What does it mean to receive an Article 15 in the US military?
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In civilian life you do something illegal, and you get a criminal conviction. The military has many more things that are illegal, like not showing up for guard duty, being drunk on duty, and a myriad of other things. But there’s no need for a court martial for various small offenses. It would be overkill. So it’s kind of like getting a speeding ticket instead of being charged for criminal speeding.
So when a soldier does something wrong, he can get an Article 15, or non-judicial punishment. The soldier is called to the company commander, is read the charges, and has a chance to explain his side. If the commander decides guilty, the soldier can accept the decision (this is not an admission of guilt, only acceptance) or not. Because of this summary nature, the possible punishments are far less than those of a court martial. Low-level offenses are usually one or more of a little docked pay, extra duty (like cleaning), and confinement to barracks for maybe a month.
Worse offenses, or rejection of the initial Article 15, may be kicked up to the battalion level where the commander can impose some harsher punishments, such as limited loss of rank, more docked pay, and longer extra duty and confinement.
Continued rejection of the Article 15 will result in court martial, which is a federal felony conviction, usually prison time, and discharge with loss of all veterans benefits. Although they usually give only a nominal prison time like a year for these cases.
So advice for new soldiers, it’s almost always best to take the Article 15. They tend to not bring them until they’ve already talked to everybody and know they have you dead to rights. I knew one soldier who contested a relatively minor issue with a slap on the wrist all the way up to getting courtmartialed. That was dumb, ruined his life.
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