Federal Administration of Justice Offense Sentences in the District of North Dakota, FY2016–2025
The District of North Dakota sentenced 67 people under the Commission's "Administration of Justice" offense type in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. Of them, 66 (99%) received prison, with a median of 7.3 months, lower than the 12 months for this type across all 94 districts. The most common primary guide
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Trends › Federal Prosecution Analysis › Federal Sentences in the District of North Dakota, FY2016–20 › Administration of Justice Offense: District of North Dakota
In brief: The District of North Dakota sentenced 67 people under the Commission's "Administration of Justice" offense type in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. Of them, 66 (99%) received prison, with a median of 7.3 months, lower than the 12 months for this type across all 94 districts. The most common primary guideline was §2A2.4 (Obstructing or Impeding Officers), used in 40 cases.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 67 people sentenced in federal court in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. Acquittals and dismissals come from a second source, the Federal Judicial Center's records of 753,808 federal defendants whose cases ended in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. It is part of the Federal Prosecution Analysis series, which builds on Military Moves Toward Sentencing Guidelines to Mirror the Federal System. How the numbers were built: How the Federal Comparison Data Was Built.
Obstruction, Misprision, and Failure to Appear
The offense type is the U.S. Sentencing Commission's category. It groups cases by primary guideline, and 4 guidelines were the most common here.
There were 40 cases under §2A2.4 (Obstructing or Impeding Officers) and 13 under §2X4.1 (Misprision of Felony). Another 9 used §2J1.2 (Obstruction of Justice), and 2 used §2J1.6 (Failure to Appear by Defendant).
These cases were 2% of the 3,337 people sentenced in the district.
A Median of 7.3 Months
Of the 67 people, 66 (99%) received a prison term, and 1 (1%) received probation only. Among those sent to prison, the median prison term was 7.3 months. A quarter received 0 months or less, and a quarter received 18 months or more.
Across all 94 districts, 72% of people in this type were sent to prison. The median for all offenses in the District of North Dakota was 36 months. Prison terms are the terms imposed, not time served.
Pleas Compared With Trials
A total of 65 people (97%) pleaded guilty, and 2 were convicted after a trial. The rate for this type across all 94 districts was 93%, and for all offenses in the district it was 97%.
The median prison term after a guilty plea was 6.5 months. After a trial it was 69 months, based on 2 people. That is too few to show how trials generally end. Among guilty pleas, 97% had a written plea agreement and 2% were straight pleas.
Sentences and the Guideline Range
The sentence was within the guideline range for 35 of the 66 people with this information (53%). It was below the range at the government's request for 17 people (26%) and below it without a government request for 12 people (18%). It was above the range for 2 people (3%).
Across all 94 districts, 48% of sentences in this type were within the range. For all offenses in this district, the figure was 34%. No mandatory minimum applied to any of the 66 people with that information recorded (0%).
Supervised Release, Restitution, and Criminal History
Supervised release after prison was ordered for 64 people (96%), with a median term of 36 months. Restitution was ordered for 20 people (30%), and no fine was ordered for anyone (0%).
In the lowest criminal history category, category I, were 38% of the people. In the highest, category VI, were 15%.
Counts by Fiscal Year
Fiscal years 2016 to 2019 account for 33 people, and fiscal years 2020 to 2025 account for 34 people. A fiscal year starts on October 1 and ends the following September.
The table shows between 2 and 16 people in a year. The median prison term was 0.1 months in both 2022 and 2023, each from 4 people, and 12 months in 2024. These are small groups, and the table does not establish a trend.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 5 | 14 months | 5 of 5 |
| 2017 | 7 | 6 months | 6 of 7 |
| 2018 | 16 | 5.4 months | 100% |
| 2019 | 5 | 18 months | 4 of 5 |
| 2020 | 2 | 9.8 months | 2 of 2 |
| 2021 | 12 | 5.8 months | 100% |
| 2022 | 4 | 0.1 months | 4 of 4 |
| 2023 | 4 | 0.1 months | 4 of 4 |
| 2024 | 7 | 12 months | 7 of 7 |
| 2025 | 5 | 4.3 months | 5 of 5 |
What Is Not in These Records
The Commission counts only people who were convicted and sentenced, so charges that ended in acquittal or dismissal do not appear. The records also do not describe what the obstruction or the failure to appear involved.
The Air Force bases in this district, Grand Forks AFB and Minot AFB, appear in this site's court-martial data. Courts-martial are tried in military courts, and none of these figures describe them.
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the District of North Dakota (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "North Dakota") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Administration of Justice" (67). Offense types are the Commission's OFFGUIDE categories.
Federal fiscal years run from October 1 to September 30. No person, judge, or lawyer is identified in any of these records.
What to Keep in Mind
No parole in federal prison; credit for good conduct. Federal prison has no parole for crimes committed on or after November 1, 1987. A federal prisoner can earn up to 54 days of good conduct credit for each year of the sentence the judge imposed, which is about 15%. Some federal prisoners can also earn First Step Act time credits, but many offenses make a person ineligible. The numbers in this post are the sentences judges imposed, not the time people actually served.
Federal supervised release. Most federal prison sentences are followed by a term of supervised release that the judge sets as part of the sentence. A person who violates it can be sent back to prison. A court-martial cannot sentence anyone to supervision after release. Military parole and mandatory supervised release are decided later by a board, not by the judge at trial.
Who decides the sentence, and under what rules. Federal judges sentence every federal case. They must calculate the Sentencing Guidelines range, which is advisory, and must impose any mandatory minimum the statute requires unless an exception applies. In courts-martial, the accused could choose sentencing by members until the rules changed. For cases in which every guilty finding is for an offense committed after December 27, 2023, a military judge sentences alone, within sentencing parameters. Courts-martial tried in 2024 and later include both old-rule and new-rule cases, and the data cannot tell them apart.
Time periods. Federal numbers are by federal fiscal year (October 1 to September 30), based on the sentencing date. The military numbers are by trial date. Neither source has the date of the offense, so a change in law shows up in either data set gradually.
How life sentences and "time served" are counted. In the federal numbers, a life sentence is counted as 470 months, and any other sentence longer than 470 months is counted as just under 470 months. A sentence of "time served" is counted as one day (0.03 months). Averages are affected by these rules; medians much less.
Related Analysis
- Military Moves Toward Sentencing Guidelines to Mirror the Federal System (the background article)
- Federal Prosecution Analysis (all federal posts)
- How the Federal Comparison Data Was Built (sources and method)
- Federal Sentences in the District of North Dakota, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the District of North Dakota, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the District of North Dakota, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Firearms Sentences in the District of North Dakota, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Assault Sentences in the District of North Dakota, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- U.S. Sentencing Commission, Individual Offender Datafiles (source)
- Federal Judicial Center, Integrated Database (criminal defendants) (source)
About the author. Jocelyn C. Stewart is a retired Army JAG with more than 24 years of trying courts-martial and more than 200 jury trials. She hosts Where All The Bodies Are Buried and runs the Law Office of Jocelyn C. Stewart. This analysis is for education and information only. It is not legal advice, and every case is different.