10 U.S.C. § 886

Art. 86. Absence without leave

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Any member of the armed forces who, without authority—(1) fails to go to his appointed place of duty at the time prescribed;(2) goes from that place; or(3) absents himself or remains absent from his unit, organization, or place of duty at which he is required to be at the time prescribed;shall be punished as a court-martial may direct.(Aug. 10, 1956, ch. 1041, 70A Stat. 67.)

Historical and Revision Notes

Revised section

Source (U.S. Code)

Source (Statutes at Large)

886

50:680.

May 5, 1950, ch. 169, § 1 (Art. 86), 64 Stat. 135.

The words “proper” and “other” are omitted as surplusage.

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 1,673 cases (49 in the last 5 years), 1957–2026 · leading case: United States v. Tardif, 57 M.J. 219 (C.A.A.F. 2002).
United States v. Tardif, 57 M.J. 219 (C.A.A.F. 2002). · cites it 2× “A general court-martial composed of officer and enlisted members convicted appellant, contrary to his pleas, of a 12-day unauthorized absence and assault on a child under the age of sixteen years (two specifications), in violation of Articles 86 and 128, Uniform Code of Military…”
United States v. Jones, 61 M.J. 80 (C.A.A.F. 2005). · cites it 3× “As the lower court 1 10 U.S.C. §§ 886 , 887 (2000). 2 United States v.”
United States v. Jones, 68 M.J. 465 (C.A.A.F. 2010). · cites it 2× “Facts While stationed at Incirlik Air Base, Turkey, Appellant engaged in various activities that resulted in him being charged with failure to go to his place of duty, rape, forcible sodomy, purchasing alcohol for minors, and dishonorably failing to maintain sufficient funds in…”
United States v. Nieto, 76 M.J. 101 (C.A.A.F. 2017). · cites it 2× “a military judge sitting alone as a general court-martial convicted Ap- pellant of four specifications of abusive sexual contact and one specification each of being absent without leave, violat- ing a general order, making a false official statement, and making an indecent…”
Gary Jackson v. Thomas Modly, 949 F.3d 763 (D.C. Cir. 2020). · cites it 2× “4 (“An enlisted man in the Army, for example, is not free to quit his ‘job,’ nor is the Army free to fire him from his employment.”). If an enlisted serviceman or a commissioned officer attempts to leave the military or refuses to work before the required time of service is…”
United States v. Leblanc, 74 M.J. 650 (A.F.C.C.A. 2015). · cites it 2× “TELLER, Judge: The appellant was convicted, pursuant to mixed pleas, by a military judge sitting alone, of being absent without leave, failing to obey a lawful general regulation, failing to obey a lawful order, dereliction of duty, making a false official statement, adultery,…”
Middendorf v. Henry, 425 U.S. 25 (1976). · cites it 2× “86, UCMJ, 10 U. S. C. § 886 , convicted at summary courts-martial, and sentenced, inter alia, to periods of confinement ranging from 20 to 30 days at hard labor.”
United States v. Harrow, 65 M.J. 190 (C.A.A.F. 2007). · cites it 2× “Appellant pled guilty to violations of Articles 86, 107, 121 and 134, UCMJ, 10 U.S.C. §§ 886 , 907, 921, 934 (2000), and thirteen specifications thereunder, to include: multiple failures to go, absence without leave, making a false official statement, theft of insurance…”
United States v. Martinez, 70 M.J. 154 (C.A.A.F. 2011). · cites it 2× “Martinez entered guilty pleas before a military judge sitting as a special court-martial to absence without leave in violation of Article 86, UCMJ, 10 U.S.C. § 886 , and to being drunk on station in violation of Article 134, UCMJ, 10 U.”
United States v. Donaldson, 58 M.J. 477 (C.A.A.F. 2003). · cites it 2× “cer (three specifications), disrespect to a noncommissioned officer, failure to obey a lawful general regulation, driving while intoxicated, cocaine use (two specifications), assault (two specifications), adultery, breaking restriction, and disorderly conduct, in violation of…”
United States v. McPherson, 73 M.J. 393 (C.A.A.F. 2014). · cites it 2× “Articles 86 and 112a, UCMJ, 10 U.S.C. §§ 886 , 912a (2012). The military judge also convicted him, contrary to his pleas, of fraudulent enlistment; another specification of being absent without leave; making a false official statement; wrongfully possessing and using drugs; and…”
United States v. Harris, 61 M.J. 391 (C.A.A.F. 2005). · cites it 2× “Contrary to his pleas, he was convicted of unauthorized absence and larceny1 in violation of Articles 86 and 121, UCMJ, 10 U.S.C. §§ 886 , 921 (2000), respectively.”
Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.