Federal Administration of Justice Offense Sentences in the Middle District of Alabama, FY2016–2025
Federal administration of justice offenses in the Middle District of Alabama led to a prison term for 10 of 19 people (53%) in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, while 8 (42%) received probation only. The median prison term was 21 months. Across all 94 districts, 72% were sent to prison, and the median was
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Trends › Federal Prosecution Analysis › Federal Sentences in the Middle District of Alabama, FY2016– › Administration of Justice Offense: Middle District of Alabama
In brief: Federal administration of justice offenses in the Middle District of Alabama led to a prison term for 10 of 19 people (53%) in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, while 8 (42%) received probation only. The median prison term was 21 months. Across all 94 districts, 72% were sent to prison, and the median was 12 months.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 19 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.
Prison or Probation Only
The U.S. Sentencing Commission counted 19 people in this district whose offense type was "Administration of Justice." Of these, 10 received a prison term, and 8 received probation only, with no prison or other confinement.
The share sent to prison, 53%, is lower than the 72% for the offense type across all districts. The median prison term, 21 months, is higher than the 12 months nationally. A quarter of those sent to prison received 28.6 months or more, and a quarter received 13.5 months or less.
What Offenses Fall Under This Type
The category covers offenses that involve obstructing the legal process. The most common primary guidelines in this district were §2J1.2 (Obstruction of Justice) for 7 people and §2X4.1 (Misprision of Felony) for 6 people.
Others were §2A2.4 (Obstructing or Impeding Officers) for 3 people and §2J1.3 (Perjury or Subornation of Perjury) for 2 people. These cases were less than 1% of the 2,037 people sentenced in the district during the period.
How the Cases Were Resolved
Of the 19 people, 15 (79%) pleaded guilty and 4 were convicted after a trial. The guilty plea share was lower than the 93% for this offense type nationally and the 94% for all offenses in the district.
The median prison term after a guilty plea was 21 months. After a trial it was 19.5 months, based on 2 people sent to prison. With so few people, these figures cannot be compared with confidence.
Among the guilty pleas, 93% had a written plea agreement and 7% were straight pleas.
Position Against the Guideline Range
The sentence was within the guideline range for 12 people (63%). It was below the range at the government's request for 4 (21%) and below the range without a government request for 3 (16%). No sentence was above the range.
Across all districts, 48% of sentences for this offense type were within the range. For all offenses in this district, 47% were. A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 0 of the 18 people with that information recorded.
Supervised Release, Fines, and Criminal History
Supervised release after prison was ordered for 9 people (47%), with a median term of 36 months. A fine was ordered for 2 (11%), and restitution for 3 (16%).
In criminal history, 72% were in the lowest category and 6% were in the highest. Court-martial records have no criminal history field.
Counts by Year and What Is Missing
Fiscal years 2016 to 2019 account for 13 people, and fiscal years 2020 to 2025 account for 6 people. The yearly table has 5 people or fewer in each year, and several years have a single person. It is not evidence of a trend. Fiscal years run from October through September.
Maxwell AFB, Alabama, is in this district. Courts-martial are tried in military courts, not in this federal district court.
Only people who were convicted and sentenced are counted. Acquittals and dismissals are not in the data. Prison terms are the terms imposed, not time served. The records do not explain the sentences.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 2 | 22.5 months | 1 of 2 |
| 2017 | 5 | 19.5 months | 5 of 5 |
| 2018 | 5 | 20.6 months | 2 of 5 |
| 2019 | 1 | n/a | 1 of 1 |
| 2020 | 2 | 57 months | 2 of 2 |
| 2021 | 1 | n/a | 1 of 1 |
| 2023 | 1 | n/a | 1 of 1 |
| 2024 | 1 | n/a | 1 of 1 |
| 2025 | 1 | 13 months | 1 of 1 |
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the Middle District of Alabama (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Alabama Mid") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Administration of Justice" (19). 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 Middle District of Alabama, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Firearms Sentences in the Middle District of Alabama, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the Middle District of Alabama, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the Middle District of Alabama, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the Middle District of Alabama, 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.