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# What Was Tried at Offutt AFB, Nebraska, 2019–2023? 24 Courts-Martial
- URL: https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/offutt-afb-nebraska-courts-martial-2019-2023/
- Published: 2026-10-28T06:48:49.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-30T08:03:14.000Z
- Description: Offutt AFB, Nebraska tried 24 courts-martial from 2019–2023. Only 17% of cases with a plea recorded were contested, compared with 50% in all Air Force cases in those years. Of the convicted enlisted members, 67% received a punitive discharge, compared with 56% Air Force-wide.
- Author: Jocelyn C. Stewart
- Tags: Understanding Trends, Offutt AFB, Nebraska, Air Force

[Trends](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/) › [By Installation](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/by-installation/) › [Offutt AFB, Nebraska](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/courts-martial-at-offutt-afb-nebraska/) › 2019–2023

**Short answer:** Offutt AFB, Nebraska tried 24 courts-martial from 2019–2023\. Only 17% of cases with a plea recorded were contested, compared with 50% in all Air Force cases in those years. Of the convicted enlisted members, 67% received a punitive discharge, compared with 56% Air Force-wide. All 21 convictions included confinement.

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

## Most Cases Ended in a Guilty Plea

A case is contested when the accused pleads not guilty to at least one charge. Of the 24 records, 18 list a plea: 15 guilty pleas and 3 contested cases. That is 17% contested, compared with 50% in all Air Force cases in those years. Air Force records never report plea agreements, so the terms of those guilty pleas are not known.

3 of the 24 cases ended in a full acquittal (12%), compared with 24% in all Air Force cases. Air Force records from 2016 to 2019 rarely list a guilty plea. For that reason, this rate is measured against all cases, not against contested cases only.

## Confinement in Every Conviction

All 21 convictions carried confinement. The median confinement was 4 months, the same as in the rest of the Air Force. A quarter of the sentences were 1 year or longer. In all Air Force cases in those years, 12% of convictions carried no confinement.

13 convictions (62%) carried under 6 months of confinement, compared with 50% Air Force-wide. 5 of 21 (24%) carried more than 1 year but under 5 years, compared with 17%. No sentence reached 5 years. These are adjudged sentences, before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal. Each one covers every charge in the case.

| Adjudged confinement            | Convictions | Share here | Share, all Air Force cases in those years |
| ------------------------------- | ----------- | ---------- | ----------------------------------------- |
| No confinement                  | 0           | 0%         | 12%                                       |
| Under 6 months                  | 13          | 62%        | 50%                                       |
| 6 months to 1 year              | 3           | 14%        | 15%                                       |
| More than 1 year, under 5 years | 5           | 24%        | 17%                                       |
| 5 years or more                 | 0           | 0%         | 6%                                        |

## General and Special Courts-Martial

A general court-martial can impose long confinement and a dishonorable discharge. A special court-martial caps confinement at one year and cannot impose a dishonorable discharge. Offutt's 13 general courts-martial had a median confinement of 1.5 years. Of the 9 with a plea recorded, 3 were contested.

Offutt's 11 special courts-martial had a median confinement of 3 months. Of the 9 with a plea recorded, 0 were contested. General courts-martial made up 54% of the cases (13 of 24).

## Punitive Discharges for Enlisted Members

A punitive discharge is a bad-conduct or dishonorable discharge. Of the 21 enlisted members convicted, 14 received one (67%). That is higher than in all Air Force cases (56%). 3 of the 14 were dishonorable discharges. No officers appear among the accused. A sentence without a punitive discharge does not rule out a later administrative separation.

## Drugs, Assault, and Some Rare Charges

21 of the 24 records list the charges. A case can count under several articles. Article 112a, the drug article, appeared in 43% of those cases, about the same as the 41% Air Force-wide. Article 128 (assault) appeared in 19%, the same as Air Force-wide. Article 128b (domestic violence) appeared in 14%, compared with 5%.

Some less common charges also appear: Article 127 (extortion) in 2 cases, Article 104a (fraudulent enlistment) in 1, and Article 82 (soliciting) in 1.

| UCMJ Article                                                                                                                                       | Cases | Share here | Share, the whole Air Force docket |
| -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ----- | ---------- | --------------------------------- |
| [Art. 112a](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/ucmj/article-112a-drug-offenses/?ref=bodiesburied.com) Wrongful use, possession of controlled substances | 9     | 43%        | 41%                               |
| [Art. 128](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/practice-areas/court-martial/article-128/?ref=bodiesburied.com) Assault                                   | 4     | 19%        | 19%                               |
| [Art. 128b](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/ucmj/article-128b-domestic-violence/?ref=bodiesburied.com) Domestic violence                             | 3     | 14%        | 5%                                |
| [Art. 134](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/practice-areas/court-martial/article-134/?ref=bodiesburied.com) General article                           | 3     | 14%        | 21%                               |
| Art. 127 Extortion                                                                                                                                 | 2     | 10%        | 0%                                |
| [Art. 120b](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/practice-areas/court-martial/article-120b/?ref=bodiesburied.com) Rape and sexual assault of a child      | 2     | 10%        | 7%                                |
| Art. 104a Fraudulent enlistment                                                                                                                    | 1     | 5%         | 0%                                |
| Art. 82 Soliciting                                                                                                                                 | 1     | 5%         | 1%                                |

## Who Was Accused

The accused were 17 junior enlisted members (E-1 to E-4), 7 NCOs (E-5 to E-9), and 0 officers or warrant officers. That mix is more junior than Air Force-wide, where 64% were junior enlisted.

The accused usually chooses whether a military judge alone or a panel of members decides guilt. Members heard 21% of cases with the forum listed: 4 enlisted panels and 1 officer panel. The other 19 cases were judge alone.

## Compared With 2016–2018

In 2016–2018, Offutt had 16 cases, about 5 a year. That is the same pace as since, counting full years only. By year, 2019–2023 had 6 cases in 2019, 6 in 2020, 2 in 2021, 3 in 2022, and 7 in 2023\. That is 2% of the 1,361 Air Force courts-martial in those years.

Median confinement went from 2 months to 4 months. Convictions with confinement went from 77% to 100%. Punitive discharges went from 55% to 67%, and the general court-martial share went from 44% to 54%. Small groups change with a few cases, so these figures show direction, not precision.

|                               | 2016–2018 | 2019–2023 |
| ----------------------------- | --------- | --------- |
| Cases                         | 16        | 24        |
| Contested (of pleas recorded) | —         | 17%       |
| Convictions with confinement  | 77%       | 100%      |
| Median confinement            | 2 months  | 4 months  |
| Punitive discharge (enlisted) | 55%       | 67%       |
| General courts-martial        | 44%       | 54%       |

## Offutt Compared With McConnell and Barksdale

McConnell AFB, Kansas and Barksdale AFB, Louisiana tried a similar number of cases. McConnell had 57% of cases contested and Barksdale had 40%, compared with 17% at Offutt. The median confinement was 4 months at McConnell and 2 months at Barksdale. Punitive discharge rates were 65% and 56%.

| Installation             | Cases | Contested | Full acquittals (decided contested) | Median confinement | Punitive discharge (enlisted) |
| ------------------------ | ----- | --------- | ----------------------------------- | ------------------ | ----------------------------- |
| Offutt AFB, Nebraska     | 24    | 17%       | 2 of 3                              | 4 months           | 67%                           |
| McConnell AFB, Kansas    | 24    | 57%       | 3 of 7                              | 4 months           | 65%                           |
| Barksdale AFB, Louisiana | 23    | 40%       | 4 of 8                              | 2 months           | 56%                           |

## What the Records Cannot Show

Trial records show the charges, pleas, findings, and sentence. They do not show the evidence, plea terms, offense dates, or conduct handled outside a court-martial. Air Force records rarely list charges in full acquittals, so the charge shares above come mostly from cases that ended in a conviction. The records also give no reason why a case went to one court level or the other.

Dates and sources for the law changes mentioned here: [UCMJ change timeline](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/ucmj-change-timeline/).

### How We Counted

Every court-martial in the data tried at Offutt AFB, Nebraska with a trial date in 2019–2023 (24 cases), compared with all 1,361 Air Force trials in those years. Dates are trial dates.

Source: public court-martial records (Article 140a, UCMJ) in [Military Trial Results](https://www.bodiesburied.com/military-trial-results/), data updated October 24, 2026\. Definitions, sources, and known gaps: [how this data was built](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/how-the-military-trial-results-data-was-built/). Errors: content@bodiesburied.com.

## Related Analysis

- [Offutt AFB, Nebraska: Court-Martial Data and Trends](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/courts-martial-at-offutt-afb-nebraska/) (hub)
- [Air Force Courts-Martial: Data and Trends](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/air-force-courts-martial/) (hub)
- [By Installation](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/by-installation/) (hub)
- [What Was Tried at Offutt AFB, Nebraska, 2016–2018? 16 Courts-Martial](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/offutt-afb-nebraska-courts-martial-2016-2018/) (another period)
- [Inside 11 Courts-Martial at Offutt AFB, Nebraska, 2024–2026](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/offutt-afb-nebraska-courts-martial-2024-2026/) (another period)
- [McConnell AFB, Kansas Courts-Martial, 2019–2023: What 24 Cases Show](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/mcconnell-afb-kansas-courts-martial-2019-2023/) (same years, similar size)
- [Inside 23 Courts-Martial at Barksdale AFB, Louisiana, 2019–2023](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/barksdale-afb-louisiana-courts-martial-2019-2023/) (same years, similar size)
- [Andersen AFB, Guam Courts-Martial, 2016–2018: What 13 Cases Show](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/andersen-afb-guam-courts-martial-2016-2018/)
- [Aviano AB, Italy Courts-Martial, 2016–2018: What 16 Cases Show](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/aviano-ab-italy-courts-martial-2016-2018/)
- [Aviano AB, Italy, 2019–2023: Charges, Verdicts, and Sentences in 17 Cases](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/aviano-ab-italy-courts-martial-2019-2023/)
- [Search every case in Military Trial Results](https://www.bodiesburied.com/military-trial-results/) (members)

← Previous: [What Was Tried at Offutt AFB, Nebraska, 2016–2018? 16 Courts-Martial](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/offutt-afb-nebraska-courts-martial-2016-2018/)Next: [Inside 11 Courts-Martial at Offutt AFB, Nebraska, 2024–2026](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/offutt-afb-nebraska-courts-martial-2024-2026/) →

## Military Judges Who Presided Over Cases at Offutt AFB, Nebraska, 2019–2023

- [Jefferson B. Brown](https://www.bodiesburied.com/judge-jefferson-b-brown/)
- [Elizabeth M. Hernandez](https://www.bodiesburied.com/judge-elizabeth-m-hernandez/)
- [Christopher D. James](https://www.bodiesburied.com/judge-christopher-d-james/)
- [James E. Key III](https://www.bodiesburied.com/judge-james-e-key-iii/)
- [Shad R. Kidd](https://www.bodiesburied.com/judge-shad-r-kidd/)
- [Michael A. Lewis](https://www.bodiesburied.com/judge-michael-a-lewis/)
- [Sterling C. Pendleton](https://www.bodiesburied.com/judge-sterling-c-pendleton/)
- [Dayle P. Percle](https://www.bodiesburied.com/judge-dayle-p-percle/)
- [Julie L. Pitvorec](https://www.bodiesburied.com/judge-julie-l-pitvorec/)
- [Jennifer J. Raab](https://www.bodiesburied.com/judge-jennifer-j-raab/)
- [Mark F. Rosenow](https://www.bodiesburied.com/judge-mark-f-rosenow/)
- [Matthew D. Talcott](https://www.bodiesburied.com/judge-matthew-d-talcott/)
- [Charles G. Warren](https://www.bodiesburied.com/judge-charles-g-warren/)

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](https://www.bodiesburied.com/judges/) 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](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/?ref=bodiesburied.com). This analysis is for education and information only. It is not legal advice, and every case is different.