10 U.S.C. § 889
Section 889 · Art. 89. Disrespect toward superior commissioned officer
Amended 2 times on record
Applied in 91 court decisions — leading case Parker v. Levy (1974)
Most recently applied in Mote v. United States (August 2024)
How often courts cite this section
Court decisions citing this, by year.Markers show enactment, consequential amendments, and circuit splits over this section — watch for a citation surge after a change or a disagreement. The dip in the last several years is a data-coverage gap, not a real trend — our corpus holds fewer opinions from the most recent years, so recent citations are undercounted.
(a) Disrespect.—Any person subject to this chapter who behaves with disrespect toward that person's superior commissioned officer shall be punished as a court-martial may direct.
(b) Assault.—Any person subject to this chapter who strikes that person's superior commissioned officer or draws or lifts up any weapon or offers any violence against that officer while the officer is in the execution of the officer's office shall be punished—
(1) if the offense is committed in time of war, by death or such other punishment as a court-martial may direct; and
(2) if the offense is committed at any other time, by such punishment, other than death, as a court-martial may direct.
Editorial notes U.S. Code · Office of the Law Revision Counsel
The word "commissioned" is inserted for clarity.
Prior Provisions
Provisions similar to those in subsec. (b) of this section were contained in section 890 of this title, prior to amendment by Pub. L. 114–328, div. E, title LX, §5409, Dec. 23, 2016, 130 Stat. 2942.
Amendments
2016—Pub. L. 114–328 amended section generally. Prior to amendment, text read as follows: "Any person subject to this chapter who behaves with disrespect toward his superior commissioned officer shall be punished as a court-martial may direct."
Effective Date of 2016 Amendment
Amendment by Pub. L. 114–328 effective on Jan. 1, 2019, as designated by the President, with implementing regulations and provisions relating to applicability to various situations, see section 5542 of Pub. L. 114–328 and Ex. Ord. No. 13825, set out as notes under section 801 of this title.