DA Form 4833: Commander’s Report of Disciplinary Action, Filing Guide

To fill out DA Form 4833, the Commander’s Report of Disciplinary or Administrative Action, pull the original law enforcement file and any legal paperwork for the case, then work through the form block by block: routing numbers at the top, the subject’s identifying information, the offense as originally reported, the action taken with the matching punishment fields, remarks explaining anything the checkboxes cannot capture, and the commander’s signature. Attach the supporting legal documents and return the package to the originating law enforcement office within 60 days.

Who Actually Signs the Form

Before you start filling anything in, confirm the form belongs at your level. Company, troop, and battery commanders complete DA Form 4833 for cases investigated by Military Police Investigators, civilian Department of the Army detectives, and the Provost Marshal Office. The battalion commander, or the first lieutenant colonel in the chain of command, handles cases investigated by the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Division.1U.S. Government Publishing Office. 32 CFR 635.23 – DA Form 4833 Commander’s Report of Disciplinary or Administrative Action For civilian subjects who were titled by Army law enforcement but are not subject to the UCMJ, the Provost Marshal or CID completes and submits the form directly to the U.S. Army Crime Records Center, not the unit commander.2eCFR. 32 CFR 635.15 – DA Form 4833 Commander’s Report of Disciplinary or Administrative Action for Civilian Subjects

What You Need Before You Start

The form ties directly back to the original investigation, so nearly every field draws from paperwork you should already have on the desk. Get the following together first:

  • The MP Report Number or CID case number assigned when the incident was first reported.3U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Division. DA Form 4833 Commander’s Report of Disciplinary or Administrative Action
  • The subject’s full legal name, grade, Social Security Number, and date of birth. The SSN is listed as voluntary on the form, but without it, records cannot be reliably retrieved and the risk of misidentification climbs sharply.
  • The original DA Form 3975 (Military Police Report) or CID Report of Investigation showing the offense as first documented.
  • Any legal documents reflecting the final disposition — you will attach them.

The blank form comes from the Army Publishing Directorate at armypubs.army.mil. Some forms require a Common Access Card to download.4Combined Arms Research Library. Finding Military Publications

Supporting Documents to Attach

Regulation requires supporting documentation with every submission, and the required attachment depends on what happened in the case:1U.S. Government Publishing Office. 32 CFR 635.23 – DA Form 4833 Commander’s Report of Disciplinary or Administrative Action

  • Non-judicial punishment: DA Form 2627 (Record of Proceedings Under Article 15, UCMJ), including any appeal and the appeal authority’s action.
  • Court-martial: the court-martial order showing findings and sentence.
  • Administrative action: letters of reprimand, separation orders, or other adverse personnel actions.

Missing attachments are one of the most common reasons a form gets returned. If you cannot locate a document, coordinate with the Staff Judge Advocate or the servicing legal center before submitting.

Working Through the Form

Routing and Identification Blocks

The top of the form carries the USACRC Control Number (pre-assigned by law enforcement when the form is sent to the commander), the MP Report Number or CID case number, and any sub-installation identifier. Enter the subject’s last name, first name, and middle initial exactly as they appear on the original law enforcement report. Fill in grade, SSN, and date of birth. Use YYYYMMDD format for the date.

Offense and Action Taken

The offense block reflects the misconduct as documented in the original investigation. If the command ended up acting on a different or lesser offense, which is common when a plea agreement produces a conviction on a lesser included offense, note the actual conviction offense in the remarks section.3U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Division. DA Form 4833 Commander’s Report of Disciplinary or Administrative Action

For each offense, indicate whether action was taken and select the category from the form’s checkboxes:5Government Publishing Office. 32 CFR 635.23 – DA Form 4833 Commander’s Report of Disciplinary or Administrative Action

  • Non-adverse referral: family advocacy, drug and alcohol program, mental health, equal opportunity, legal office, or other special referral.
  • Adverse personnel action: letter of reprimand, letter of concern or counseling, adverse evaluation report comment, relief for cause, suspended security clearance, or administrative separation.
  • Non-judicial punishment (Article 15): indicate whether it was summarized, company grade, field grade, general officer imposed, or imposed by the general court-martial convening authority.
  • Judicial: court-martial. Attach the court-martial order.
  • Pre-trial diversion: use code “D” in the trial/NJP finding section to show the soldier entered a diversion program instead of proceeding to trial or punishment.3U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Division. DA Form 4833 Commander’s Report of Disciplinary or Administrative Action

Punishments and Sentences

The form has separate fields for each type of punishment or sentence. These include reprimand, admonition (oral or written), detention, forfeiture of pay, fine, reduction in grade (with “from” and “to” fields), extra duty (number of days), restriction, correctional custody, confinement (years and months), and separation (with type, chapter, characterization, and effective date). Check and complete only the fields that match the actual outcome. An “Other” block is available for anything that does not fit the standard categories.

Commander’s Remarks

The remarks block is where context goes. Use it when the conviction offense differs from the originally reported offense, when administrative action was chosen instead of judicial proceedings, or when the checkboxes do not capture something important about the disposition. If no action was taken on any offense, the form’s instructions direct you straight to this block to explain why.3U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Division. DA Form 4833 Commander’s Report of Disciplinary or Administrative Action

Certification

The final block requires the commander’s typed name and grade, signature, date, and AKO account email address. The signature certifies that the recorded disposition matches the supporting documents. Check every block against the attached legal records before you sign. Errors here become inaccurate entries in federal criminal justice databases.

When the Commander Takes No Action

If, after reviewing the evidence, you decide not to pursue any punishment or administrative action, the form still has to be completed and returned. The regulation is explicit on this point: a “no action” decision must be annotated on the DA Form 4833.5Government Publishing Office. 32 CFR 635.23 – DA Form 4833 Commander’s Report of Disciplinary or Administrative Action Mark “No” for action taken on each offense, skip the punishment fields, go to the Commander’s Remarks block to explain why no action was warranted, then sign, date, and return the form to the agent listed in the “Referred By” field.

Skipping this step leaves the investigation in a pending status in law enforcement databases, which can surface as an unresolved record on later background checks.

Deadline and Where It Goes

You have 60 days from receipt of the blank form to complete it and return it to the originating law enforcement office, whether that is the installation Provost Marshal Office, the Directorate of Emergency Services, or the CID office that sent it.6Department of the Army. Army Regulation 190-45 – Military Police Law Enforcement Reporting If circumstances make that impossible, the brigade-level commander must notify the installation Provost Marshal or Directorate of Emergency Services and request an extension. Installations track delinquent forms monthly and notify both the garrison commander and the senior commander of overdue submissions.

Some units route the completed form through the Staff Judge Advocate’s office before it goes back to the PMO to catch legal errors, though that is a local practice rather than a regulatory requirement.

Why the Detail Matters

A completed DA Form 4833 does not stop at the local law enforcement office. The disposition data is entered into the Army Law Enforcement Reporting and Tracking System, forwarded to the U.S. Army Crime Records Center, and submitted to the FBI’s Criminal Justice Information Services division, where it becomes part of the National Crime Information Center and related systems.7Federal Register. Law Enforcement Reporting2eCFR. 32 CFR 635.15 – DA Form 4833 Commander’s Report of Disciplinary or Administrative Action for Civilian Subjects Those records support background checks for firearms purchases, employment, and security clearances. A late or missing form holds up FBI fingerprint card submissions and final disposition reports to the U.S. Army Crime Records Center, and an inaccurate one carries the error into federal databases that follow the subject long after the case closes.6Department of the Army. Army Regulation 190-45 – Military Police Law Enforcement Reporting Every block on the form is worth a second look before you sign.