Military Trial Results · Analysis
Understanding Trends in Military Practice
Analysis of real court-martial records: what gets charged, how cases end, what sentences look like, how experienced the lawyers of record were, and what changed when the law did.
Every number is computed from the Military Trial Results data, built from the services' public court-martial records. Each post says how many cases it rests on, the years covered, and how we counted. Read how this data was built before citing it.
Browse the Analysis
- By InstallationBases and regions, by time period
- By OffenseUCMJ articles, rising and falling charges
- By ServiceArmy, Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps
- By YearWhat each year and month looked like
- SentencesConfinement, discharges, judge alone vs. members
- Counsel ExperiencePrior cases of the lawyers of record
- Law ChangesBefore and after the major reforms
- Episode CompanionsThe numbers behind podcast episodes
Federal Prosecution Analysis
How do federal prosecutions compare with courts-martial? These posts use the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of everyone sentenced in federal court and the Federal Judicial Center's records of every federal defendant whose case ended, including dismissals and acquittals, for fiscal years 2016 to 2025. They cover sentences, guilty pleas, trials and acquittals, mandatory minimums, and supervised release, offense by offense. Where a federal crime has a close counterpart in the UCMJ, the post sets the two side by side. Where it doesn't, the post reports the federal numbers on their own. For how military law has moved toward the federal system, start with Military Moves Toward Sentencing Guidelines to Mirror the Federal System.
Latest Analysis
§2G3.1 Importing, Mailing, or Transporting Obscene Matter: Federal Sentences, Fiscal Year 2017
Under guideline §2G3.1 in fiscal year 2017, 20 of the 26 people sentenced (77%) received a prison term and 5 (19%) received probation only. Only 7 sentences (27%) were within the guideline range, and 8 (31%) were above it.
§2G3.1 Importing, Mailing, or Transporting Obscene Matter: Federal Sentences, Fiscal Year 2016
All 25 people sentenced under guideline §2G3.1 in fiscal year 2016 received a prison term. The median prison term was 26 months (2.2 years), and 24 of the 25 (96%) pleaded guilty.
§2J1.6 Failure to Appear by Defendant: Federal Sentences, Fiscal Year 2025
All 29 people sentenced under guideline §2J1.6 in fiscal year 2025 received a prison term, with a median of 12 months. A mandatory minimum applied to 4 of them (14%), and 2 were convicted after a trial.
§2J1.6 Failure to Appear by Defendant: Federal Sentences, Fiscal Year 2024
In fiscal year 2024, 47% of the 30 people sentenced under guideline §2J1.6 received a sentence within the guideline range, which is a lower share than in the years before and after. All 30 pleaded guilty, 29 received a prison term, and the median was 12 months.
§2J1.6 Failure to Appear by Defendant: Federal Sentences, Fiscal Year 2023
Of the 31 people sentenced under guideline §2J1.6 in fiscal year 2023, 28 (90%) received a prison term and 3 (10%) received probation only. The median prison term was 12 months, the same as the all-years median for this guideline.
§2J1.6 Failure to Appear by Defendant: Federal Sentences, Fiscal Year 2022
The median prison term for the 27 people sentenced under guideline §2J1.6 in fiscal year 2022 was 10 months, lower than the median for any other fiscal year in the 2016 to 2025 table. All 27 received a prison term.
§2J1.6 Failure to Appear by Defendant: Federal Sentences, Fiscal Year 2021
In fiscal year 2021, 83% of the 24 people sentenced under guideline §2J1.6 received a sentence within the guideline range: 20 people. All 24 pleaded guilty and all 24 received a prison term, with a median of 13.5 months.
§2J1.6 Failure to Appear by Defendant: Federal Sentences, Fiscal Year 2020
In fiscal year 2020, 24 people were sentenced under guideline §2J1.6, and 22 of them (92%) received a prison term. The median prison term was 15 months, the highest yearly median for this guideline in the 2016 to 2025 table.
§2J1.6 Failure to Appear by Defendant: Federal Sentences, Fiscal Year 2019
Under guideline §2J1.6 in fiscal year 2019, 34 people were sentenced and all 34 received a prison term. The median prison term was 13.7 months, and 2 people were convicted after a trial.
§2J1.6 Failure to Appear by Defendant: Federal Sentences, Fiscal Year 2018
In fiscal year 2018, all 30 people sentenced under guideline §2J1.6 pleaded guilty and all 30 received a prison term. The median prison term was 12 months, and no fines or restitution were ordered.
§2J1.6 Failure to Appear by Defendant: Federal Sentences, Fiscal Year 2017
In fiscal year 2017, the median prison term under guideline §2J1.6 was 13.5 months for 40 people, all of whom were sent to prison. Of the 40, 39 (98%) pleaded guilty, and 1 was convicted after a trial.
§2J1.6 Failure to Appear by Defendant: Federal Sentences, Fiscal Year 2016
All 41 people sentenced under guideline §2J1.6 in fiscal year 2016 received a prison term, and the median prison term was 12 months. Of the 41, 34 (83%) pleaded guilty and 7 were convicted after a trial.
Go deeper: Military Trial Results (every case, members) · Know Your Judge · Learn Your Lawyer (free)
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