§ Article 109 : Waste, Spoilage, or Destruction of Non-Military Property

Article 109 of the UCMJ (10 U.S.C. § 909) punishes willfully or recklessly wasting or spoiling, or willfully and wrongfully destroying or damaging, property other than military property of the United States.

Who It Applies To

Any person subject to the UCMJ who willfully or recklessly wastes or spoils, or willfully and wrongfully destroys or damages, any property other than military property of the United States.

What It Covers

Wasting or spoiling non-military property

1. The accused willfully or recklessly wasted or spoiled certain real property in a certain manner.
2. The property was that of another person.
3. The property was of a certain value.

Damaging non-military property

1. The accused willfully and wrongfully damaged certain personal property in a certain manner.
2. The property was that of another person.
3. The damage was of a certain amount.

Destroying non-military property

1. The accused willfully and wrongfully destroyed certain personal property in a certain manner.
2. The property was that of another person.
3. The property was of a certain value.

Key rules

• Wasting or spoiling applies to real property — for example, burning down buildings or piers, tearing down fences, or cutting down trees. It is punishable whether done intentionally, recklessly, or through culpable disregard of the foreseeable consequences of a voluntary act.
• Destroying or damaging applies to personal property, and must be willful (intentional) and wrongful (contrary to law, regulation, lawful order, or custom). Property is destroyed if it is injured enough to be useless for its intended purpose; damage is any physical injury to it.
• For destruction, the value of the property controls the maximum punishment; for damage, the amount of damage controls — generally the lesser of the cost of repair by available local artisans or the replacement cost.

Maximum Punishment

Maximum authorized punishment. For each form — wasting or spoiling real property, damaging property, and destroying property:

• $1,000 or less: bad-conduct discharge, forfeiture of all pay and allowances, and confinement for 1 year.
• More than $1,000: dishonorable discharge, forfeiture of all pay and allowances, and confinement for 5 years.

Sentencing parameters. $1,000 or less, Category 1 (0–12 months). More than $1,000, Category 2 (1–36 months).

The newer sentencing rules apply, subject to the capital-case rules, when the accused is convicted only of offenses committed after 27 December 2023. See How UCMJ Sentencing Rules Apply. The maximum authorized punishment and the applicable sentencing framework do not predict the sentence in a particular case.

Related and Distinguished

Article 109 is the counterpart to Article 108, which addresses military property of the United States. Captured or abandoned property is addressed by Article 108a, and damage by fire by Article 126.

What the Provision Does

Article 109 protects property that does not belong to the armed forces — private property and non-military government property — from intentional or reckless destruction by persons subject to the UCMJ.

History

Article 109 appeared in the original 1950 Uniform Code of Military Justice and was codified at 10 U.S.C. § 909 in 1956. Its text has not been amended since.

Sources

• 10 U.S.C. § 909 (Article 109, UCMJ)
• Manual for Courts-Martial, United States, 2024 edition, Part IV, ¶ 45
• Manual for Courts-Martial, United States (2024 ed.), Appendix 12B and Appendix 12C