Pensacola, Florida Before and After 2024: How Its Courts-Martial Changed
None of the 8 contested cases that reached a verdict at Pensacola, Florida in 2024–2026 ended in a full acquittal, compared with 14 of 24 in 2019–2023. The base tried 15 courts-martial in the later period, and the median confinement went from 3 months to 1 year.
Understanding Trends in Military Practice · 5 min read
Trends › By Installation › Pensacola, Florida › Before and after 2024
Short answer: None of the 8 contested cases that reached a verdict at Pensacola, Florida in 2024–2026 ended in a full acquittal, compared with 14 of 24 in 2019–2023. The base tried 15 courts-martial in the later period, and the median confinement went from 3 months to 1 year. Article 128 (assault) appeared in 40% of cases, compared with 15% across the Navy and Marine Corps.
Verdicts in Contested Cases, Then and Now
A case is contested when the accused pleads not guilty to at least one charge. Pensacola had 7 guilty pleas and 8 contested cases in 2024–2026. The contested share, 53%, was higher than the 36% Navy and Marine Corps-wide, and close to the 59% at Pensacola in 2019–2023.
In 2019–2023, 14 of 24 contested cases that reached a verdict ended in a full acquittal. In 2024–2026, the count was 0 of 8. All 15 cases in the later period ended in a conviction on at least one charge.
| 2019–2023 | 2024–2026 | |
|---|---|---|
| Cases | 42 | 15 |
| Contested (of pleas recorded) | 59% | 53% |
| Full acquittals (decided contested) | 14 of 24 | 0 of 8 |
| Convictions with confinement | 89% | 60% |
| Median confinement | 3 months | 1 year |
| Punitive discharge (enlisted) | 56% | 46% |
| General courts-martial | 55% | 33% |
Longer Median Confinement
9 of the 15 convictions included confinement (60%), compared with 89% in 2019–2023. The median confinement was 1 year, longer than the 6 months across the Navy and Marine Corps. In 2019–2023 the median at Pensacola was 3 months.
Among the sentences that included confinement, a quarter were 2 years or longer. These are adjudged sentences, before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal, and they cover every charge in the case. The groups are small, so the change shows direction rather than exact size.
Assault and Domestic Violence Charges
All 15 records list the charges. Article 128 (assault) appeared in 6 cases (40%), compared with 15% across the Navy and Marine Corps. Article 128b (domestic violence) appeared in 20%, compared with 12%. Article 120b (rape and sexual assault of a child) appeared in 13%, compared with 5%.
Article 134 (general article) and Article 92 (failure to obey order or regulation) each appeared in 13% of cases, lower than their service shares of 21% and 19%.
| UCMJ Article | Cases | Share here | Share, the Navy and Marine Corps as a whole |
|---|---|---|---|
| Art. 128 Assault | 6 | 40% | 15% |
| Art. 128b Domestic violence | 3 | 20% | 12% |
| Art. 120b Rape and sexual assault of a child | 2 | 13% | 5% |
| Art. 134 General article | 2 | 13% | 21% |
| Art. 92 Failure to obey order or regulation | 2 | 13% | 19% |
| Art. 131b Obstructing justice | 1 | 7% | 5% |
| Art. 115 Communicating threats | 1 | 7% | 2% |
| Art. 124 Frauds against the United States | 1 | 7% | 0% |
Discharges
A punitive discharge followed 46% of enlisted convictions: 4 bad-conduct discharges and 2 dishonorable discharges. The share in the rest of the Navy and Marine Corps was 52%, and the share at Pensacola in 2019–2023 was 56%. 1 convicted officer or warrant officer appears, and none was dismissed. A sentence without a punitive discharge does not rule out a later administrative separation.
Court Level and Rank
General courts-martial made up 33% of the cases (5 of 15), compared with 55% in 2019–2023. A general court-martial can impose long confinement and a dishonorable discharge. A special court-martial caps confinement at one year.
Among the accused with rank recorded, there were 11 junior enlisted members, 2 NCOs, and 1 officer. The group is more junior than the rest of the Navy and Marine Corps.
Caseload and Peer Installations
Pensacola tried 7 cases in 2024, 6 in 2025, and 2 in 2026, a partial year. In 2019–2023 it had 42 cases over 5 years, about 8 a year, compared with about 6 a year since. Washington, D.C. and Yokosuka, Japan each tried 21 cases in 2024–2026, with median confinement of 3 months and 5 months.
| Installation | Cases | Contested | Full acquittals (decided contested) | Median confinement | Punitive discharge (enlisted) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pensacola, Florida | 15 | 53% | 0 of 8 | 1 year | 46% |
| Washington, D.C. | 21 | 33% | 2 of 7 | 3 months | 21% |
| Yokosuka, Japan | 21 | 33% | 3 of 7 | 5 months | 69% |
Limits
Special trial counsel and new sentencing rules apply based on offense dates after December 27, 2023. The records give trial dates, not offense dates, so trials from 2024 on mix cases under the old and new rules. The records also do not show the evidence, plea terms, nonjudicial punishment, or administrative separations.
Dates and sources for the law changes mentioned here: UCMJ change timeline.
How We Counted
Every court-martial tried at Pensacola, Florida in 2019–2023 (42) and 2024–2026 (15).
Source: public court-martial records (Article 140a, UCMJ) in Military Trial Results, data updated October 24, 2026. Definitions, sources, and known gaps: how this data was built. Errors: content@bodiesburied.com.
Related Analysis
- Pensacola, Florida: Court-Martial Data and Trends (hub)
- By Installation (hub)
- Pensacola, Florida, 2013–2018: Charges, Verdicts, and Sentences in 74 Cases
- What Was Tried at Pensacola, Florida, 2019–2023? 42 Courts-Martial
- Pensacola, Florida, 2024–2026: Charges, Verdicts, and Sentences in 15 Cases
- Pensacola, Florida Before and After 2019: How Its Courts-Martial Changed
- Bremerton, Washington Before and After 2019: How Its Courts-Martial Changed
- Bremerton, Washington Before and After 2024: How Its Courts-Martial Changed
- Great Lakes, Illinois Before and After 2019: How Its Courts-Martial Changed
- Search every case in Military Trial Results (members)
Military Judges Who Presided Over Cases at Pensacola, Florida, 2024–2026
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 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. This analysis is for education and information only. It is not legal advice, and every case is different.