Article 120 Cases at Pensacola, Florida, 2013–2018: 22 Courts-Martial

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Based on 22 cases · 2013–2018 · Navy and Marine Corps records · data updated October 24, 2026

Almost Every Case Was Contested

Of the 22 sexual assault cases at Pensacola in these years, only 2 ended in a guilty plea. The other 20 were contested, meaning the accused pleaded not guilty to at least one charge. That 91% contested share is higher than the 70% in Navy and Marine Corps Article 120 cases overall.

Because so few cases ended in a guilty plea, most results here were decided at trial, not by a plea of guilty. Plea terms for the 2 guilty pleas are not in the records.

Results in Contested Cases

8 of the 20 contested cases that reached a verdict ended in a full acquittal. Another 2 ended in a partial acquittal: not guilty of at least one charge or specification, but guilty of another.

The 40% full-acquittal rate here is lower than the 53% across Navy and Marine Corps Article 120 cases overall. With 20 contested cases, a few verdicts more or fewer would change that rate by several points.

Long Sentences After a Conviction

14 cases ended in a conviction on at least one charge, and 12 of those sentences included confinement. The median confinement was 3.5 years, higher than the 3 years for Navy and Marine Corps Article 120 cases overall. A quarter of the sentences were 7 years or longer.

These are adjudged sentences, before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal. They cover every charge in the case, not only the Article 120 charges.

Punitive Discharges and Dismissals

90% of the enlisted convictions here included a punitive discharge: 3 bad-conduct discharges and 6 dishonorable discharges. In the rest of the Navy and Marine Corps, the rate was 82%. A dishonorable discharge is the most severe discharge for enlisted members, and only a general court-martial can impose it.

4 convicted officers or warrant officers are in the records, and 3 were dismissed. Dismissal is the officer equivalent of a punitive discharge. A sentence without a punitive discharge does not rule out a later administrative separation.

Assault Charged With Sexual Assault

Article 120 was the only charge in 3 of the 22 cases. Article 128 (assault) appeared in 17 cases, more than any other charge. Article 107 (false official statement) and Article 92 (orders violation) each appeared in 3. Article 131b (obstruction, numbered since 2019) appeared in 2, and Article 120c (indecent recording and exposure) in 1.

When assault is charged with sexual assault, the assault charge can describe part of the same incident. A sentence covers every conviction in the case.

Who Was Charged, and at What Level

By rank, the accused were 10 junior enlisted members, 8 NCOs, and 4 officers. That mix is similar to all Navy and Marine Corps Article 120 cases in 2013–2018. Of the 4 officers, 3 were dismissed after a conviction.

General courts-martial made up 86% of these cases (19 of 22). Special courts-martial made up the rest. A general court-martial can impose any lawful sentence, including long confinement and a dishonorable discharge or dismissal. A special court-martial caps confinement at one year.

Number of Cases

The data shows 22 cases from January 2013 to October 2018: 2 in 2013, 5 in 2014, 8 in 2015, 4 in 2016, 1 in 2017, and 2 in 2018. They were 30% of the 74 courts-martial at Pensacola in those years.

The Law That Applied

Article 120 was rewritten in 2012 and amended again for offenses on or after January 1, 2019. Each case is charged under the version in force when the offense happened.

All of these trials took place before the Military Justice Act of 2016 took effect on January 1, 2019. That law later set fixed panel sizes, created judge-alone special courts-martial capped at six months with no punitive discharge, and introduced written plea agreements. None of those changes applied to the cases here.

What the Records Cannot Show

The records do not show the evidence, the testimony, or the reasons for any verdict. Navy and Marine Corps records before December 2020 often omit the plea, so plea counts use only the records that list one. The records give trial dates, not offense dates. Cases handled by nonjudicial punishment, administrative separation, or no action do not appear.

For what the offense covers and how it is defended, see Article 120 on the law firm's website. Dates and sources for the law changes: UCMJ change timeline.

Compare: federal court. Sexual Abuse of an Adult: Federal Cases vs. Article 120 Courts-Martial

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.