What Wheeler Army Airfield Tried in 2022
Wheeler Army Airfield held 18 courts-martial in 2022, down from 30 in 2021. Attempts under Article 80 were charged in 28% of the cases, compared with 6% across the Army. 67% of convicted enlisted members received a punitive discharge, compared with 76% Army-wide.
Understanding Trends in Military Practice · 5 min read
Trends › By Installation › Wheeler Army Airfield › 2022
Short answer: Wheeler Army Airfield held 18 courts-martial in 2022, down from 30 in 2021. Attempts under Article 80 were charged in 28% of the cases, compared with 6% across the Army. 67% of convicted enlisted members received a punitive discharge, compared with 76% Army-wide.
Changes From 2021
The case count went from 30 in 2021 to 18 in 2022. The median confinement went from 1.1 years to 6 months. The punitive discharge rate for convicted enlisted members went from 55% to 67%.
Other figures moved less. The contested share went from 47% to 44%, and the general court-martial share went from 83% to 78%. Full acquittals in contested cases that reached a verdict went from 5 of 13 to 2 of 8. With groups this small, a few cases can move any of these figures, so the changes show direction rather than precise size.
| 2021 | 2022 | |
|---|---|---|
| Cases | 30 | 18 |
| Contested (of pleas recorded) | 47% | 44% |
| Full acquittals (decided contested) | 5 of 13 | 2 of 8 |
| Convictions with confinement | 79% | 88% |
| Median confinement | 1.1 years | 6 months |
| Punitive discharge (enlisted) | 55% | 67% |
| General courts-martial | 83% | 78% |
Attempts and the General Article
All 18 cases list charges. The general article, Article 134, was the most common, in 6 cases (33%), compared with 21% across the Army. Article 80 (attempts) appeared in 5 cases (28%), compared with 6%.
Some charges were less common than Army-wide. Assault under Article 128 appeared in 4 cases (22%), compared with 27%. Article 120 (rape and sexual assault) appeared in 3 cases (17%), compared with 26%. Article 82 (soliciting) and Article 86 (AWOL) each appeared in 2 cases. A case with several articles is counted under each one.
| UCMJ Article | Cases | Share here | Share, all Army cases in those years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Art. 134 General article | 6 | 33% | 21% |
| Art. 80 Attempts | 5 | 28% | 6% |
| Art. 128 Assault | 4 | 22% | 27% |
| Art. 120 Rape and sexual assault | 3 | 17% | 26% |
| Art. 107 False official statements | 2 | 11% | 8% |
| Art. 92 Failure to obey order or regulation | 2 | 11% | 18% |
| Art. 82 Soliciting | 2 | 11% | 2% |
| Art. 86 AWOL | 2 | 11% | 4% |
Sentences After Conviction
16 cases ended in a conviction, and 14 of those sentences included confinement (88%). The median confinement was 6 months, the same as the Army-wide median. Among the sentences with confinement, a quarter were 1.6 years or longer.
These are adjudged sentences. They are set at trial, before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal, and each covers every charge in the case.
Punitive Discharges and Dismissals
8 of the 12 convicted enlisted members received a bad-conduct or dishonorable discharge (67%), less often than the 76% across the Army. 4 of the 8 were dishonorable discharges. 4 convicted officers or warrant officers appear in the records, and 2 were dismissed. Dismissal is the officer equivalent of a punitive discharge.
Pleas, Plea Agreements, and Forum
10 accused pleaded guilty and 8 contested at least one charge. The contested share of 44% was higher than the 36% Army-wide. 8 of the 10 guilty pleas are recorded with a plea agreement, and 2 have no entry. Army records show whether an agreement existed, not its terms.
The accused usually chooses whether a military judge alone or a panel of members decides guilt. A military judge alone decided 13 of the 18 cases with the forum listed (72%). Members heard 5: 3 enlisted panels and 2 officer panels.
Rank and Court Level
6 accused were junior enlisted (E-1 to E-4), 8 were NCOs (E-5 to E-9), and 4 were officers or warrant officers. Across the Army, 57% of the accused were junior enlisted. General courts-martial heard 14 cases and special courts-martial heard 4. The general share of 78% compares with 75% Army-wide.
Fort Stewart and Fort Carson
Fort Stewart tried 22 cases in 2022 and Fort Carson tried 23. Fort Stewart had a contested share of 59%, and 6 of its 13 contested cases that reached a verdict ended in a full acquittal. Fort Carson had a contested share of 26%. Wheeler had the shortest median confinement of the installations in the table, at 6 months, compared with 11 months at Fort Stewart and 1 year at Fort Carson. It also had the lowest punitive discharge rate.
| Installation | Cases | Contested | Full acquittals (decided contested) | Median confinement | Punitive discharge (enlisted) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wheeler Army Airfield | 18 | 44% | 2 of 8 | 6 months | 67% |
| Fort Stewart | 22 | 59% | 6 of 13 | 11 months | 80% |
| Fort Carson | 23 | 26% | 2 of 6 | 1 year | 90% |
Gaps in the Records
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.
How We Counted
Every court-martial tried at Wheeler Army Airfield with a trial date in 2022 (18 cases).
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
- Wheeler Army Airfield: Court-Martial Data and Trends (hub)
- By Year (hub)
- What Wheeler Army Airfield Tried in 2021 (previous / next)
- What Wheeler Army Airfield Tried in 2023 (previous / next)
- Wheeler Army Airfield, 2020–2023: Charges, Verdicts, and Sentences in 75 Cases (the whole period)
- A Year of Courts-Martial at Camp Humphreys: 2024
- A Year of Courts-Martial at Camp Humphreys: 2025
- A Year of Courts-Martial at Fort Benning: 2022
- A Year of Courts-Martial at Fort Benning: 2023
- Search every case in Military Trial Results (members)
Military Judges Who Presided Over Cases at Wheeler Army Airfield, 2022
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.