Article 120 Cases at Norfolk, Virginia, 2019–2023: 38 Courts-Martial

Trends › By Installation › Norfolk, Virginia › Article 120, 2019–2023

Based on 38 cases · 2019–2023 · Navy and Marine Corps records · data updated October 24, 2026

Most Contested Cases Ended in a Full Acquittal

This post covers Article 120 cases tried at one installation, Norfolk, Virginia, from 2019 through 2023. Of 27 contested cases that reached a verdict, 17 ended in a full acquittal (63%). Across Navy and Marine Corps Article 120 cases in the same years, the rate was 57%.

Another 2 cases ended in a partial acquittal: not guilty of at least one charge or specification, but guilty of another. A contested case is one where the accused pleaded not guilty to at least one charge. These counts describe past verdicts. They do not show the evidence in any case.

Most Accused Pleaded Not Guilty

Of the 37 records that list a plea, 27 were contested and 10 were guilty pleas. The contested share of 73% is higher than the 65% across the Navy and Marine Corps for this offense.

Navy and Marine Corps records before December 2020 often omit the plea and forum. The forum is missing from too many of these records, so this post does not report who decided guilt.

More Cases in 2019 Than in Later Years

The cases were tried from March 2019 through December 2023. The count was highest in 2019, with 15 cases. There were 4 in 2020, 5 in 2021, 7 in 2022, and 7 in 2023.

The 38 cases are 19% of the 205 courts-martial tried at Norfolk in those years. Of them, 35 were general courts-martial and 3 were special courts-martial. The general court-martial share of 92% compares with 87% across Navy and Marine Corps Article 120 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.

Sentences After a Conviction

The 38 cases produced 20 convictions, and 18 included confinement. The median confinement was 1.3 years, shorter than the 1.5 years for Navy and Marine Corps Article 120 cases overall.

More sentences were at the long end than service-wide. A quarter were 5 years or longer. Sentences of 5 years or more made up 30% of convictions here, compared with 19% service-wide. Sentences longer than one year were less common overall: 9 of 20 (45%), compared with 55%. The difference is in sentences of more than 1 year and under 5 years, which made up 15% of convictions here, compared with 36% service-wide. These are adjudged sentences, before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal, and they cover every charge in the case.

Most Punitive Discharges Were Dishonorable

Of 19 convicted enlisted members, 16 received a punitive discharge: 12 dishonorable and 4 bad-conduct. Across all Navy and Marine Corps Article 120 cases in 2019–2023, the punitive discharge share was 83%.

The group includes 1 convicted officer or warrant officer, who was not dismissed. A sentence without a punitive discharge does not rule out a later administrative separation.

Assault Was Charged in Most Cases

Article 120 was the only charge in few cases. In 33 of the 38 cases, at least one other article was charged. Article 128 (assault) was the most common, in 28 cases. The others were much less common: Article 120b (child sexual abuse) in 4, Article 80 (attempt) in 4, Article 134 (the general article) in 3, and Article 120c (indecent recording and exposure) in 2.

Rank of the Accused

The group had 18 junior enlisted members, 18 NCOs, and 2 officers. That mix is more senior than in the rest of the Navy and Marine Corps for this offense. Junior enlisted means pay grades E-1 to E-4, and NCOs means E-5 to E-9. At Norfolk in these years, the 2 groups had the same count, and officers made up the rest.

Which Version of the Law Applied

Article 120 was rewritten in 2012 and amended again for offenses on or after January 1, 2019. Each case is charged under the version in force when the offense happened. A trial in this period could be under either version, and the records do not give offense dates.

Article 120 is also a covered offense. Since December 28, 2023, special trial counsel, not commanders, decide whether to prosecute covered offenses. That change took effect at the very end of this period.

What the Records Do Not Show

The records show charges, pleas, findings, and sentences. They do not show the evidence, the plea terms, or allegations handled outside a court-martial, through administrative action or no action at all.

For what the offense covers and how it is defended, see Article 120 on the law firm's website. Dates and sources for the law changes: UCMJ change timeline.

Compare: federal court. Sexual Abuse of an Adult: Federal Cases vs. Article 120 Courts-Martial

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.