Federal Assault Sentences in the Eastern District of Arkansas, FY2016–2025
19 people were sentenced for assault in the Eastern District of Arkansas in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. 17 (89%) received prison terms with a median of 51 months (4.2 years), compared with 42 months for all 94 districts. 5 people were convicted after trials.
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Trends › Federal Prosecution Analysis › Federal Sentences in the Eastern District of Arkansas, FY201 › Assault: Eastern District of Arkansas
In brief: 19 people were sentenced for assault in the Eastern District of Arkansas in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. 17 (89%) received prison terms with a median of 51 months (4.2 years), compared with 42 months for all 94 districts. 5 people were convicted after trials.
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.
A Higher Median Than the National Figure
Among the 17 people sent to prison, the median term was 51 months. The longest quarter received 120 months or more, and the shortest quarter received 39 months or less. For all districts the median was 42 months. For every offense in this district it was 50 months.
2 people (11%) received probation only. In all districts, 90% of 7,573 people sentenced for assault were sent to prison. The terms listed are those imposed at sentencing, not time served.
Guilty Pleas and Trial Convictions
14 people (74%) pleaded guilty and 5 were convicted after a trial. In all districts, 93% of assault cases ended in a guilty plea. In this district, 98% of all cases did.
After a guilty plea the median prison term was 48.5 months. After a trial it was 120 months. That second figure is based on 5 people, so it describes these cases and nothing broader.
Among the guilty pleas, 64% were made under a written plea agreement and 36% had no agreement.
Guideline Range and Mandatory Minimums
8 sentences (42%) were within the guideline range. 6 (32%) were below it without a government request, and 1 (5%) was below it at the government's request. 4 (21%) were above the range.
In all districts, 48% of assault sentences were within the range, and in this district the share across all offenses was 55%. A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 5 of the 19 people (26%).
Which Guidelines Were Used
The Commission's "Assault" offense type comes from the primary guideline in each case. The most common was §2A2.2 (Aggravated Assault), for 12 people. Next were §2A2.3 (Assault) for 3 and §2A2.1 (Assault with Intent to Commit Murder) for 2.
Assault cases were less than 1% of the 4,942 people sentenced in the district in fiscal years 2016 to 2025.
After Prison and Prior Record
16 people (84%) were ordered to serve supervised release, with a median term of 36 months. A fine was ordered for 1 person (5%) and restitution for 3 (16%).
On the criminal history scale, 37% of the group were in the lowest category and 26% in the highest. Courts-martial keep no such measure.
Year-by-Year Counts
6 people were sentenced in fiscal years 2016 to 2019, and 13 in fiscal years 2020 to 2025. No year had more than 4 people. The listed medians range from 30 months to 420 months, and the 420-month figure is a single person in 2021. These counts cannot show a trend.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 4 | 129 months | 3 of 4 |
| 2019 | 2 | 30 months | 1 of 2 |
| 2020 | 1 | 42 months | 1 of 1 |
| 2021 | 1 | 420 months | 1 of 1 |
| 2022 | 4 | 45 months | 4 of 4 |
| 2023 | 3 | 64.5 months | 2 of 3 |
| 2024 | 3 | 46 months | 2 of 3 |
| 2025 | 1 | 120 months | 0 of 1 |
Where the Records End
Little Rock AFB, Arkansas, is in the district. Military courts, not this federal court, try courts-martial.
Acquittals and dismissals are not in the data, and neither are the circumstances of any assault.
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the Eastern District of Arkansas (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Arkansas East") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Assault" (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.
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 Eastern District of Arkansas, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the Eastern District of Arkansas, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Firearms Sentences in the Eastern District of Arkansas, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Prison Offense Sentences in the Eastern District of Arkansas, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the Eastern District of Arkansas, 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.