Military Domestic Violence Convictions Skyrocketed After Commanders Were Removed from Process
Courts-martial are on the rise for domestic violence charges across the Defense Department services.
By Steve Beynon and Patricia Kime Military.com
Published June 24, 2025 at 3:35pm ET
The military is bringing significantly more domestic violence cases against service members to court, including an increasing share of senior ranking officers, with conviction skyrocketing in a surge tied to a major overhaul of how serious crimes are prosecuted in the ranks.
The shift comes after years of fights in Congress, with advocates insisting that crimes were being overlooked, and opponents arguing that potential changes would undermine commanders, culminating in a revamping of the system passed by lawmakers as part of an annual defense policy bill in 2022.
According to military court data reviewed by Military.com, 43 soldiers in the Army were convicted of Article 128b – the charge for domestic violence – in 2021. That number more than doubled in 2024 to at least 101. The Marine Corps saw roughly 24 convictions for domestic violence in 2024, double the total number from 2019 through 2021, according to records posted online. The Navy, which had three convictions in 2021 and 2022, had 16 in 2024, while the Air Force, with 10 convictions in 2021, had 21 in 2024.
While many incidents still go unpunished, the new legal system, which removed commanders from decisions on prosecution and handed authority to the services' independent Offices of Special Trial Counsel, is seeing success after just 17 months of existence.
https://www.military.com/daily-news/investigations-and-features/2025/06/24/military-domestic-violence-convictions-skyrocketed-after-commanders-were-removed-process.html
