Courts-Martial in 2025: Year in Review (the whole year)
- April 2018 at Navy-Marine Corps Courts-Martial: 43 Cases
- April 2020 at Navy-Marine Corps Courts-Martial: 18 Cases
- August 2017 at Navy-Marine Corps Courts-Martial: 37 Cases
- August 2019 at Navy-Marine Corps Courts-Martial: 34 Cases
- 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.