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
§2S1.1 Laundering of Monetary Instruments: Federal Sentences, Fiscal Year 2020
Fiscal year 2020 had 755 people sentenced under §2S1.1, the smallest count in the yearly table. The median prison term was 50 months (4.2 years). After a trial, the median was 142 months, based on 43 people, compared with 48 months after a guilty plea.
§2S1.1 Laundering of Monetary Instruments: Federal Sentences, Fiscal Year 2019
A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 319 of the 990 people sentenced under §2S1.1 in fiscal year 2019 (32%). The median prison term was 50 months (4.2 years), 8 people received a life sentence, and 91% pleaded guilty.
§2S1.1 Laundering of Monetary Instruments: Federal Sentences, Fiscal Year 2018
In fiscal year 2018, 1,011 of the 1,138 people sentenced under §2S1.1 (89%) received a prison term, and 83 (7%) received probation only. The median prison term was 48 months (4 years). 93% pleaded guilty.
§2S1.1 Laundering of Monetary Instruments: Federal Sentences, Fiscal Year 2017
Among the 1,086 people sentenced under §2S1.1 in fiscal year 2017, the median prison term was 72 months after a trial and 48 months after a guilty plea. The median for everyone sent to prison under this guideline was 50 months (4.2 years), and 92% pleaded guilty.
§2S1.1 Laundering of Monetary Instruments: Federal Sentences, Fiscal Year 2016
In fiscal year 2016, 49% of the 1,084 people sentenced under §2S1.1 received a sentence below the guideline range at the government's request, and 24% were sentenced within the range. The median prison term was 48 months (4 years), and 92% pleaded guilty.
§2B3.1 Robbery: Federal Sentences, Fiscal Year 2025
Of the 1,233 people sentenced in federal court in fiscal year 2025 under §2B3.1 ("Robbery"), 41% received a sentence within the guideline range and 42% were subject to a mandatory minimum. The median prison term was 92 months (7.7 years), compared with 24 months for all federal cases that year.
§2B3.1 Robbery: Federal Sentences, Fiscal Year 2024
In fiscal year 2024, 1,305 people were sentenced in federal court with §2B3.1 ("Robbery") as the primary guideline. The median prison term was 96 months (8 years), and 94% pleaded guilty. The median for all federal cases that year was 30 months.
Federal Individual Rights Offense Sentences in the District of New Mexico, FY2016–2025
In all, 10 people were sentenced for individual rights offenses in the District of New Mexico in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. 8 received a prison term, with a median of 27 months, and 1 received a life sentence. The national median for this offense type was 30 months.
Federal Burglary and Trespass Sentences in the District of New Mexico, FY2016–2025
The District of New Mexico sentenced 13 people for burglary and trespass offenses, and all of the cases appear in fiscal years 2016 to 2022. 9 of the 13 (69%) received a prison term, with a median of 13 months. In all 94 federal districts, the median was 18 months.
Federal Arson Sentences in the District of New Mexico, FY2016–2025
All 14 people sentenced for arson in the District of New Mexico in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 received a prison term, and the median was 33 months (2.8 years). For all 94 federal districts, the median arson prison term was 60 months. A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 7 of the 14 people (50%)
Federal Drug Possession Sentences in the District of New Mexico, FY2016–2025
In the District of New Mexico, 13 of the 19 people sentenced for drug possession in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 (68%) received probation only. Across all 94 federal districts, 68% of people in this offense type were sent to prison, so the district's pattern is different from the national one.
Federal Tax Offense Sentences in the District of New Mexico, FY2016–2025
Of the 19 people sentenced for tax offenses in the District of New Mexico in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, 12 (63%) received a prison term and 7 (37%) received probation only. The median prison term was 16.5 months, compared with 15.1 months for all 94 federal districts.
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