Wheeler Army Airfield, 2020–2023: Charges, Verdicts, and Sentences in 75 Cases

Trends › By Installation › Wheeler Army Airfield › 2020–2023

Based on 75 cases · 2020–2023 · Army records · data updated October 24, 2026

Attempt Charges Were More Common

Article 80 makes it a crime to attempt another offense under the UCMJ. At Wheeler Army Airfield, 72 records list charges, and Article 80 was charged in 17 of those cases (24%). Across all Army cases in those years, the share was 8%.

14 of the 17 Article 80 cases ended in a conviction on that article (82%). That is the highest rate among the most common charges. The median confinement for those convictions was 8 months. Article 80 cases also ended in a guilty plea more often than any other common charge: 65% of the time (11 of 17).

Other Charges

Assault (Article 128) was the most common charge, in 22 cases (31%), the same as the 31% Army-wide. The general article (Article 134) appeared in 19 cases (26%), compared with 22%. Rape and sexual assault (Article 120) appeared in 18 cases (25%), the same as across the Army.

Insubordination (Article 91) was charged more often than elsewhere: 7% compared with 2%. Domestic violence (Article 128b) and drug offenses (Article 112a) were each charged less often: 7% compared with 13%, and 7% compared with 11%. 1 case can appear under several articles, so these shares overlap.

Pleas and Plea Agreements

74 records list a plea. 34 were not-guilty or mixed pleas, and 40 were guilty pleas. A case is contested when the accused pleads not guilty to at least one charge. The contested share was 46%, compared with 35% for all Army cases in those years.

34 of the 40 guilty pleas are recorded with a plea agreement, and 6 have no entry. Army records show whether there was an agreement, not its terms. Cases charging Article 120 ended in a guilty plea 11% of the time (2 of 18), the lowest among the most common charges.

Results in Contested Cases

33 contested cases reached a verdict. 36% ended in a full acquittal, about the same as the 37% across the Army. 13 more ended in a partial acquittal, meaning the accused was found not guilty of at least one charge or specification but guilty of another. Army results list findings charge by charge, so partial acquittals are common.

Results differed by who decided guilt. Members heard 18 of the contested cases with a verdict, and 7 ended in a full acquittal (39%). A military judge alone decided 13, and 3 ended in a full acquittal (23%). Among the most common charges, Article 120 had the fewest convictions on that article: 10 of 18.

Median Confinement Was 8 Months

53 of 60 convictions included confinement. The median confinement was 8 months, longer than the 6 months for all Army cases. A quarter of the sentences were 1.8 years or longer. Article 120 convictions had the longest median of the most common charges: 2.9 years.

23 of 60 convictions (38%) had confinement longer than one year, compared with 27% for all Army cases. 16 convictions (27%) had confinement of more than 1 year and under 5 years, compared with 19% in the rest of the Army. 7 (12%) had 5 years or more, compared with 8%. These are adjudged sentences, before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal.

Rank and Court Level

The accused were more senior than the Army as a whole. There were 35 junior enlisted members (E-1 to E-4), 33 NCOs (E-5 to E-9), and 7 officers or warrant officers. Across the Army, 57% were junior enlisted.

General courts-martial heard 61 of the 75 cases (81%), compared with 74% Army-wide. Their median confinement was 1.2 years. The 14 special courts-martial had a median of 30 days. 43% of general courts-martial and 57% of special courts-martial were contested. A special court-martial can adjudge no more than one year of confinement and no dishonorable discharge.

Who Decided Guilt, and Punitive Discharges

The accused usually chooses whether a military judge alone or a panel of members decides guilt. A military judge alone decided 53 cases, an enlisted panel 15, and an officer panel 5. Members heard 27% of the cases, compared with 21% across the Army. Members heard 19 of 32 contested cases (59%).

37 of 54 convicted enlisted members received a punitive discharge: 17 bad-conduct discharges and 20 dishonorable discharges. Across the Army, the share was 73%. 6 officers or warrant officers were convicted, and 2 were sentenced to dismissal. A sentence without a punitive discharge does not rule out a later administrative separation.

Fort Carson and Fort Drum

Fort Carson (76 cases) and Fort Drum (72 cases) held a similar number of Army cases. Wheeler Army Airfield had the highest contested share of the 3: 46%, compared with 29% at Fort Carson and 43% at Fort Drum. It also had the longest median confinement: 8 months, compared with 7 months and 6 months.

Its punitive discharge rate, 69%, was between Fort Drum's 63% and Fort Carson's 89%.

Case Counts and What the Records Do Not Show

The services were required to begin publishing trial records under Article 140a by December 2020. Army records in this data are sparse before 2021. The records show 3 cases in 2020, 30 in 2021, 18 in 2022, and 24 in 2023. The 75 cases are 5% of the 1,581 Army courts-martial in those years.

The records give trial dates, not offense dates. They do not describe the evidence or the plea terms, and they do not include nonjudicial punishment or administrative separations.

Dates and sources for the law changes mentioned here: UCMJ change timeline.

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.