Did Sexual Assault Cases at Yokosuka, Japan Change After 2019?
Yokosuka, Japan had 10 courts-martial charging Article 120 (sexual assault) in 2019–2023, compared with 31 in 2013–2018. Of the 10 accused, 8 contested at least one charge (80%), compared with 65% in all Navy and Marine Corps Article 120 cases.
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Trends › By Installation › Yokosuka, Japan › Article 120
Short answer: Yokosuka, Japan had 10 courts-martial charging Article 120 (sexual assault) in 2019–2023, compared with 31 in 2013–2018. Of the 10 accused, 8 contested at least one charge (80%), compared with 65% in all Navy and Marine Corps Article 120 cases. Of the 8 contested cases that reached a verdict, 4 ended in a full acquittal.
Contested Cases and Their Verdicts
Of the 10 accused, 8 contested at least one charge and 2 pleaded guilty. A case is contested when the accused pleads not guilty to at least one charge. The contested share, 80%, was higher than the 65% in all Navy and Marine Corps Article 120 cases in 2019–2023. At Yokosuka in 2013–2018, it was 77%.
Of the 8 contested cases that reached a verdict, 4 ended in a full acquittal, meaning not guilty of every charge. In 2013–2018, 10 of 24 did. The records do not describe the evidence and cannot show why any case ended as it did.
Assault Charged in 7 Cases
Article 120 was the only charge in 1 of the 10 cases. In all Navy and Marine Corps Article 120 cases in 2019–2023, 31 of 262 charged it alone. At Yokosuka, Article 128 (assault) was charged in 7 cases and Article 120c (indecent recording and exposure) in 2. Article 92 (orders violation), Article 120b (child sexual abuse), and Article 80 (attempt) were each charged in 1.
An assault count filed with a sexual assault count can describe part of the same incident.
Sentences After Conviction
The sentence figures rest on few convictions. Confinement was part of 4 of 6 convictions, and the median confinement was 3.5 years. In 2013–2018, 95% of convictions included confinement, and the median was 1.8 years.
A punitive discharge followed 5 of 6 enlisted convictions, compared with 80% in 2013–2018. These are adjudged sentences, before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal.
Fewer Cases After 2019
The 2013–2018 records show 31 cases over 6 years, about 5 a year. Since 2019 there have been about 2 a year: 4 in 2019, 1 each in 2020, 2021, and 2022, and 3 in 2023. These 10 cases were 20% of the 51 courts-martial at Yokosuka in 2019–2023.
General courts-martial heard 90% of the earlier cases and 100% of the later ones. With 10 cases in the later period, the changes show a direction only.
| 2013–2018 | 2019–2023 | |
|---|---|---|
| Cases | 31 | 10 |
| Contested (of pleas recorded) | 77% | 80% |
| Full acquittals (decided contested) | 10 of 24 | 4 of 8 |
| Convictions with confinement | 95% | 4 of 6 |
| Median confinement | 1.8 years | 3.5 years |
| Punitive discharge (enlisted) | 80% | 5 of 6 |
| General courts-martial | 90% | 100% |
Rank of the Accused
Junior enlisted members (E-1 to E-4) made up 70% of the accused, NCOs 30%, and officers 0%. In all Navy and Marine Corps Article 120 cases, junior enlisted members were 60%.
Which Version of Article 120
Article 120 was rewritten in 2012 and amended again for offenses on or after January 1, 2019. Each case is charged under the version in force on the offense date. The records give trial dates only, so a 2019–2023 trial could involve either version.
Limits of the Records
The records show charges, pleas, findings, and sentences. They do not show the evidence, the plea terms, or conduct handled outside a court-martial. Navy and Marine Corps records before December 2020 often omit the plea.
For what the offense covers and how it is defended, see Article 120 on the law firm's website. Dates and sources for the law changes: UCMJ change timeline.
How We Counted
Courts-martial tried at Yokosuka, Japan that charged Article 120 (found guilty, not guilty, or both): 2013–2018 (31) and 2019–2023 (10). Comparisons use every Navy and Marine Corps case charging Article 120 in 2019–2023.
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
- Yokosuka, Japan: Court-Martial Data and Trends (hub)
- Article 120 (Rape and Sexual Assault): Court-Martial Data and Trends (hub)
- By Installation (hub)
- Yokosuka, Japan, 2013–2018: Charges, Verdicts, and Sentences in 96 Cases (the whole docket)
- Inside 51 Courts-Martial at Yokosuka, Japan, 2019–2023 (the whole docket)
- Yokosuka, Japan Courts-Martial, 2024–2026: What 21 Cases Show (the whole docket)
- Sexual Assault Cases at Norfolk, Virginia: 2013–2018 vs. 2019–2023 (same offense, another installation)
- Article 120 at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina Before and After 2019 (same offense, another installation)
- Is Navy-Marine Corps Sexual Assault Prosecution Rising or Falling? Article 120, 2017–2025
- S2 E1: Article 120 Dismissal & the Aftermath (podcast, members)
- Article 120 explained on the law firm's website
- Search every case in Military Trial Results (members)
Military Judges Who Presided Over Article 120 Cases at Yokosuka, Japan, 2019–2023
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.
Compare: federal court. Sexual Abuse of an Adult: Federal Cases vs. Article 120 Courts-Martial
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.