This article is part of a comprehensive series covering the punitive articles of the UCMJ (Uniform Code of Military Justice). It is intended for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Service members facing any UCMJ charge should consult a qualified military defense attorney.
Sleeping on duty is a disciplinary problem. Sleeping on duty when you are the sentinel guarding the perimeter is a potentially capital offense. That gap, between ordinary dereliction and sentinel-specific failure, is what Article 95 exists to address. The UCMJ treats sentinels and lookouts differently from every other service member performing every other duty because the consequences of their failure are immediate, physical, and potentially fatal to others.
Article 95 (10 U.S.C. § 895) was substantially restructured by the Military Justice Act of 2016, effective January 1, 2019. The pre-MJA version was a single sentence covering drunkenness, sleeping, and leaving post. The post-MJA version separates the conduct into two distinct subsections with different severity levels, adds a special pay aggravator, and modernizes the language. The restructuring reflects the MJA’s broader pattern of breaking consolidated provisions into more analytically precise components.
Subsection (a): The Serious Offenses
Three acts by a sentinel or lookout trigger Article 95(a): being drunk on post, sleeping on post, or leaving post before being regularly relieved. Each is a separate offense with the same maximum punishment structure. The MCM 2024 (Part IV, Paragraph 20) separates Article 95 into multiple offense types based on the nature of the sentinel’s misconduct.
In peacetime, the maximum punishment is dishonorable discharge, total forfeiture of all pay and allowances, and one year of confinement. If the offense is committed while the accused was receiving special pay under 37 U.S.C. § 310 (the provision covering duty subject to hostile fire or imminent danger), the maximum escalates to dishonorable discharge, total forfeiture, and ten years’ confinement. In wartime, the maximum punishment is death.
The special pay aggravator is a post-MJA addition that creates an intermediate tier between routine peacetime offenses and wartime ones. It recognizes that a sentinel receiving hostile fire or imminent danger pay is performing duties in an environment where the consequences of failure are elevated, closer to combat conditions than to garrison duty, even if the nation is not formally at war. Ten-year maximum reflects that elevated risk.
The elements for each offense require proof that the accused was a sentinel or lookout, that they were posted, and that they committed the prohibited act while serving in that capacity. “Sentinel” and “lookout” include not just formal guard post assignments but any person performing security or observation functions, including those assigned to watch over equipment, installations, or personnel.
“Drunk on post” means intoxication to any degree that impairs the ability to perform sentinel duties. It does not require the level of impairment that civilian DUI statutes typically specify. Any measurable impairment of the sentinel function is sufficient.
“Sleeping on post” does not require proof that the accused intentionally fell asleep. Falling asleep involuntarily, from exhaustion, medication, or illness, still constitutes the offense if the accused was in fact asleep while posted. The voluntary/involuntary distinction may affect sentencing but does not affect guilt. This contrasts with Article 92 dereliction, where willful versus negligent failure carries different maximum punishments. Under Article 95, the act itself, being asleep, is the offense.
“Leaving post before being regularly relieved” means departing the assigned area of responsibility before another sentinel or lookout formally takes over. Brief departures for emergency or to report may be defensible, but the default rule is strict: you stay until relieved.
Subsection (b): The Lesser Offenses
Two additional acts trigger the less severe Article 95(b): loitering on post and wrongfully sitting down on post. These are treated as less serious because they represent diminished vigilance rather than complete abandonment of the sentinel function. The sentinel who sits down is still present and nominally performing duties, they are doing so in a manner that compromises their effectiveness.
In peacetime, the maximum punishment is a bad-conduct discharge, forfeiture of all pay and allowances, and six months’ confinement. With the special pay aggravator, the maximum rises to dishonorable discharge, total forfeiture, and two years. In wartime, the same aggravated maximum applies, unlike subsection (a), subsection (b) does not carry the death penalty even in wartime.
The distinction between subsections (a) and (b) reflects a proportionality judgment. Sleeping, drunkenness, and abandonment represent total failure of the sentinel function. Loitering and sitting represent degraded performance. Both are punishable, but the UCMJ calibrates the severity to the degree of functional failure.
Where Article 95 Ends and Article 92 Begins
The Sentinel Distinction
A service member who falls asleep during a duty shift that does not involve sentinel or lookout functions, sleeping at a desk during a CQ shift, for example, or dozing during a staff duty, is not charged under Article 95. Their conduct falls under Article 92(3), dereliction of duty. The distinction is whether the accused was performing sentinel or lookout functions: security, observation, or watch duties where alertness directly protects people, equipment, or positions from immediate threat.
This boundary matters because the punishment disparity is enormous. Article 92(3) negligent dereliction carries a maximum of three months’ confinement and forfeiture of two-thirds pay for three months. Article 95(a) sleeping on post carries a maximum of one year, or ten years with special pay, or death in wartime. The same physical act (falling asleep) generates radically different legal consequences depending on whether the sleeper was a sentinel.
The companion provision, Article 95a (created by the MJA 2016), addresses the reverse situation: disrespect toward sentinels and lookouts. Where Article 95 punishes sentinels who fail their duties, Article 95a punishes anyone who interferes with sentinels performing their duties through disrespectful language or behavior. Together, the two articles create bidirectional protection: the sentinel must do their job (Article 95), and everyone else must let them (Article 95a). The sentinel’s function is treated as so critical that the UCMJ protects it from both internal failure and external interference.
Joseph L. Jordan, Attorney at Law: Article 95 governs offenses committed by sentinels and lookouts, including being drunk on post, sleeping on post, and leaving post before being properly relieved. In wartime, the maximum punishment is death. The MJA 2016 restructured the article into distinct subsections with different severity levels.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. No attorney-client relationship is created by reading this content. If you are facing charges under the UCMJ or need legal guidance regarding military justice matters, consult a qualified military defense attorney.