22 Assault Courts-Martial at Vilseck (Europe), 2024–2026: What the Records Show

Trends › By Installation › Vilseck (Europe) › Article 128, 2024–2026

Based on 22 cases · 2024–2026 · Army records · data updated October 24, 2026

How Many Assault Cases Were There?

This post covers one offense at one Army installation overseas: Article 128 assault cases at Vilseck from 2024 through 2026. The 22 cases are 36% of the 61 courts-martial at Vilseck in those years.

There were 6 cases in 2024, 10 in 2025, and 6 so far in 2026, which is a partial year. With numbers this small, 1 case can change a percentage noticeably. The figures describe these cases and do not predict outcomes.

Most Convictions Included a Punitive Discharge

A punitive discharge is a bad-conduct discharge or a dishonorable discharge. 16 of 19 convicted enlisted members received a punitive discharge (84%). Across Army Article 128 cases, the share was 72%. 15 were bad-conduct discharges, and 1 was a dishonorable discharge.

A general court-martial or a special court-martial can adjudge a bad-conduct discharge. Only a general court-martial can adjudge a dishonorable discharge. A sentence without a punitive discharge does not rule out a later administrative separation. These records do not include administrative separations.

Median Confinement Was 7 Months

19 of the 22 cases ended in a conviction on at least one charge. 18 of those sentences included confinement (95%). The median confinement was 7 months, longer than the 6-month median for this offense in the rest of the Army. A quarter of the sentences were 2.8 years or longer.

These are adjudged sentences. They are the sentences announced at trial, before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal. Each covers every charge in the case, including any other offense charged with the assault.

Pleas and Plea Agreements

A contested case is one where the accused pleads not guilty to at least one charge. 14 of the 22 accused pleaded guilty, and 8 contested at least one charge with a not-guilty or mixed plea. The contested share was 36%, higher than the 29% across Army Article 128 cases.

All 14 guilty pleas are recorded with a plea agreement. Army records show whether there was an agreement, not what it said. The records cannot show whether an agreement limited the sentence.

Who Decided Guilt?

The accused usually chooses whether a military judge alone or a panel of members decides guilt. Members heard 27% of the cases. All 6 were enlisted panels. A military judge alone decided the other 16. Most judge-alone cases are guilty pleas, so this split mostly follows the number of contested cases.

Assault Alone and With Other Charges

Article 128 was the only charge in 9 of the 22 cases. Across Army Article 128 cases, 80 of 242 charged it alone.

The most common other charges were Article 128b (domestic violence) in 4 cases, Article 90 (disobeying an officer) in 4, Article 120 (sexual assault) in 3, Article 92 (orders violation) in 3, and Article 134 (the general article) in 3. When an assault charge appears with a sexual assault or domestic violence charge, it can describe part of the same incident. The sentence covers the whole case.

Rank and Court Level

The accused were 13 junior enlisted members, 9 NCOs, and 0 officers. That rank mix is more junior than the Army as a whole.

There were 14 general courts-martial and 8 special courts-martial. The general court-martial share was 64%, lower than the 75% across the Army. A general court-martial can impose any lawful sentence. A special court-martial can adjudge no more than one year of confinement and no dishonorable discharge.

Rule Changes That Apply to These Years

Since December 28, 2023, special trial counsel, not commanders, decide whether to prosecute covered offenses such as sexual assault and domestic violence. Article 128 assault is not a covered offense. A special trial counsel who takes a covered offense can also take related offenses, such as an assault tied to a domestic violence allegation.

When every guilty finding in a case is for an offense after December 27, 2023, the military judge sets the sentence under new sentencing parameters. Both rules depend on the offense date. The records do not give offense dates, so these trials include both old-rule and new-rule cases.

What the Records Do Not Show

The records give trial dates, not offense dates. They do not describe the evidence or the plea terms. Assaults handled by nonjudicial punishment or administrative separation are not included.

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.