§ Article 116 : Riot or Breach of Peace

Article 116 of the UCMJ (10 U.S.C. § 916) punishes causing or participating in a riot or a breach of the peace.

Who It Applies To

Any person subject to the UCMJ who causes or participates in a riot, or who causes or participates in a breach of the peace.

What It Covers

Riot

1. The accused was a member of an assembly of three or more persons.
2. The accused and at least two other members of the group mutually intended to assist one another against anyone who might oppose them in doing an act for some private purpose.
3. The group, or some of its members, in furtherance of that purpose, unlawfully committed a tumultuous disturbance of the peace in a violent or turbulent manner.
4. These acts terrorized the public in general, in that they caused or were intended to cause public alarm or terror.

Breach of the peace

1. The accused caused or participated in a certain act of a violent or turbulent nature.
2. The peace was thereby unlawfully disturbed.

Key rules

• The gravamen of riot is terrorizing the public. It is immaterial whether the act intended was lawful, and the common purpose may be formed after the group assembles.
• A breach of the peace is an unlawful disturbance of the peace by an outward demonstration of a violent or turbulent nature. Examples in the Manual include engaging in an affray, unlawfully discharging a firearm in a public street, and loud speech and unruly conduct. A speaker whose language can reasonably be expected to produce a violent or turbulent response is guilty if a breach of the peace results; that the words are true or were provoked is not a defense.
• “Community” and “public” include a military organization, post, camp, ship, aircraft, or station.

Maximum Punishment

Maximum authorized punishment.

• Riot: dishonorable discharge, forfeiture of all pay and allowances, and confinement for 10 years.
• Breach of the peace: confinement for 6 months and forfeiture of two-thirds pay per month for 6 months, with no punitive discharge.

Sentencing parameters. Riot, Category 3 (30–120 months). Breach of the peace, Category 1 (0–12 months), with a recommended maximum of 6 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

Riot requires an assembly of three or more acting for a private purpose; concerted resistance to military authority is mutiny under Article 94. Article 117 addresses provoking words or gestures toward another person, and disorderly conduct is addressed by a separate Article 134 offense.

What the Provision Does

Under the Manual, the gravamen of riot is terrorization of the public. Article 116 separates riot, which requires an assembly of three or more persons and carries a maximum of 10 years’ confinement, from a breach of the peace, which carries a maximum of 6 months.

History

Article 116 appeared in the original 1950 Uniform Code of Military Justice and was codified at 10 U.S.C. § 916 in 1956. Its text has not been amended since.

Sources

• 10 U.S.C. § 916 (Article 116, UCMJ)
• Manual for Courts-Martial, United States, 2024 edition, Part IV, ¶ 54
• Manual for Courts-Martial, United States (2024 ed.), Appendix 12B and Appendix 12C