Norfolk, Virginia, 2019–2023 vs. 2024–2026: A Side-by-Side Look

Trends › By Installation › Norfolk, Virginia › Before and after 2024

Based on 77 cases · 2024–2026 · Navy and Marine Corps records · data updated October 24, 2026

Domestic Violence Was Charged More Often

All 77 recent records list the charges. Article 128b (domestic violence) and Article 92 (failure to obey an order or regulation) were the most common, each charged in 16 cases. The 21% share for Article 128b compares with 12% in all Navy and Marine Corps cases in the same years.

Article 131b (obstruction, numbered since 2019) was also more common than service-wide: 9%, compared with 5%. Article 134, the general article, was charged in 19% of cases, and Article 128 (assault) in 13%. Both were about the same as or slightly lower than the service-wide shares. Each article counts once per case, so one case can appear in several rows.

2019–2023 Compared With 2024–2026

In 2019–2023, the records show 205 Norfolk cases over 5 years, about 41 a year. Since 2024, there have been about 28 a year, counting full years only. There were 24 cases in 2024, 31 in 2025, and 22 so far in 2026, a partial year.

Several measures changed. A case is contested when the accused pleads not guilty to at least one charge, and that share went from 35% to 24%. Full acquittals in contested cases that reached a verdict went from 29 of 70 to 4 of 18. Convictions with confinement went from 78% to 60%. General courts-martial went from 44% to 38% of cases. Median confinement was 6 months in both periods.

Groups this small can change with a few cases, so these changes show direction more than precise size.

Most Accused Pleaded Guilty

Of the 74 records that list a plea, 56 accused pleaded guilty and 18 contested at least one charge. The 24% contested share is lower than the 36% elsewhere in the Navy and Marine Corps.

Guilty pleas were different by charge. Cases charging Article 134 ended in a guilty plea 83% of the time (10 of 12), the most among the top charges. Article 92 cases ended in a guilty plea 56% of the time (9 of 16). The records do not explain why an accused pleaded guilty or not guilty.

Verdicts in Contested Cases

Of 18 contested cases that reached a verdict, 4 ended in a full acquittal (22%). The rate for the Navy and Marine Corps as a whole was 26%. Another 9 (50%) ended in a partial acquittal: not guilty of at least one charge or specification but guilty of another.

When one of the top charges was brought, a conviction on that article almost always followed. Article 128b, Article 134, and Article 128 each ended in a conviction in every case that charged them. Article 92 ended in a conviction in 15 of 16. The median confinement for these convictions was 3 months for Article 128b and 1.1 years for Article 134.

Many Convictions Had No Confinement

Of 70 convictions, 42 included confinement. The median confinement was 6 months, the same as the Navy and Marine Corps median. A quarter of sentences were 1.1 years or longer. These are adjudged sentences, imposed at trial before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal, and each covers every charge in the case.

There was no confinement in 28 convictions (40%), compared with 30% in the rest of the Navy and Marine Corps. Sentences longer than one year were less common: 11 of 70 convictions (16%), compared with 20%. Only a general court-martial can impose more than one year. A special court-martial is capped at one year.

Fewer Punitive Discharges

A punitive discharge means a bad-conduct or dishonorable discharge for enlisted members, or a dismissal for officers. Of 63 convicted enlisted members, 28 received one (44%). The share for the whole Navy and Marine Corps was 52%. Of those 28 discharges, 4 were dishonorable.

There were 4 convicted officers or warrant officers, and 3 were dismissed. A sentence without a punitive discharge does not rule out a later administrative separation.

Rank and Court Level

The accused at Norfolk were more senior than the service average. Junior enlisted members (E-1 to E-4) made up 44%, NCOs 50%, and officers 6%. Across the Navy and Marine Corps, junior enlisted members were 59%.

There were 29 general and 46 special courts-martial, and the level is not listed for 2 cases. The general court-martial share, 39%, is about the same as the 38% elsewhere in the service. The median confinement was 1.4 years at general courts-martial and 4 months at special courts-martial.

Norfolk Compared With Kaneohe Bay and Bremerton

Marine Corps Base Hawaii, Kaneohe Bay (53 cases) and Bremerton, Washington (52) tried a similar number of cases in the same years. Norfolk had the lowest contested share of the 3: 24%, compared with 31% and 33%. Its 44% punitive discharge share was between Bremerton's 33% and Kaneohe Bay's 69%.

New Rules and Limits of the Data

Since December 28, 2023, special trial counsel, not commanders, decide whether to prosecute covered offenses such as sexual assault, domestic violence, and murder. Military judges also set the sentence under new parameters when every guilty finding is for an offense after December 27, 2023. Both rules depend on the offense date.

The records give trial dates, not offense dates, so the recent cases include trials under both the old and the new rules. The records also do not show the evidence, plea terms, nonjudicial punishment, or administrative separations.

Dates and sources for the law changes mentioned here: UCMJ change timeline.

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.