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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.

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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.

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Latest Analysis

  • Child Pornography Sentences in 2024: Federal Court vs. Courts-Martial

    Courts-martial with 2024 trial dates recorded 89 convictions for possessing, receiving, or distributing child pornography (images of child exploitation), and the median adjudged confinement was 18 months. Federal court sentenced 1,374 people for these offenses in fiscal year 2024, with a median pris

  • Child Pornography Sentences in 2023: Federal Court vs. Courts-Martial

    In 2023, the median adjudged confinement for a court-martial conviction for child pornography (images of child exploitation) was 23.3 months, based on 69 convictions. In federal fiscal year 2023, the median prison term for 1,406 people sentenced for possessing, receiving, or distributing child porno

  • Child Pornography Sentences in 2022: Federal Court vs. Courts-Martial

    People sentenced in federal court in fiscal year 2022 for possessing, receiving, or distributing child pornography (images of child exploitation) received a median prison term of 96 months (8 years). For courts-martial tried in 2022, the median adjudged confinement for these offenses was 23 months.

  • Child Pornography Sentences in 2021: Federal Court vs. Courts-Martial

    At courts-martial with 2021 trial dates, 70 convictions for child pornography (images of child exploitation) had a median adjudged confinement of 21 months. In federal court, 1,214 people sentenced for the same kinds of offenses in fiscal year 2021 had a median prison term of 92 months (7.7 years).

  • Child Pornography Sentences in 2020: Federal Court vs. Courts-Martial

    Federal court sentenced 1,020 people in fiscal year 2020 for possessing, receiving, or distributing child pornography (images of child exploitation), and the median prison term was 84 months. Courts-martial with 2020 trial dates recorded 19 convictions for these offenses, with a median adjudged conf

  • Child Pornography Sentences in 2019: Federal Court vs. Courts-Martial

    The median sentence for child pornography (images of child exploitation) offenses in 2019 was 32.5 months of confinement at courts-martial and 84 months of federal prison. The court-martial figure covers 20 convictions with 2019 trial dates. The federal figure covers 1,363 people sentenced in fiscal

  • Child Pornography Sentences in 2018: Federal Court vs. Courts-Martial

    Courts-martial tried in 2018 produced 23 convictions for possessing, receiving, or distributing child pornography (images of child exploitation), with a median adjudged confinement of 24 months. In federal fiscal year 2018, 1,414 people were sentenced for these offenses, and the median prison term w

  • Child Pornography Sentences in 2017: Federal Court vs. Courts-Martial

    In fiscal year 2017, the median federal prison term for possessing, receiving, or distributing child pornography (images of child exploitation) was 78 months, across 1,403 people sentenced. Courts-martial with 2017 trial dates recorded 20 convictions for the same group of offenses, and their median

  • Child Pornography Sentences in 2016: Federal Court vs. Courts-Martial

    For trials held in 2016, courts-martial recorded 21 convictions for child pornography (images of child exploitation), and the median adjudged confinement was 29.6 months. Federal court sentenced 1,591 people under guideline §2G2.2 in fiscal year 2016, with a median prison term of 84 months (7 years)

  • Federal Defendants Who Represented Themselves: How Their Cases Ended, FY2016–2025

    In fiscal years 2016 to 2025, 15,342 federal defendants represented themselves at the end of the case. More of these cases were dismissed than ended in a guilty plea: 9,017 (59%) were dismissed, 6,126 (40%) pleaded guilty, and 199 (1%) went to trial. Most of the charges were misdemeanors or petty of

  • Federal Trials by Type of Counsel: How Often Each Ended in Acquittal, FY2016–2025

    Of 16,849 federal defendants who went to trial in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, the share acquitted was 21% with a federal public or community defender, 17% with private (retained) counsel, 11% with a CJA panel attorney, and 19% for self-represented defendants. In every group, bench trials ended in acq

  • Appointed vs. Retained Counsel in Federal Criminal Cases, Year by Year, FY2016–2025

    In every fiscal year from 2016 to 2025, appointed counsel represented most federal defendants whose cases ended, between 77% and 84%. Retained counsel represented between 13% and 19%. The appointed share was highest in fiscal year 2025, at 84% of 82,042 defendants, and the retained share was highest

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