What Changed at Scott AFB, Illinois After 2019? 19 Cases vs. 26
Scott AFB, Illinois tried 26 courts-martial in 2019–2023, compared with 19 in 2016–2018. The median confinement stayed at 4 months in both periods, and the share of convicted enlisted members with a punitive discharge went from 53% to 60%.
Understanding Trends in Military Practice · 6 min read
Trends › By Installation › Scott AFB, Illinois › Before and after 2019
Short answer: Scott AFB, Illinois tried 26 courts-martial in 2019–2023, compared with 19 in 2016–2018. The median confinement stayed at 4 months in both periods, and the share of convicted enlisted members with a punitive discharge went from 53% to 60%. Court level made a large difference: the median confinement was 1.2 years at general courts-martial and 2 months at special courts-martial.
Sentences by Court Level
Of the 26 cases in 2019–2023, 12 were general courts-martial and 14 were special courts-martial. The median confinement at the general level was 1.2 years. At the special level it was 2 months.
Each level has its own limits. A general court-martial can impose any lawful sentence, including long confinement and a dishonorable discharge. A special court-martial caps confinement at one year and cannot impose a dishonorable discharge. The general share at Scott, 46%, was lower than the 53% across the Air Force.
Length of Confinement
Confinement was part of 95% of the 20 convictions. Half of the confinement terms were 4 months or less, and the Air Force median was also 4 months. Sentences under 6 months made up 65% of convictions at Scott, compared with 50% across the Air Force.
Sentences longer than one year came about as often as in the whole Air Force docket: 4 of 20 convictions (20%), compared with 23%. No sentence at Scott reached 5 years. All figures are adjudged sentences, before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal, and each covers every charge in its case.
| Adjudged confinement | Convictions | Share here | Share, the Air Force as a whole |
|---|---|---|---|
| No confinement | 1 | 5% | 12% |
| Under 6 months | 13 | 65% | 50% |
| 6 months to 1 year | 2 | 10% | 15% |
| More than 1 year, under 5 years | 4 | 20% | 17% |
| 5 years or more | 0 | 0% | 6% |
Before 2019 and After
In 2016–2018, Scott tried 19 cases over the 3 years with cases on record, about 6 a year. In 2019–2023 the pace was about 5 a year, counting full years only. The yearly count was 5 in 2019, 2 in 2020, 5 in 2021, 6 in 2022, and 8 in 2023.
Convictions with confinement went from 80% to 95%. The median confinement was 4 months in both periods. General courts-martial went from 53% to 46% of cases. In groups this small, a few cases can shift any figure, so these changes indicate direction, not precision.
| 2016–2018 | 2019–2023 | |
|---|---|---|
| Cases | 19 | 26 |
| Contested (of pleas recorded) | — | 38% |
| Convictions with confinement | 80% | 95% |
| Median confinement | 4 months | 4 months |
| Punitive discharge (enlisted) | 53% | 60% |
| General courts-martial | 53% | 46% |
Which Articles Were Charged?
Shares here use the 19 cases whose records list charges, and one case can count under several articles. Article 112a (wrongful use, possession of controlled substances) appeared in 10 cases, or 53%, compared with 41% across the Air Force.
Article 120 (rape and sexual assault) and Article 128 (assault) each appeared in 4 cases (21%). The Article 120 share was higher than the 11% Air Force share. Article 134 (general article) appeared in 11% of cases, lower than the 21% Air Force share.
| UCMJ Article | Cases | Share here | Share, all Air Force cases in those years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Art. 112a Wrongful use, possession of controlled substances | 10 | 53% | 41% |
| Art. 120 Rape and sexual assault | 4 | 21% | 11% |
| Art. 128 Assault | 4 | 21% | 19% |
| Art. 120b Rape and sexual assault of a child | 2 | 11% | 7% |
| Art. 134 General article | 2 | 11% | 21% |
| Art. 115 Malingering before 2019, communicating threats since | 1 | 5% | 4% |
| Art. 128b Domestic violence | 1 | 5% | 5% |
| Art. 131b Obstructing justice | 1 | 5% | 3% |
Discharges After Conviction
Among 20 enlisted members convicted, 12 received a bad-conduct or dishonorable discharge (60%). That is more often than the 56% in all Air Force cases in those years. 4 of the 12 were dishonorable discharges.
For an officer, the equivalent of a punitive discharge is a dismissal. A sentence without a punitive discharge does not rule out an administrative separation later.
Pleas, Acquittals, and Forum
21 of the 26 records list the plea: 13 guilty pleas and 8 contested cases. A contested case is one where the accused pleads not guilty to at least one charge. The contested share, 38%, was lower than the 50% in all Air Force cases in those years.
6 of the 26 cases ended in a full acquittal (23%), compared with 24% across the Air Force. This rate uses all cases as the base, since Air Force records from 2016 to 2019 rarely list a guilty plea. A military judge alone decided guilt in 19 cases (73%). Members heard 7: 3 enlisted panels and 4 officer panels.
Rank of the Accused
The accused were 16 junior enlisted members (E-1 to E-4), 8 NCOs (E-5 to E-9), and 2 officers or warrant officers. That mix is similar to the Air Force as a whole, where 64% of the accused were junior enlisted.
Compared With Tinker and Ellsworth
Tinker AFB, Oklahoma tried 26 Air Force cases and Ellsworth AFB, South Dakota tried 27 in the same years. Ellsworth had the same contested share as Scott, 38%, while Tinker had 18%. The median confinement was 4 months at Tinker and 3 months at Ellsworth. Scott had the highest punitive discharge share of these installations, at 60%, compared with 58% and 45%.
| Installation | Cases | Contested | Full acquittals (decided contested) | Median confinement | Punitive discharge (enlisted) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Scott AFB, Illinois | 26 | 38% | 5 of 8 | 4 months | 60% |
| Tinker AFB, Oklahoma | 26 | 18% | 1 of 3 | 4 months | 58% |
| Ellsworth AFB, South Dakota | 27 | 38% | 4 of 5 | 3 months | 45% |
Gaps in the Data
The records cover courts-martial only. Cases handled by nonjudicial punishment, administrative separation, or no action do not appear. The records give trial dates rather than offense dates, and they do not describe the evidence or plea terms.
Dates and sources for the law changes mentioned here: UCMJ change timeline.
How We Counted
Every court-martial tried at Scott AFB, Illinois in 2016–2018 (19) and 2019–2023 (26).
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
- Scott AFB, Illinois: Court-Martial Data and Trends (hub)
- By Installation (hub)
- Scott AFB, Illinois, 2019–2023: Charges, Verdicts, and Sentences in 26 Cases
- Scott AFB, Illinois Courts-Martial, 2016–2018: What 19 Cases Show
- Andersen AFB, Guam Before and After 2019: How Its Courts-Martial Changed
- Aviano AB, Italy, 2016–2018 vs. 2019–2023: A Side-by-Side Look
- Aviano AB, Italy, 2019–2023 vs. 2024–2026: A Side-by-Side Look
- Davis-Monthan AFB, Arizona, 2016–2018 vs. 2019–2023: A Side-by-Side Look
- Davis-Monthan AFB, Arizona, 2019–2023 vs. 2024–2026: A Side-by-Side Look
- Search every case in Military Trial Results (members)
Military Judges Who Presided Over Cases at Scott AFB, Illinois, 2019–2023
- Wesley A. Braun
- Matthew N. McCall
- Mark W. Milam
- Tyler B. Musselman
- Julie L. Pitvorec
- Natalie D. Richardson
- Joshua D. Rosen
- Mark F. Rosenow
- Michael A. Schrama
- Shaun S. Speranza
- Pilar G. Wennrich
- Charles E. Wiedie Jr.
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.