How Norfolk, Virginia Handled General Article Cases (Article 134), 2024–2026
At Norfolk, Virginia, 15 courts-martial from 2024 to 2026 charged Article 134 (general article), and 9 of them charged it by itself. Only 17% of the cases with a plea recorded were contested, compared with 29% across Navy and Marine Corps Article 134 cases.
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Trends › By Installation › Norfolk, Virginia › Article 134, 2024–2026
Short answer: At Norfolk, Virginia, 15 courts-martial from 2024 to 2026 charged Article 134 (general article), and 9 of them charged it by itself. Only 17% of the cases with a plea recorded were contested, compared with 29% across Navy and Marine Corps Article 134 cases. Punitive discharges followed 73% of enlisted convictions, about the same as the 75% service-wide.
Article 134 Was Often the Only Charge
In 9 of the 15 cases, Article 134 was the only article charged. Across all Navy and Marine Corps Article 134 cases in 2024–2026, it was charged by itself in 95 of 210 cases.
Article 131b (obstruction) appeared in 2 of the Norfolk cases. Article 87a (resisting apprehension), Article 120b (child sexual abuse), Article 80 (attempt), and Article 82 (solicitation) each appeared in 1.
Pleas
Of the 15 records, 12 list the plea. In 10 the accused pleaded guilty, and in 2 the accused entered a not-guilty or mixed plea. A case with a not-guilty or mixed plea is contested. The contested share was 17%, lower than the 29% across Navy and Marine Corps Article 134 cases.
Confinement
The 15 cases produced 12 convictions, and confinement was part of 75% of them. The median confinement was 1.1 years, shorter than the 1.5 years across Navy and Marine Corps Article 134 cases overall. A quarter of the sentences with confinement were 3.5 years or longer.
These are adjudged sentences, before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal. Each covers every charge in the case.
Punitive Discharges and Dismissals
Of the enlisted convictions, 73% ended with a punitive discharge: 6 bad-conduct and 2 dishonorable. The service-wide share was 75%. The group also includes 1 convicted officer or warrant officer, who was dismissed. A sentence without a punitive discharge does not rule out a later administrative separation.
Rank and Court Level
Among the accused with rank recorded, 4 were junior enlisted members, 8 were NCOs, and 1 was an officer. This group was more senior than the accused in Navy and Marine Corps Article 134 cases overall.
General courts-martial tried 10 of the 13 cases with a court level listed (77%). The court level is not listed for 2 cases. That level can impose long confinement and a dishonorable discharge. Special courts-martial tried the rest and cap confinement at one year.
Cases by Year
The cases were tried from February 2024 to April 2026: 4 in 2024, 8 in 2025, and 3 in 2026. The 2026 count is for part of the year. These cases were 19% of the 77 courts-martial at Norfolk, Virginia in 2024–2026.
New Rules and Missing Dates
Since December 28, 2023, special trial counsel, not 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 under new sentencing parameters. The records give trial dates, not offense dates, so cases tried from 2024 on mix old-rule and new-rule cases. The records also do not describe the evidence, the plea terms, or nonjudicial punishment.
For what the offense covers and how it is defended, see Article 134 on the law firm's website. Dates and sources for the law changes: UCMJ change timeline.
How We Counted
Courts-martial tried at Norfolk, Virginia in 2024–2026 that charged Article 134 (15 cases), compared with every Navy and Marine Corps case charging Article 134 in those years.
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
- Norfolk, Virginia: Court-Martial Data and Trends (hub)
- Article 134 (General Article): Court-Martial Data and Trends (hub)
- By Installation (hub)
- Norfolk, Virginia, 2013–2018: Charges, Verdicts, and Sentences in 308 Cases
- What Was Tried at Norfolk, Virginia, 2019–2023? 205 Courts-Martial
- What Was Tried at Norfolk, Virginia, 2024–2026? 77 Courts-Martial
- 36 General Article Courts-Martial at Norfolk, Virginia, 2013–2018: What the Records Show
- Is Navy-Marine Corps General Article Prosecution Rising or Falling? Article 134, 2017–2025
- Article 134 explained on the law firm's website
- Search every case in Military Trial Results (members)
Military Judges Who Presided Over Article 134 Cases at Norfolk, Virginia, 2024–2026
Names and links only. Each judge's record of pleas, findings, and sentences is on their Know Your Judge page, part of the Court-Martial Characters membership.
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.