Federal Arson Sentences in the District of Minnesota, FY2016–2025
The records list 25 people sentenced for arson in the District of Minnesota, all in fiscal years 2021 to 2025. 92% received a prison term, with a median of 52 months (4.3 years). The median for arson in all 94 federal districts together was 60 months.
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Trends › Federal Prosecution Analysis › Federal Sentences in the District of Minnesota, FY2016–2025 › Arson: District of Minnesota
In brief: The records list 25 people sentenced for arson in the District of Minnesota, all in fiscal years 2021 to 2025. 92% received a prison term, with a median of 52 months (4.3 years). The median for arson in all 94 federal districts together was 60 months.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 25 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.
Arson Cases Appear Only in Fiscal Years 2021 to 2025
The yearly table has rows only for fiscal years 2021 to 2025. The Commission data for this district does not list arson sentences in earlier years of the 2016 to 2025 span. The records cannot show whether there were none or whether they were categorized differently.
13 people were sentenced in 2021, 5 each in 2022 and 2023, and 1 each in 2024 and 2025. A fiscal year runs from October 1 through the end of September. The medians for 2023, 2024, and 2025 rest on 5, 1, and 1 people, so the table does not show a trend.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 13 | 44.5 months | 92% |
| 2022 | 5 | 61.5 months | 4 of 5 |
| 2023 | 5 | 5 months | 5 of 5 |
| 2024 | 1 | 120 months | 0 of 1 |
| 2025 | 1 | 60 months | 1 of 1 |
Prison Terms
23 of the 25 people (92%) received a prison term, and 1 (4%) received probation only. In all districts, 96% were sent to prison.
Among those sent to prison, the median was 52 months (4.3 years). A quarter received 75 months or more, and a quarter received 31.5 months or less. For all offenses in the District of Minnesota, the median was 70 months. Terms are those imposed.
Mandatory Minimums in 44% of Cases
A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 11 of the 25 people (44%). This is a term set by statute that a judge must impose unless a legal exception applies.
Most people had §2K1.4 (Arson) as the primary guideline: 24 of the 25. 1 had §2X3.1 (Accessory After the Fact). These cases were less than 1% of the 3,630 people sentenced in the district in fiscal years 2016 to 2025.
Pleas and Trials
22 of 25 people (88%) pleaded guilty, and 3 were convicted after a trial. The median prison term was 44.5 months after a guilty plea and 120 months after a trial. The trial group has only 3 people.
Guilty pleas were 93% for arson in all districts and 94% for all offenses in this district. 91% of guilty pleas in Minnesota had a written plea agreement, and 9% were straight pleas.
Against the Guideline Range
14 people (56%) were sentenced within the range. 5 (20%) were below it without a government request, 4 (16%) were below it at the government's request, and 2 (8%) were above it.
The within-range share was 45% in all districts and 31% for all offenses in this district.
Supervision, Restitution, and Criminal History
23 people (92%) were ordered to serve supervised release after prison, with a median term of 36 months. Restitution was ordered for 18 (72%), and no fine was ordered.
48% were in the lowest criminal history category and 16% in the highest. Court-martial records have no criminal history field. The data counts only people who were convicted and sentenced.
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the District of Minnesota (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Minnesota") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Arson" (25). 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.
Mandatory minimum sentences. Many federal statutes on drugs, images of child exploitation, child sex abuse, and firearms carry mandatory minimum prison terms. The UCMJ has mandatory minimums only for a few offenses (a dishonorable discharge or dismissal for rape and sexual assault, and life for premeditated murder). Federal sentences for these offenses are partly set by Congress, not by the judge.
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 Minnesota, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the District of Minnesota, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Firearms Sentences in the District of Minnesota, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the District of Minnesota, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Robbery Sentences in the District of Minnesota, 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.