UCMJ Article 114: Endangerment Offenses
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Article 114 contains four offenses, reckless endangerment, dueling, willful firearm discharge endangering human life, and carrying a concealed weapon, and the Manual for Courts-Martial gives all four the same maximum: dishonorable discharge, forfeiture of all pay and allowances, and 1 year of confinement. No offense in the article carries a higher ceiling, including the firearm offense.
The four offenses
The statute, 10 U.S.C. § 914, sets them out in four subsections:
| Subsection | Offense | Core conduct |
|---|---|---|
| (a) | Reckless endangerment | Conduct that is wrongful and reckless, or wanton, and likely to produce death or grievous bodily harm to another person |
| (b) | Dueling | Fighting, promoting, or being concerned in or conniving at a duel; or knowing of a challenge sent or about to be sent and failing to report it promptly to proper authority |
| (c) | Firearm discharge, endangering human life | Willfully and wrongly discharging a firearm under circumstances such as to endanger human life |
| (d) | Carrying concealed weapon | Unlawfully carrying a dangerous weapon concealed on or about the person |
Source: 10 U.S.C. § 914.
Before January 1, 2019, Article 114 covered only dueling. The Military Justice Act of 2016 (Pub. L. 114-328, § 5426) moved reckless endangerment, willful discharge of a firearm, and carrying a concealed weapon into it from Article 134. For conduct after that date, the government no longer has to prove the Article 134 terminal element (prejudice to good order and discipline or service-discrediting conduct) for these three offenses.
Reckless endangerment: the risk is the offense
The Manual for Courts-Martial (2024 ed.), Part IV, ¶ 52.c(1), defines the terms on which the offense turns:
- Wrongful: “without legal justification or excuse.”
- Reckless: conduct that “exhibits a culpable disregard of foreseeable consequences to others.” The accused need not intend the harm or know it is substantially certain; the question is whether the conduct “was of that heedless nature that made it actually or imminently dangerous to the rights or safety of others.”
- Wanton: includes reckless, but “may connote willfulness, or a disregard of probable consequences,” describing a more aggravated form.
- Likely to produce: when death or grievous bodily harm would be the natural or probable consequence of the conduct, the factfinder may infer that the conduct was likely to produce it.
No one has to be hurt: “It is not necessary that death or grievous bodily harm be actually inflicted” (¶ 52.c(1)(g)).
Dueling, promoting, conniving, and failing to report
The Manual separates the dueling subsection into four offenses (¶ 52.b(2)-(5)). A duel is “combat between two persons for private reasons fought with deadly weapons by prior agreement.” Promoting a duel includes urging or taunting someone to challenge or accept, or acting as a second or carrying a challenge. Conniving means knowing that steps toward a duel are being taken and failing to take reasonable preventive action. Failure to report requires knowledge that a challenge was sent or about to be sent.
Firearm discharge: unsafe to life in general
The phrase “under circumstances such as to endanger human life” refers to “a reasonable potentiality for harm to human beings in general.” In the Manual’s words, the test “is not whether the life was in fact endangered but whether, considering the circumstances surrounding the wrongful discharge of the weapon, the act was unsafe to human life in general” (¶ 52.c(3)). The government does not need to identify a person who was in the line of fire.
The discharge must be willful. A discharge caused by negligence is a different offense that remains under Article 134 (¶ 100): negligent discharge of a firearm, which requires the terminal element and carries confinement for 3 months and forfeiture of two-thirds pay per month for 3 months.
Carrying a concealed weapon
Under ¶ 52.c(4), a weapon is concealed when it is carried and “intentionally covered or kept from sight”; it is dangerous if it was specifically designed to do grievous bodily harm, or was used or intended to be used by the accused for that purpose; and “on or about” means on the person or within immediate reach. The carrying must also be unlawful, which turns on the law and the regulations that apply where the weapon was carried.
One maximum for all four offenses
Paragraph 52.d sets a single maximum for every Article 114 offense: dishonorable discharge, forfeiture of all pay and allowances, and confinement for 1 year.
Because the ceiling is low, the charge that sits next to Article 114 can determine the real exposure. If a round strikes someone, or a person is put in reasonable apprehension of being shot, assault under Article 128 can apply, including aggravated assault with a loaded firearm. If someone dies, manslaughter under Article 119 or murder can apply. Operating or physically controlling a vehicle, aircraft, or vessel in a reckless or wanton manner is a separate offense under Article 113, with its own maximums.
Sources
- 10 U.S.C. § 914, Article 114, Endangerment offenses (Cornell LII)
- 10 U.S.C. § 913, Article 113, Drunken or reckless operation of a vehicle, aircraft, or vessel (Cornell LII)
- Manual for Courts-Martial, United States (2024 ed.), Part IV, ¶ 52 and ¶ 100
General information about military law, not legal advice for any individual case.