October 8, 2026 | Josh McDowell
You get stopped on Academy Boulevard. Or police show up at your off-post apartment after an argument. Now you have a criminal charge, a court date, and a question that may worry you more than either one: What happens to your military career?
An off-base arrest can create problems in civilian court and with your command. A plea that avoids jail can still affect your clearance, your ability to carry a firearm, or your future in the military.
As a former El Paso County prosecutor and a Colorado Springs criminal defense attorney, I look at more than the sentence attached to a plea offer. For a service member, the consequences outside the courtroom may be just as serious.
Who handles an off-base arrest?
For a Colorado state charge filed in El Paso County, the Fourth Judicial District Attorney’s Office prosecutes the case in county or district court. A municipal ordinance violation goes through the municipal court. Conduct that violates federal law, or happens on federal property, can also involve federal authorities. The charge and the applicable jurisdiction determine where the case goes, not simply which agency made the arrest.
Being off duty or off the installation does not put an active-duty service member outside the Uniform Code of Military Justice. For Guard and Reserve members, military jurisdiction depends on service status and other facts.
A state prosecution also does not automatically prevent a court-martial over the same conduct. State and federal governments are separate sovereigns for double-jeopardy purposes. Military rules and service policies can limit successive prosecutions, so the answer in a particular case requires more than a general statement about double jeopardy.[1]
Your command may also consider administrative action, such as a reprimand, restrictions on favorable personnel actions, or separation proceedings. Article 15 is different: it is nonjudicial punishment, a disciplinary process under the UCMJ.
Do not assume the command must wait until your civilian case ends. And do not assume a dismissal or acquittal automatically ends every military concern. The military may evaluate the underlying conduct under rules and standards that differ from those in civilian criminal court.
Will your command find out?
Plan on it. Local authorities may communicate with the installation, and criminal-history information can surface through military and security screening. You may also have an independent duty to report.
The reporting rule depends on your branch, rank, status, clearance, and applicable orders. A conviction-reporting deadline does not necessarily tell you when you must report an arrest.
Army conviction reporting
The April 15, 2026 version of AR 600-20 places this rule in paragraph 4-20. Army commissioned officers, warrant officers, and enlisted Soldiers in grades E-7 and above must report covered criminal convictions in writing. For those on active duty, the deadline is 15 days after the conviction is announced, even if sentencing or an appeal remains pending. Different timing rules apply to certain Reserve statuses.[2]
The regulation uses a broad definition of conviction. It includes guilty and no-contest pleas, withheld adjudications, deferred prosecutions, and certain pretrial intervention programs. Do not assume that a deferred judgment or a deal described as “no conviction” avoids this reporting requirement.
That definition serves this particular Army reporting rule. It does not decide whether the same disposition counts as a conviction under federal firearms law or another legal rule.
Clearance and other reporting duties
SEAD 3 reporting requirements reach arrests and other criminal involvement, not just convictions. If the rule applies to you, do not wait for a dismissal before reporting the event through the required channel.[3]
Soldiers below E-7 can still have reporting duties. So can members of every other branch. Get advice from an attorney and/or military defense counsel about what applies to you, and meet the deadline. Reporting required information does not mean you should volunteer a detailed account of the incident without legal advice.
DUI and DWAI: more than one driving problem
An off-post DUI can affect your ability to drive on the installation before the criminal case is resolved. But an arrest does not produce the same automatic result in every case.
Military traffic regulations provide for suspension based on specified grounds and review of reliable evidence. Test results, a refusal, police reports, and other evidence can matter. The regulations also provide procedures for notice and review. Your installation’s rules need to be checked.[4]
Keep three issues separate: the criminal charge, any Colorado DMV action, and your installation driving privileges. A favorable result in one does not necessarily resolve the others. Tell your lawyer about every notice you receive, including paperwork from the DMV or the installation.
The incident can also raise military discipline and clearance concerns. If your installation privileges are suspended, do not drive there just because you still have a Colorado license.
Domestic violence and firearms
A misdemeanor plea deserves close attention when your job requires a firearm.
Under 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(9), a qualifying misdemeanor domestic violence conviction prohibits firearm and ammunition possession. There is no military-duty exception to that prohibition.[5]
But not every Colorado case marked “DV” meets the federal definition. The offense must have the required force or deadly-weapon element, involve a qualifying relationship, and satisfy the other federal requirements. Those relationships include certain dating relationships as well as spouses and other specified family or household relationships. Your lawyer must examine the actual offense and the applicable legal requirements.
A deferred judgment and other plea arrangements also need specific analysis from qualified legal counsel. It should never be sold as a blanket solution to firearms, reporting, and military consequences. These systems do not all define a conviction the same way. Nor should every federal firearms prohibition be described as automatically permanent; limited relief provisions and exceptions require their own review.
Protection orders can create immediate restrictions
Firearms restrictions can begin before any conviction. Colorado’s criminal protection-order statute requires firearm and ammunition restrictions when the court makes the specified findings about domestic violence involving actual, attempted, or threatened physical force.[6]
Read the order itself. Your command may issue a separate military protective order. You must follow both. Permission from a spouse or partner does not change a court order, and your commander cannot authorize you to violate it.
Tell your counsel immediately if an order affects your housing, contact with your children, or access to a duty weapon.
Drug allegations and security clearances
Colorado’s marijuana laws do not authorize military marijuana use. Article 112a of the UCMJ specifically addresses wrongful marijuana use and other controlled-substance offenses. State permission to use a substance does not, by itself, make that use permissible in the military.[7]
A drug allegation can create military consequences even when there is no Colorado prosecution. The evidence and applicable military rules determine what disciplinary or administrative action may follow.
Clearance decisions also reach beyond the name of the charge. Adjudicators consider criminal conduct, alcohol and drug involvement, candor, and other relevant circumstances. SEAD 4 calls for an assessment of the whole person. An arrest does not automatically mean you lose your clearance, and a dismissal does not automatically eliminate the concern.[8]
For a job that requires classified access, a clearance problem can affect your duties and career. A separation proceeding presents another set of issues. Get advice about the proposed basis for separation, the possible discharge characterization, and the benefits at stake.
Is Veterans Trauma Court an option?
The Fourth Judicial District’s Veterans Trauma Court accepts eligible veterans and active-duty service members. Military service alone does not establish eligibility. Screening considers the charge, treatment needs, military-related trauma or other qualifying conditions, and their connection to the alleged conduct.[9]
The January 2026 participant guide describes a program that requires a guilty plea or an admission to a probation or deferred-sentence violation. Participants face regular court appearances, treatment, testing, and close supervision. The program takes at least a year, and the guide reports an average of about 18 months.
The district attorney decides what plea offer to make after the screening process. Some agreements may include a deferred sentence or reduced jail exposure. Graduation does not automatically dismiss every participant’s case. The agreement and sentence control the result.
For the right person, this can be a useful option. It is also a substantial commitment. Discuss reporting, firearms, clearance, and military consequences before agreeing to the plea. If a PCS move or deployment is approaching, raise that during screening.
What to do after an off-base arrest
1. Get advice before discussing the facts. You have a right to remain silent during civilian police questioning. Article 31 also provides protections in qualifying military questioning about suspected misconduct. Ask to speak with defense counsel before giving a statement.
2. Find out what you must report. Confirm the rule, deadline, and recipient. Do not confuse an obligation to report an arrest or disposition with a request for a detailed narrative. Do not make a false statement or conceal information you are required to report.
3. Give your lawyer all the paperwork. That includes the summons, bond conditions, protection orders, DMV notices, installation restrictions, and documents from your command.
4. Follow the orders currently in effect. If a condition creates a problem with work or housing, ask your lawyer to seek a change. Do not treat an inconvenient condition as optional.
5. Raise military scheduling conflicts early. Training, deployments, and PCS orders do not cancel a criminal court date. Your lawyer can request scheduling relief, but the court must approve it.[10]
6. Review military consequences before accepting a plea. A deal that avoids jail may still create serious problems with your command, clearance, or firearms eligibility.
Your civilian and military lawyers should work together
Trial Defense Service and Area Defense Counsel handle military defense matters. They generally do not represent you in Colorado state court. Fort Carson’s TDS office provides advice and representation for matters including courts-martial, Article 15 proceedings, administrative separation, and suspect rights.[11]
Your civilian case needs its own defense. That may involve retained counsel or a public defender if you qualify. Your civilian and military defense counsel should coordinate, with your authorization, before a decision in one system creates a problem in the other.
The work starts with the criminal charge. Was the stop lawful? What does the video show? Can the prosecution prove the allegation? Are the test results reliable? Military consequences matter, but they do not replace a careful review of the evidence.
If a plea is worth considering, we also need to know what it means outside the courtroom. Changing the charge name or avoiding jail does not answer that question.
Talk to a lawyer before your first court date
If you were arrested in Colorado Springs or El Paso County, get advice on the civilian charge and your military obligations early. Do not wait until a plea offer is on the table to mention that you serve.
At McDowell Law Firm, we defend service members facing DUI, domestic violence, assault, drug, and other criminal charges. Call 719-227-0022 or visit mcdowellfirm.com to discuss your case.
This article provides general information. The rules and consequences depend on your case, branch, service status, and applicable orders.
Sources
- Congressional Research Service, Constitution Annotated: Dual Sovereignty Doctrine.
- Army Regulation 600-20, April 15, 2026, paragraph 4-20.
- NIH, SEAD 3 reporting requirements.
- 32 C.F.R. § 634.11, administrative procedures for installation driving suspensions and revocations.
- ATF, misdemeanor crimes of domestic violence and federal firearms restrictions.
- Colorado Revised Statutes, Title 18, § 18-1-1001, especially subsection (9).
- 10 U.S.C. § 912a, UCMJ Article 112a.
- SEAD 4, National Security Adjudicative Guidelines; DCSA, adjudication and the whole-person concept.
- Fourth Judicial District Veterans Trauma Court participant guide, January 2026; Fourth Judicial District Attorney’s Office, Veterans Trauma Court.
- Utah State Courts, SCRA scope and civil proceedings.
- Fort Carson Trial Defense Service.
