What Yokosuka, Japan Tried in 2015
Yokosuka, Japan held 14 courts-martial in 2015. All 4 contested cases that reached a verdict ended in a full acquittal. Among the convictions, 70% of enlisted members received a punitive discharge, compared with 58% across the Navy and Marine Corps.
Understanding Trends in Military Practice · 5 min read
Trends › By Installation › Yokosuka, Japan › 2015
Short answer: Yokosuka, Japan held 14 courts-martial in 2015. All 4 contested cases that reached a verdict ended in a full acquittal. Among the convictions, 70% of enlisted members received a punitive discharge, compared with 58% across the Navy and Marine Corps.
4 of 4 Contested Cases Ended in Full Acquittal
10 accused pleaded guilty and 4 contested at least one charge. The contested share was 29%, the same as the 29% across the Navy and Marine Corps. A contested case is one with a not-guilty or mixed plea.
Each of the 4 contested cases that reached a verdict ended in a full acquittal, meaning not guilty of all charges. In 2014, the count was 3 of 10. With this few contested cases, the count can change a great deal between years.
Sentences for the 10 Convictions
10 cases ended in a conviction, and 9 of those sentences included confinement. The median confinement was 7 months, longer than the 5-month median across the Navy and Marine Corps. Among the sentences with confinement, a quarter were 8 years or longer.
These are adjudged sentences. They are set at trial, before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal, and each one covers every charge in the case.
Punitive Discharges
70% of the enlisted convictions included a punitive discharge: 4 bad-conduct discharges and 3 dishonorable discharges. Across the Navy and Marine Corps, the share was 58%. A sentence without a punitive discharge does not rule out a later administrative separation.
Changes From 2014
The case count went from 20 in 2014 to 14 in 2015. The contested share went from 50% to 29%, and the general court-martial share went from 50% to 29%. The median confinement went from 3 months to 7 months, and the punitive discharge rate went from 56% to 70%.
Small groups move with a few cases either way, so these changes show direction rather than precise size.
| 2014 | 2015 | |
|---|---|---|
| Cases | 20 | 14 |
| Contested (of pleas recorded) | 50% | 29% |
| Full acquittals (decided contested) | 3 of 10 | 4 of 4 |
| Convictions with confinement | 88% | 90% |
| Median confinement | 3 months | 7 months |
| Punitive discharge (enlisted) | 56% | 70% |
| General courts-martial | 50% | 29% |
Assault and Sexual Assault Charges
13 of the 14 cases have a charge list. Article 128 (assault) and Article 120 (rape and sexual assault) each appeared in 5 cases (38%). Assault matched the 38% across the Navy and Marine Corps. Sexual assault was higher than the 27% service-wide.
Article 92, Article 112a, and Article 107 each appeared in 2 cases (15%), close to their service-wide shares. Desertion under Article 85 appeared in 1 case. A case with several articles is counted under each one.
| UCMJ Article | Cases | Share here | Share, the rest of the Navy and Marine Corps |
|---|---|---|---|
| Art. 128 Assault | 5 | 38% | 38% |
| Art. 120 Rape and sexual assault | 5 | 38% | 27% |
| Art. 92 Failure to obey order or regulation | 2 | 15% | 15% |
| Art. 112a Wrongful use, possession of controlled substances | 2 | 15% | 16% |
| Art. 107 False official statements | 2 | 15% | 13% |
| Art. 134 General article | 1 | 8% | 11% |
| Art. 85 Desertion | 1 | 8% | 1% |
| Art. 80 Attempts | 1 | 8% | 4% |
Rank and Court Level
Junior enlisted members (E-1 to E-4) made up 36% of the accused and NCOs made up 64%. No officers were tried. Across the Navy and Marine Corps, junior enlisted members made up 47%.
4 of the 14 cases were general courts-martial (29%), compared with 39% service-wide. A special court-martial caps confinement at one year and cannot impose a dishonorable discharge.
Bremerton and Norfolk
Bremerton, Washington tried 45 cases in 2015 and Norfolk, Virginia tried 57. Their median confinement was 4 months and 5 months, both shorter than at Yokosuka. Their punitive discharge rates were 54% and 50%. At Norfolk, 11 of 18 contested cases that reached a verdict ended in a full acquittal.
| Installation | Cases | Contested | Full acquittals (decided contested) | Median confinement | Punitive discharge (enlisted) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yokosuka, Japan | 14 | 29% | 4 of 4 | 7 months | 70% |
| Bremerton, Washington | 45 | 12% | 2 of 5 | 4 months | 54% |
| Norfolk, Virginia | 57 | 32% | 11 of 18 | 5 months | 50% |
Limits
These trials came before the Military Justice Act of 2016 took effect on January 1, 2019. Navy and Marine Corps records before December 2020 often omit the plea and forum. The records do not show the evidence, the plea terms, offense dates, or conduct handled outside a court-martial.
Dates and sources for the law changes mentioned here: UCMJ change timeline.
How We Counted
Every court-martial tried at Yokosuka, Japan with a trial date in 2015 (14 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
- Yokosuka, Japan: Court-Martial Data and Trends (hub)
- By Year (hub)
- What Yokosuka, Japan Tried in 2014 (previous / next)
- What Yokosuka, Japan Tried in 2016 (previous / next)
- Yokosuka, Japan, 2013–2018: Charges, Verdicts, and Sentences in 96 Cases (the whole period)
- A Year of Courts-Martial at Bremerton, Washington: 2015
- A Year of Courts-Martial at Bremerton, Washington: 2017
- A Year of Courts-Martial at Bremerton, Washington: 2018
- A Year of Courts-Martial at Bremerton, Washington: 2020
- Search every case in Military Trial Results (members)
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.