Federal Assault Sentences in the District of South Carolina, FY2016–2025
83 people were sentenced for assault offenses in the District of South Carolina in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. 80 (96%) received a prison term, and the median was 109 months (9.1 years), higher than the 42 months for assault in all 94 districts. 1 person received a life sentence.
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Trends › Federal Prosecution Analysis › Federal Sentences in the District of South Carolina, FY2016– › Assault: District of South Carolina
In brief: 83 people were sentenced for assault offenses in the District of South Carolina in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. 80 (96%) received a prison term, and the median was 109 months (9.1 years), higher than the 42 months for assault in all 94 districts. 1 person received a life sentence.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 83 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 Terms Were High for Assault
The U.S. Sentencing Commission counted 83 people under the offense type "Assault." 80 (96%) received a prison term, 2 (2%) received probation only, and 1 received a life sentence.
The median prison term was 109 months. A quarter received 124.5 months or more, and a quarter received 61.5 months or less. For all districts, 90% of the 7,573 people in this offense type were sent to prison, with a median of 42 months. For all offenses in the District of South Carolina, the median was 48.2 months.
These are the terms imposed, not time served.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 4 | 120 months | 4 of 4 |
| 2017 | 14 | 120 months | 86% |
| 2018 | 15 | 108 months | 93% |
| 2019 | 16 | 120 months | 81% |
| 2020 | 3 | 78 months | 3 of 3 |
| 2021 | 4 | 91 months | 4 of 4 |
| 2022 | 8 | 84 months | 6 of 8 |
| 2023 | 9 | 97 months | 8 of 9 |
| 2024 | 6 | 40 months | 5 of 6 |
| 2025 | 4 | 48 months | 4 of 4 |
Which Assault Guidelines Applied
The offense type is a category. For 62 people, the primary guideline was §2A2.1 (Assault with Intent to Commit Murder). For 18, it was §2A2.2 (Aggravated Assault), and for 3, it was §2A2.3 (Assault).
The records do not show how each guideline related to each prison term. Assault cases were 1% of the 6,874 people sentenced in the district.
Trials Carried Much Longer Medians
73 of 83 people (88%) pleaded guilty, and 10 were convicted after a trial. In all districts, 93% pleaded guilty, and for all offenses in the district it was 98%.
The median prison term after a guilty plea was 99 months. After a trial, it was 273.5 months, based on 10 people. The records do not explain the difference between those medians.
63% of guilty pleas had a written plea agreement, and 37% were straight pleas with no agreement.
Position Against the Guideline Range
Of the 83 people with this information, 61% (51) were sentenced within the range. 20% (17) were below it at the government's request, and 16% (13) were below it without a government request. 2% (2) were above the range.
Within-range sentences were more common than the 48% for assault in all districts, and more common than the 47% for all offenses in the district.
Mandatory Minimums, Release, and Restitution
A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 14 of the 83 people with that information recorded (17%). 80 people (96%) were ordered to serve supervised release, with a median term of 36 months.
A fine was ordered for 2 people (2%), and restitution for 16 (19%). On criminal history, 22% were in the lowest category, category I, and 16% were in the highest, category VI. Court-martial records have no criminal history field.
Yearly Counts
There were 49 people in fiscal years 2016 to 2019 and 34 in fiscal years 2020 to 2025. Yearly groups range from 3 to 16 people, and medians range from 40 months in fiscal year 2024 to 120 months in several years. Groups this small do not show a trend.
Installations and Limits
Joint Base Charleston, Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island, and Shaw AFB lie within this district. Courts-martial are tried in military courts and are not counted here.
The Commission data covers only people who were convicted and sentenced, and it does not describe individual cases.
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the District of South Carolina (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "South Carolina") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Assault" (83). 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 South Carolina, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the District of South Carolina, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Firearms Sentences in the District of South Carolina, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the District of South Carolina, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the District of South Carolina, 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.