75 Assault Courts-Martial at San Diego, California, 2013–2018: What the Records Show

Trends › By Installation › San Diego, California › Article 128, 2013–2018

Based on 75 cases · 2013–2018 · Navy and Marine Corps records · data updated October 24, 2026

Most Contested Cases Ended in Full Acquittal

San Diego had 75 Article 128 (assault) cases in these years. Of 29 contested cases that reached a verdict, 20 ended in a full acquittal, meaning not guilty of every charge. That 69% full-acquittal rate is higher than the 48% in the rest of the Navy and Marine Corps.

None of the contested cases ended in a partial acquittal. Each one ended in either a full acquittal or a conviction on every charge. A contested case is one in which the accused pleads not guilty to at least one charge. These figures describe past results, not the strength of any single case.

How Often the Accused Pleaded Not Guilty

Of 73 records that list a plea, 29 show a not-guilty or mixed plea and 44 show a guilty plea. The contested share of 40% was about the same as the 43% across the Navy and Marine Corps as a whole. The difference at San Diego is in how contested cases ended, not in how often cases were contested.

Confinement Was Shorter Than Elsewhere

There were 55 convictions, and 50 of those sentences included confinement (91%). The median confinement was 4 months, compared with 8 months in Navy and Marine Corps-wide Article 128 cases. A quarter of confinement sentences were 10 months or longer.

Confinement under 6 months was 30 convictions (55%), compared with 34% service-wide. Sentences longer than one year were 9 of 55 convictions (16%), compared with 33% in the rest of the Navy and Marine Corps. Of those, 5 (9%) were between 1 year and 5 years and 4 (7%) were 5 years or more. These are adjudged sentences, before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal.

Sentences by Court Level

Special courts-martial tried 39 cases and general courts-martial tried 36. The general share of 48% was lower than the 60% in the rest of the Navy and Marine Corps. At general courts-martial, 95% of convictions included confinement, with a median of 1.5 years. At special courts-martial, 89% did, with a median of 3 months.

A special court-martial caps confinement at one year and cannot impose a dishonorable discharge. A general court-martial can impose any lawful sentence, including long confinement and a dishonorable discharge.

Sexual Assault Was Charged in Many Cases

Assault was the only charge in 28 of the 75 cases. Article 120 (sexual assault) was also charged in 31. Other charges were Article 134 (general article) in 7 cases, Article 131b (obstruction, numbered since 2019) and Article 112a (drug) in 4 each, and Article 107 (false official statement) in 3.

When assault is charged with sexual assault or domestic violence, the assault charge can describe part of the same incident. The results in those cases reflect the whole case. The full-acquittal rate above covers every contested case that charged assault.

Punitive Discharges for Convicted Enlisted Members

Of 55 convicted enlisted members, 23 received a punitive discharge: 14 bad-conduct discharges and 9 dishonorable discharges. In Navy and Marine Corps Article 128 cases overall, the rate was 63%.

A punitive discharge is a bad-conduct or dishonorable discharge imposed by a court-martial on an enlisted member. A member without one can still be administratively separated, which these records do not track.

Rank and Cases by Year

The accused were 40 junior enlisted members, 33 NCOs, and 2 officers. That mix is similar to all Navy and Marine Corps Article 128 cases in 2013–2018.

The trials run from March 2013 through November 2018. By year, there were 9 in 2013, 13 in 2014, 17 in 2015, 10 in 2016, 15 in 2017, and 11 in 2018. Assault cases were 26% of the 285 courts-martial at San Diego, California over the period.

The Rules in Force

All of these trials came before the Military Justice Act of 2016 took effect on January 1, 2019. That law 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 these cases. A special court-martial in these years could still impose a bad-conduct discharge and up to one year of confinement.

What the Records Cannot Show

Only cases that reached a courtroom are included. Assaults handled through nonjudicial punishment, administrative separation, or no action are not included. The records do not show the evidence or plea terms. Navy and Marine Corps records before December 2020 often omit the plea and forum, so this post does not say who decided guilt.

For what the offense covers and how it is defended, see Article 128 on the law firm's website. Dates and sources for the law changes: UCMJ change timeline.

Compare: federal court. Aggravated Assault: Federal Sentences vs. Article 128 Courts-Martial, 2016–2025

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.