Article 112a Cases at Nellis AFB, Nevada, 2019–2023: 26 Courts-Martial

Trends › By Installation › Nellis AFB, Nevada › Article 112a, 2019–2023

Based on 26 cases · 2019–2023 · Air Force records · data updated October 24, 2026

Drug Cases Were Most of the Base's Courts-Martial

This post covers one offense at one installation: Article 112a drug cases at Nellis AFB, Nevada, from 2019 through 2023. The 26 cases make up 57% of the 46 courts-martial tried at Nellis in those years.

Most of them were tried in the first year. The records show 12 cases in 2019, 5 in 2020, 4 in 2021, 3 in 2022, and 2 in 2023, from January 2019 to September 2023. The records cannot show why the count fell, and they give trial dates, not offense dates.

Punitive Discharges Were More Common

Of 24 convicted enlisted members, 16 received a punitive discharge (67%): 14 bad-conduct discharges and 2 dishonorable discharges. In Air Force-wide Article 112a cases, the share was 45%.

The records also show 2 convicted officers or warrant officers, and 1 was dismissed. A dismissal is the officer equivalent of a punitive discharge. A sentence without a punitive discharge does not rule out a later administrative separation, which these records do not track.

Longer Confinement Than Across the Air Force

Of the 26 convictions, 22 included confinement (85%). The median confinement was 5 months. In the rest of the Air Force, it was 3 months. A quarter of sentences were 8 months or longer.

Sentences under 6 months made up 50% of convictions here, compared with 72% across the Air Force. Sentences of 6 months to 1 year made up 27%, compared with 14%. Sentences longer than one year were uncommon: 2 of 26 (8%), compared with 5%. These are adjudged sentences, before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal, and they cover every charge in the case.

More General Courts-Martial

The records show 8 general courts-martial and 18 special courts-martial. The general court-martial share of 31% is higher than the 19% across Air Force Article 112a cases. A general court-martial can impose any lawful sentence, including long confinement and a dishonorable discharge. A special court-martial caps confinement at one year and cannot impose a dishonorable discharge.

Who Decided Guilt?

A military judge alone decided guilt in 18 of 24 cases with the forum listed (75%). Members heard 6: 5 officer panels and 1 enlisted panel. The accused usually chooses between a judge alone and a panel of members. Most judge-alone cases are guilty pleas.

Only 13 of the 26 records list a plea. Of those, 10 were guilty pleas and 3 were contested, meaning the accused pleaded not guilty to at least one charge. The contested share of 23% compares with 19% across Air Force Article 112a cases. Because so many records have no plea, this figure is based on a small number of cases.

Other Charges in the Same Cases

In 15 of the 26 cases, at least one other article was charged. Article 107 (false official statement) was the most common, in 8 cases. Article 134 (the general article) was charged in 6, Article 92 (orders violation) in 3, Article 86 (absence without leave) in 2, and Article 82 (solicitation) in 2.

A More Senior Group Than Usual

Junior enlisted members, E-1 to E-4, made up 62% of the accused at Nellis. NCOs made up 31%, and officers made up 8%. Across Air Force Article 112a cases overall, junior enlisted members were 81%. This group had a higher share of NCOs and officers than is typical for the offense.

Why No Acquittal Rate Appears

Air Force records rarely list the charges in a case that ends in a full acquittal. An acquittal rate for a single offense would therefore undercount acquittals, so this post does not report one.

The Rules in Force

The period begins on the day the Military Justice Act of 2016 took effect, January 1, 2019. That law set fixed panel sizes, created judge-alone special courts-martial capped at six months with no punitive discharge, and introduced written plea agreements. Cases with offenses from before 2019 kept the old rules. The records give trial dates, not offense dates, so the early cases here may have been tried under either set of rules.

Drug use and possession under Article 112a are not covered offenses. The special trial counsel system that began at the end of 2023 does not change who decides whether to prosecute these charges on their own.

What the Records Do Not Show

The records show charges, pleas, findings, and sentences. They do not describe the evidence, such as test results, and Air Force records never report plea agreements. Drug cases handled by nonjudicial punishment or administrative separation are not included.

For what the offense covers and how it is defended, see Article 112a on the law firm's website. Dates and sources for the law changes: UCMJ change timeline.

Compare: federal court. Federal Law Has No Crime of Drug Use: How Article 112a Cases Compare · Drug Distribution and Importation: Federal vs. Court-Martial Sentences, 2016–2025

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.