UCMJ Article 93: Cruelty and Maltreatment

Article 93 punishes cruelty, oppression, or maltreatment of anyone “subject to his orders,” a relationship that reaches beyond the accused’s own chain of command. The harm need not be physical, but it is judged by an objective standard, and demanding duties lawfully imposed are not maltreatment. The maximum is a dishonorable discharge, forfeiture of all pay and allowances, and 3 years of confinement.

Text and elements of Article 93

Any person subject to this chapter who is guilty of cruelty toward, or oppression or maltreatment of, any person subject to his orders shall be punished as a court-martial may direct.

Source: 10 U.S.C. § 893.

The Manual for Courts-Martial (2024 ed.), Part IV, ¶ 19.b, has two elements: a certain person was subject to the orders of the accused, and the accused was cruel toward, oppressed, or maltreated that person.

Who is “subject to his orders”

The phrase covers “not only those persons under the direct or immediate command of the accused but extends to all persons, subject to the UCMJ or not, who by reason of some duty are required to obey the lawful orders of the accused, regardless whether the accused is in the direct chain of command over the person” (¶ 19.c(1)). A civilian who must follow the accused’s lawful orders as part of a duty can be a victim, and so can a junior member outside the accused’s formal command line.

What counts, and what does not

The cruelty, oppression, or maltreatment “although not necessarily physical, must be measured by an objective standard” (¶ 19.c(2)). The Manual names three kinds of conduct that may qualify when they meet the elements: assault, improper punishment, and sexual harassment.

For this article, sexual harassment includes “influencing, offering to influence, or threatening the career, pay, or job of another person in exchange for sexual favors, and deliberate or repeated offensive comments or gestures of a sexual nature.”

The same paragraph draws the line for leaders: “The imposition of necessary or proper duties and the exaction of their performance does not constitute this offense even though the duties are arduous or hazardous or both.” Hard training and dangerous assignments are not maltreatment because they are hard or dangerous; the question is whether the treatment, measured objectively, was cruel, oppressive, or maltreating.

Article 93 maximum: 3 years since 2019

Under ¶ 19.d, the maximum is a dishonorable discharge, forfeiture of all pay and allowances, and confinement for 3 years. The Manual’s analysis of ¶ 19 records that the maximum confinement was increased from 2 years to 3 years in the 2018 amendments that produced the 2019 Manual.

Sexual harassment as its own offense

Sexual harassment can also be charged as a separate enumerated Article 134 offense (MCM ¶ 107a), which does not require that the victim be subject to the accused’s orders. Its maximum is a dishonorable discharge, forfeiture of all pay and allowances, and 2 years. For offenses after January 1, 2025, that Article 134 offense is a covered offense under special trial counsel authority in each instance in which a formal complaint is made and substantiated under service regulations (10 U.S.C. § 801(17)(A)). Article 93 itself is not on the covered-offense list. How Article 134’s enumerated offenses work is explained under the general article.

Assault, trainee relationships, and hazing rules

Physical harm to a subordinate can also be assault under Article 128, where an aggravated assault can carry more than Article 93’s 3 years. Sexual activity between a trainer or recruiter and a trainee or applicant is addressed specifically by Article 93a. Violating a service anti-hazing regulation can be charged as a failure to obey a lawful general regulation under Article 92.

Sources

• 10 U.S.C. § 893, Article 93, Cruelty and maltreatment (Cornell LII)
• 10 U.S.C. § 801, Article 1, Definitions, paragraph (17) (Cornell LII)
• Manual for Courts-Martial, United States (2024 ed.), Part IV, ¶ 19 and ¶ 107a; Appendix 17, analysis of ¶ 19

General information about military law, not legal advice for any individual case.