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# A Year of Courts-Martial at San Diego, California: 2014
- URL: https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/san-diego-california-courts-martial-2014/
- Published: 2026-10-28T06:54:55.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-30T05:26:38.000Z
- Description: San Diego, California tried 56 courts-martial in 2014. Drug charges under Article 112a were in 29% of cases, compared with 16% across the Navy and Marine Corps. The median confinement was 3 months, compared with 5 months service-wide. Only 20% of cases with a recorded plea were contested.
- Author: Jocelyn C. Stewart
- Tags: Understanding Trends, San Diego, California, 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/) › 2014

**Short answer:** San Diego, California tried 56 courts-martial in 2014\. Drug charges under Article 112a were in 29% of cases, compared with 16% across the Navy and Marine Corps. The median confinement was 3 months, compared with 5 months service-wide. Only 20% of cases with a recorded plea were contested.

Based on 56 cases · 2014 · Navy and Marine Corps records · data updated October 24, 2026

## Drug and AWOL Charges Were More Common

Of the 56 records, 52 list the charges. Wrongful use or possession of controlled substances under Article 112a was the most common charge, in 15 cases. AWOL under Article 86 was charged in 10 cases, or 19%, compared with 11% for the Navy and Marine Corps in 2014.

Assault and sexual assault were less common. Assault under Article 128 was charged in 25% of San Diego cases, compared with 40% service-wide. Article 120 (rape and sexual assault) was charged in 12%, compared with 30%. The general article, Article 134, was charged in 17%, and false official statements under Article 107 in 13%. A case charging several articles counts once under each.

| UCMJ Article                                                                                                                                       | Cases | Share here | Share, the Navy and Marine Corps as a whole |
| -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ----- | ---------- | ------------------------------------------- |
| [Art. 112a](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/ucmj/article-112a-drug-offenses/?ref=bodiesburied.com) Wrongful use, possession of controlled substances | 15    | 29%        | 16%                                         |
| [Art. 128](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/practice-areas/court-martial/article-128/?ref=bodiesburied.com) Assault                                   | 13    | 25%        | 40%                                         |
| [Art. 86](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/practice-areas/court-martial/article-86/?ref=bodiesburied.com) AWOL                                        | 10    | 19%        | 11%                                         |
| [Art. 134](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/practice-areas/court-martial/article-134/?ref=bodiesburied.com) General article                           | 9     | 17%        | 11%                                         |
| [Art. 92](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/practice-areas/court-martial/article-92/?ref=bodiesburied.com) Failure to obey order or regulation         | 8     | 15%        | 12%                                         |
| [Art. 107](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/practice-areas/court-martial/article-107/?ref=bodiesburied.com) False official statements                 | 7     | 13%        | 11%                                         |
| [Art. 120](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/ucmj/article-120-sexual-assault/?ref=bodiesburied.com) Rape and sexual assault                            | 6     | 12%        | 30%                                         |
| [Art. 121](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/practice-areas/court-martial/article-121/?ref=bodiesburied.com) Larceny                                   | 5     | 10%        | 13%                                         |

## Most Cases Ended in a Guilty Plea

A case is contested when the accused pleads not guilty to at least one charge. In 2014, 45 San Diego cases were guilty pleas and 11 were contested. The contested share was 20%. Across the Navy and Marine Corps, it was 33%.

The guilty plea rate was different for each charge. All 10 AWOL cases ended in a guilty plea (100%), the highest among the top charges. Assault cases ended in a guilty plea 46% of the time (6 of 13), the lowest. The records do not say why an accused pleaded guilty or contested.

## Verdicts in Contested Cases

Of the 11 contested cases that reached a verdict, 4 ended in a full acquittal, meaning not guilty of every charge. There were 0 partial acquittals. The full-acquittal rate of 36% is lower than the 42% for the Navy and Marine Corps as a whole.

There were few contested cases, so 1 verdict changes that percentage by several points.

## Conviction Rates and Sentences by Article

Most cases ended in a conviction on the charged article. Drug cases ended in a conviction on that article in 14 of 15 (93%) and assault cases in 12 of 13 (92%). Both had a median confinement of 3 months. Every AWOL case ended in an AWOL conviction (10 of 10), with a median of 4 months.

Article 134 had the longest sentences. All 9 cases charging it ended in a conviction on it, and the median confinement in those cases was 2.4 years. One case can end in a conviction on one article and an acquittal on another, so these rows overlap.

| Article                                                     | Cases charging it | Convicted of it (share) | Median confinement when convicted of it |
| ----------------------------------------------------------- | ----------------- | ----------------------- | --------------------------------------- |
| Art. 112a Wrongful use, possession of controlled substances | 15                | 14 (93%)                | 3 months                                |
| Art. 128 Assault                                            | 13                | 12 (92%)                | 3 months                                |
| Art. 86 AWOL                                                | 10                | 10 (100%)               | 4 months                                |
| Art. 134 General article                                    | 9                 | 9 (9 of 9)              | 2.4 years                               |

## Median Confinement Was Short

There were 52 convictions in 2014, and 48 of them included confinement. The median confinement was 3 months, compared with 5 months elsewhere in the Navy and Marine Corps. A quarter of the confinement sentences were 8 months or longer. These are adjudged sentences, set at trial before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal. Each covers every charge in a case.

Confinement under 6 months was 63% of convictions here, compared with 48% service-wide. Only 8 of 52 convictions (15%) were longer than one year, compared with 26%. Sentences of 5 years or more were 6%, compared with 10%.

| Adjudged confinement            | Convictions | Share here | Share, all Navy and Marine Corps cases in those years |
| ------------------------------- | ----------- | ---------- | ----------------------------------------------------- |
| No confinement                  | 4           | 8%         | 10%                                                   |
| Under 6 months                  | 33          | 63%        | 48%                                                   |
| 6 months to 1 year              | 7           | 13%        | 16%                                                   |
| More than 1 year, under 5 years | 5           | 10%        | 16%                                                   |
| 5 years or more                 | 3           | 6%         | 10%                                                   |

## General and Special Courts-Martial

A general court-martial can impose any lawful sentence, including long confinement and a dishonorable discharge. A special court-martial is capped at one year of confinement and a bad-conduct discharge. San Diego had 17 general and 39 special courts-martial. The general share was 30%, compared with 46% across the Navy and Marine Corps.

Results were very different at each level. General courts-martial were contested 41% of the time and had a median confinement of 2 years. Special courts-martial were contested only 10% of the time, with a median of 3 months.

## Punitive Discharges and Rank

A punitive discharge followed 49% of enlisted convictions: 18 bad-conduct discharges and 7 dishonorable discharges. The service-wide rate was 59%. 1 convicted officer or warrant officer appears in the records and was not dismissed. A sentence without a punitive discharge can still be followed by an administrative separation.

The accused were more junior than the service: 30 were E-1 to E-4, 24 were NCOs, and 2 were officers or warrant officers. Across the Navy and Marine Corps, 49% were junior enlisted.

## Compared With 2013, Norfolk, and Bremerton

San Diego tried 44 cases in 2013\. The contested share was 20% in both years. The share of convictions with confinement went from 90% to 92%. Median confinement went from 6 months to 3 months. Punitive discharges for enlisted members went from 54% to 49%. In groups this small, changes from one year to the next show direction, not precise size.

Norfolk, Virginia had 50 cases, a 48% contested share, and a median confinement of 10 months. Bremerton, Washington had 47 cases, a 23% contested share, and a median of 6 months. Bremerton's enlisted punitive discharge rate was 62%, and Norfolk's was 50%.

| Installation          | Cases | Contested | Full acquittals (decided contested) | Median confinement | Punitive discharge (enlisted) |
| --------------------- | ----- | --------- | ----------------------------------- | ------------------ | ----------------------------- |
| San Diego, California | 56    | 20%       | 4 of 11                             | 3 months           | 49%                           |
| Norfolk, Virginia     | 50    | 48%       | 8 of 24                             | 10 months          | 50%                           |
| Bremerton, Washington | 47    | 23%       | 5 of 10                             | 6 months           | 62%                           |

## The Rules in Force and What the Records Cannot Show

These 2014 trials were under the rules in place before the Military Justice Act of 2016 took effect on January 1, 2019\. That law later added judge-alone special courts-martial and written plea agreements.

The records give trial dates, not offense dates. They do not show the evidence or plea terms. Nonjudicial punishment and administrative separations are not included. Navy and Marine Corps records from this period often omit the plea and forum, so plea counts use only the records that list one.

|                                     | 2013     | 2014     |
| ----------------------------------- | -------- | -------- |
| Cases                               | 44       | 56       |
| Contested (of pleas recorded)       | 20%      | 20%      |
| Full acquittals (decided contested) | 3 of 9   | 4 of 11  |
| Convictions with confinement        | 90%      | 92%      |
| Median confinement                  | 6 months | 3 months |
| Punitive discharge (enlisted)       | 54%      | 49%      |
| General courts-martial              | 27%      | 30%      |

Dates and sources for the law changes mentioned here: [UCMJ change timeline](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/ucmj-change-timeline/).

### How We Counted

Every court-martial tried at San Diego, California with a trial date in 2014 (56 cases).

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)
- [By Year](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/by-year/) (hub)
- [San Diego, California in 2013: 44 Courts-Martial, Year in Review](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/san-diego-california-courts-martial-2013/) (previous / next)
- [What San Diego, California Tried in 2015](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/san-diego-california-courts-martial-2015/) (previous / next)
- [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 period)
- [A Year of Courts-Martial at Bremerton, Washington: 2015](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/bremerton-washington-courts-martial-2015/)
- [A Year of Courts-Martial at Bremerton, Washington: 2017](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/bremerton-washington-courts-martial-2017/)
- [A Year of Courts-Martial at Bremerton, Washington: 2018](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/bremerton-washington-courts-martial-2018/)
- [A Year of Courts-Martial at Bremerton, Washington: 2020](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/bremerton-washington-courts-martial-2020/)
- [Search every case in Military Trial Results](https://www.bodiesburied.com/military-trial-results/) (members)

← Previous: [San Diego, California in 2013: 44 Courts-Martial, Year in Review](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/san-diego-california-courts-martial-2013/)Next: [What San Diego, California Tried in 2015](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/san-diego-california-courts-martial-2015/) →

**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.