UCMJ Article 126 Arson vs Article 109 Property Damage: Intentional Fire vs General Destruction
On this page: 5 sections
Article 126 is defined by its method, fire, and by what the fire threatens: people in a dwelling or occupied structure, another person’s property, or someone who is to be defrauded. Article 109 is defined by the property: any property of another that is not military property of the United States, damaged or destroyed by any means. A burned building can fit both articles; the mental state and whether anyone was inside decide which charge fits.
Arson requires a willful and malicious act. Article 109 also reaches reckless waste of real property.
Article 126
(a) … Any person subject to this chapter who, willfully and maliciously, burns or sets on fire an inhabited dwelling, or any other structure, movable or immovable, wherein, to the knowledge of that person, there is at the time a human being, is guilty of aggravated arson
(b) … Any person subject to this chapter who, willfully and maliciously, burns or sets fire to the property of another is guilty of simple arson
(c) … Any person subject to this chapter who, willfully, maliciously, and with intent to defraud, burns or sets fire to any property shall be punished as a court-martial may direct.
Source: 10 U.S.C. § 926 (Article 126).
The Manual for Courts-Martial explains the three offenses (MCM, Part IV, ¶ 75.c):
- What each protects. “In aggravated arson, danger to human life is the essential element; in simple arson, it is injury to the property of another.” It is immaterial that no one was actually injured.
- Willful and malicious means the fire was set “not merely by negligence or accident.”
- Inhabited dwelling means a structure used for habitation, whether or not anyone is inside at the time. A person can commit aggravated arson of his or her own dwelling, as owner or tenant. A shop is not a dwelling unless lived in, and a house never occupied or temporarily abandoned is not one.
- Other structures such as a theater, church, boat, trailer, or tent qualify for aggravated arson only when the accused knows a person is inside; that knowledge can be shown when a reasonable person would have known, as with a store during business hours.
- How much burning. The structure need not be consumed; “any actual burning or charring is sufficient, but a mere scorching or discoloration by heat is not.”
- Burning to defraud focuses on the fraudulent purpose, such as a false insurance claim. “It is immaterial to whom the property belonged.”
The statute speaks of burning or setting on fire; an explosion that burns nothing does not match that wording.
Article 109
Any person subject to this chapter who willfully or recklessly wastes, spoils, or otherwise willfully and wrongfully destroys or damages any property other than military property of the United States shall be punished as a court-martial may direct.
Source: 10 U.S.C. § 909 (Article 109).
The article has two parts with different mental states (MCM, Part IV, ¶ 45.c):
- Wasting or spoiling real property of another can be willful or reckless. The Manual’s examples include “burning down buildings, burning piers, tearing down fences, or cutting down trees,” punishable whether done intentionally, recklessly, or through “a culpable disregard of the foreseeable consequences of some voluntary act.”
- Destroying or damaging personal property of another must be willful (intentional) and wrongful (contrary to law, regulation, lawful order, or custom). Destroyed means useless for its intended purpose; damage is any physical injury.
Negligent damage is not in Article 109’s text. Military property of the United States is excluded entirely; it falls under Article 108.
How the facts sort
| Aggravated arson | Simple arson | Burning to defraud | Article 109 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Method | Fire | Fire | Fire | Any |
| Whose property | Any, including the accused's own dwelling | Another's | Any, including the accused's own | Another's, not military property |
| Mental state | Willful and malicious | Willful and malicious | Willful, malicious, intent to defraud | Willful or reckless (waste of real property); willful and wrongful (personal property) |
| People | An inhabited dwelling, or a structure the accused knows is occupied | Not required | Not required | Not required |
For example, a service member who sets fire to a neighbor’s parked car out of anger commits simple arson, and the same act can be charged as willful destruction of personal property under Article 109. A service member who burns trash in a barrel behind an off-base rental house and, through a reckless disregard of the wind, lets the fire spread and burn down the landlord’s shed stands elsewhere: the willful and malicious element of arson is in doubt, but reckless waste of real property under Article 109 is in play. Whether an act was malicious or merely reckless, and whether the accused knew someone was inside, depend on the evidence of how the fire started and spread.
Maximum punishments
| Offense | Maximum (MCM, Part IV, ¶ 75.d and ¶ 45.d) |
|---|---|
| Aggravated arson | Dishonorable discharge, forfeiture of all pay and allowances, 25 years |
| Simple arson, property of some value | Dishonorable discharge, forfeiture of all pay and allowances, 5 years |
| Simple arson, property worth more than $1,000 | Dishonorable discharge, forfeiture of all pay and allowances, 10 years |
| Burning with intent to defraud | Dishonorable discharge, forfeiture of all pay and allowances, 10 years |
| Article 109 waste, damage, or destruction, $1,000 or less | Bad-conduct discharge, forfeiture of all pay and allowances, 1 year |
| Article 109 waste, damage, or destruction, more than $1,000 | Dishonorable discharge, forfeiture of all pay and allowances, 5 years |
Under Article 109, the value of destroyed property, or the amount of damage, controls the maximum; the Manual’s “general rule” measures damage as the lesser of the cost of repair or replacement (¶ 45.c(3)). Where every finding of guilty is for an offense committed after December 27, 2023, and the case is not capital, the military judge determines the sentence in a general or special court-martial (10 U.S.C. § 853(b)(1)).
Sources
- 10 U.S.C. § 926, arson; burning property with intent to defraud (Article 126)
- 10 U.S.C. § 909, property other than military property of United States: waste, spoilage, or destruction (Article 109)
- 10 U.S.C. § 853, findings and sentencing (Article 53)
- Manual for Courts-Martial, United States (2024 edition), Part IV, ¶ 45 and ¶ 75.
The offenses are described from the statutes and the Manual for general information; no fire or damage in a real case is evaluated. This page reflects the UCMJ as amended through Public Law 119-60 (December 18, 2025) and the Manual for Courts-Martial (2024 edition) as amended by Executive Order 14130.