Federal sentencing reporterFY2018–FY2025 · 524,421 cases
What federal sentences have been, district by district.
Median prison terms, the share of sentences within, below and above the guideline range, and the full distribution of sentence lengths for every federal district, offence type and guideline section, aggregated from the US Sentencing Commission's individual offender datafiles. No cases, no judges, no names.
The datafile contains cases reported to the Commission with sentencing documents. Sentence length statistics use the Commission's capped variable (sentences of 470 months or longer, including life, are recorded as 470 months) and exclude sentences of probation or a fine only. Figures are aggregates of past cases and are not a prediction for any case.
§ 1Length of federal prison terms, all districts
Within guideline range 47%Above range 3%Below range, government sponsored 29%Below range, other 21%Not determinable 3,136
§ 2Browse
94 districts
Every district compared with its circuit and the nation, with an offence-by-offence breakdown. Busiest: W.D. Tex., S.D. Tex., D. Ariz., S.D. Cal., D.N.M..
30 offence types
Immigration, Drug Trafficking, Firearms, Fraud/Theft/Embezzlement, Robbery, Child Pornography and the rest, each with every district compared.
57 guidelines
Chapter Two sections such as §2D1.1, §2L1.2, §2K2.1, §2B1.1, with departure and variance categories.
8 fiscal years
FY2018 · FY2019 · FY2020 · FY2021 · FY2022 · FY2023 · FY2024 · FY2025. Circuits: D.C. Cir., 1st Cir., 2d Cir., 3d Cir., 4th Cir., 5th Cir., 6th Cir., 7th Cir., 8th Cir., 9th Cir., 10th Cir., 11th Cir..
§ 3Offence types, all districts
| Primary offence type | Cases | Prison | Median months | Within range | Below, gov. | Below, other |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Immigration | 177,224 | 95% | 6 | 62% | 25% | 11% |
| Drug Trafficking | 145,914 | 97% | 62 | 30% | 42% | 26% |
| Firearms | 66,005 | 94% | 41 | 52% | 17% | 26% |
| Fraud/Theft/Embezzlement | 43,521 | 74% | 20 | 44% | 25% | 29% |
| Robbery | 11,680 | 99% | 93 | 39% | 27% | 28% |
| Child Pornography | 10,672 | 99% | 96 | 33% | 24% | 40% |
| Sex Abuse | 9,908 | 99% | 180 | 41% | 29% | 26% |
| Money Launder | 9,543 | 88% | 40 | 25% | 44% | 29% |
| Other | 7,753 | 40% | 0 | 90% | 3% | 3% |
| Assault | 6,222 | 91% | 46 | 48% | 22% | 22% |
| Administration of Justice | 5,000 | 73% | 12 | 49% | 21% | 25% |
| Prison Offenses | 3,991 | 96% | 10 | 63% | 15% | 19% |
FY2018–FY2025. All 30 offence types.
§ 4Trend by fiscal year
§ 5Busiest districts
| District | Cases | Prison | Median months | Within range | Below, gov. | Below, other |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Western District of Texas W.D. Tex. | 63,640 | 92% | 10 | 78% | 6% | 10% |
| Southern District of Texas S.D. Tex. | 57,909 | 97% | 12 | 57% | 19% | 22% |
| District of Arizona D. Ariz. | 36,500 | 92% | 9 | 33% | 60% | 6% |
| Southern District of California S.D. Cal. | 26,362 | 95% | 15 | 15% | 79% | 5% |
| District of New Mexico D.N.M. | 20,984 | 99% | 4 | 58% | 31% | 10% |
| Southern District of Florida S.D. Fla. | 12,482 | 94% | 32 | 54% | 13% | 31% |
| Northern District of Texas N.D. Tex. | 11,787 | 96% | 60 | 62% | 14% | 17% |
| Middle District of Florida M.D. Fla. | 10,210 | 90% | 57 | 47% | 20% | 30% |
| Southern District of New York S.D.N.Y. | 9,222 | 95% | 34 | 22% | 21% | 56% |
| Eastern District of Missouri E.D. Mo. | 8,015 | 92% | 46 | 41% | 30% | 25% |
§ 6Reading the figures
- How the guidelines work: offence level, criminal history category, the range, departures and variances.
- What the Commission's datafile does and does not include: which cases are counted, what "life" means in the figures, why probation is excluded from medians.
- Why medians: the difference between the median and the mean when a few sentences are very long.
- Methodology: variables, caps, suppression under 10 cases, thresholds for pages.
Latest datafile: FY2025, dated 29 Apr 2026. The Commission's most recent quarterly update covers the third quarter of fiscal year 2026; quarterly figures are not part of this site.