> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.bodiesburied.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Did Assault Cases at San Diego, California Change After 2024? - URL: https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/san-diego-california-article-128-before-after-2024/ - Published: 2026-10-30T08:03:50.000Z - Updated: 2026-11-03T01:45:28.000Z - Description: San Diego, California had 14 courts-martial charging Article 128 (assault) in 2024–2026. A punitive discharge followed 30% of enlisted convictions, compared with 55% at San Diego in 2019–2023 and 43% in all Navy and Marine Corps Article 128 cases in 2024–2026. - Author: Jocelyn C. Stewart - Tags: Understanding Trends, San Diego, California, Article 128, Navy-Marine Corps [Trends](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/) › [By Installation](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/by-installation/) › [San Diego, California](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/courts-martial-at-san-diego-california/) › Article 128 **Short answer:** San Diego, California had 14 courts-martial charging Article 128 (assault) in 2024–2026\. A punitive discharge followed 30% of enlisted convictions, compared with 55% at San Diego in 2019–2023 and 43% in all Navy and Marine Corps Article 128 cases in 2024–2026\. Special courts-martial heard 10 of the 14 cases. Based on 14 cases · 2024–2026 · Navy and Marine Corps records · data updated October 24, 2026 ## Fewer Punitive Discharges A punitive discharge followed 30% of enlisted convictions: 2 bad-conduct discharges and 1 dishonorable discharge. In all Navy and Marine Corps Article 128 cases in 2024–2026, the share was 43%. In 2019–2023 at San Diego, it was 55%. A sentence without a punitive discharge does not rule out a later administrative separation. Administrative separations are not in these records. ## A Shift to Special Courts-Martial Special courts-martial heard 10 cases and general courts-martial heard 4\. The general share, 29%, was about the same as the 27% in all Navy and Marine Corps Article 128 cases in 2024–2026\. At San Diego in 2019–2023, the general share was 62%. A special court-martial caps confinement at one year and cannot impose a dishonorable discharge. A general court-martial can impose any lawful sentence. ## Every Conviction Included Confinement All 11 convictions included confinement (100%). The median confinement was 4 months, the same as the median in all Navy and Marine Corps Article 128 cases. Among the sentences, a quarter were 1 year or longer. In 2019–2023, 77% of convictions at San Diego included confinement, and the median was 6 months. These are adjudged sentences, before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal. ## Pleas and Acquittals Of the 14 cases, 13 list the plea: 7 guilty pleas and 6 contested cases. A case is contested when the accused pleads not guilty to at least one charge. The contested share, 46%, compares with 39% in all Navy and Marine Corps Article 128 cases. Of the 6 contested cases that reached a verdict, 3 ended in a full acquittal. In 2019–2023, 12 of 19 did. ## Then and Now The 2019–2023 records show 47 cases over 5 years, about 9 a year. Since 2024 there have been about 6 a year, counting full years only. There were 8 cases in 2024, 4 in 2025, and 2 so far in 2026, a partial year. These 14 cases were 11% of the 126 courts-martial at San Diego in 2024–2026. With 14 cases in the later period, a few cases can change any figure in the table, so the changes show a direction only. | | 2019–2023 | 2024–2026 | | ----------------------------------- | --------- | --------- | | Cases | 47 | 14 | | Contested (of pleas recorded) | 40% | 46% | | Full acquittals (decided contested) | 12 of 19 | 3 of 6 | | Convictions with confinement | 77% | 100% | | Median confinement | 6 months | 4 months | | Punitive discharge (enlisted) | 55% | 30% | | General courts-martial | 62% | 29% | ## Assault Charged Alone in Most Cases Article 128 was the only charge in 8 of the 14 cases, compared with 68 of 148 in all Navy and Marine Corps Article 128 cases. Article 120 (sexual assault) and Article 134 (general article) were each charged in 2\. Article 128b (domestic violence), Article 125 (kidnapping), and Article 92 (orders violation) were each charged in 1. ## Rank of the Accused Among the accused with rank recorded, 9 were junior enlisted members (E-1 to E-4), 4 were NCOs (E-5 to E-9), and 0 were officers. In all Navy and Marine Corps Article 128 cases, junior enlisted members were 62%, so this group was more junior. ## Rule Changes and Record Limits Since December 28, 2023, special trial counsel, not commanders, decide whether to prosecute covered offenses such as sexual assault, domestic violence, and murder. Assault under Article 128 is not itself a covered offense, but special trial counsel who take a covered offense can also take related charges. The records give trial dates, not offense dates, so the 2024–2026 cases mix the old and new rules. The records do not describe the evidence or the plea terms, and they do not include nonjudicial punishment. For what the offense covers and how it is defended, see [Article 128 on the law firm's website](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/practice-areas/court-martial/article-128/?ref=bodiesburied.com). Dates and sources for the law changes: [UCMJ change timeline](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/ucmj-change-timeline/). ### How We Counted Courts-martial tried at San Diego, California that charged Article 128 (found guilty, not guilty, or both): 2019–2023 (47) and 2024–2026 (14). Comparisons use every Navy and Marine Corps case charging Article 128 in 2024–2026. Source: public court-martial records (Article 140a, UCMJ) in [Military Trial Results](https://www.bodiesburied.com/military-trial-results/), data updated October 24, 2026\. Definitions, sources, and known gaps: [how this data was built](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/how-the-military-trial-results-data-was-built/). Errors: content@bodiesburied.com. ## Related Analysis - [San Diego, California: Court-Martial Data and Trends](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/courts-martial-at-san-diego-california/) (hub) - [Article 128 (Assault): Court-Martial Data and Trends](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/article-128-courts-martial/) (hub) - [By Installation](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/by-installation/) (hub) - [San Diego, California Courts-Martial, 2013–2018: What 285 Cases Show](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/san-diego-california-courts-martial-2013-2018/) (the whole docket) - [Inside 173 Courts-Martial at San Diego, California, 2019–2023](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/san-diego-california-courts-martial-2019-2023/) (the whole docket) - [San Diego, California Courts-Martial, 2024–2026: What 126 Cases Show](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/san-diego-california-courts-martial-2024-2026/) (the whole docket) - [Article 128 at Camp Pendleton, California Before and After 2019](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/camp-pendleton-california-article-128-before-after-2019/) (same offense, another installation) - [Did Assault Cases at Norfolk, Virginia Change After 2019?](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/norfolk-virginia-article-128-before-after-2019/) (same offense, another installation) - [Navy-Marine Corps Article 128 Cases by the Numbers, 2017–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/navy-marine-corps-article-128-trend-2017-2025/) - [Article 128 explained on the law firm's website](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/practice-areas/court-martial/article-128/?ref=bodiesburied.com) - [Search every case in Military Trial Results](https://www.bodiesburied.com/military-trial-results/) (members) ← Previous: [Did Assault Cases at San Diego, California Change After 2019?](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/san-diego-california-article-128-before-after-2019/) ## Military Judges Who Presided Over Article 128 Cases at San Diego, California, 2024–2026 - [Philip Hamon](https://www.bodiesburied.com/judge-philip-hamon/) - [Brian John](https://www.bodiesburied.com/judge-brian-john/) - [Andrea Lockhart](https://www.bodiesburied.com/judge-andrea-lockhart/) - [Kevin Quencer](https://www.bodiesburied.com/judge-kevin-quencer/) - [Jon Taylor](https://www.bodiesburied.com/judge-jon-taylor/) 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](https://www.bodiesburied.com/judges/) membership. **Compare: federal court.** [Aggravated Assault: Federal Sentences vs. Article 128 Courts-Martial, 2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-aggravated-assault-vs-article-128/) **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](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/?ref=bodiesburied.com). This analysis is for education and information only. It is not legal advice, and every case is different.