Federal Assault Sentences in the Northern District of California, FY2016–2025
In the Northern District of California, 82 people were sentenced for assault offenses in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. The median prison term was 104 months, compared with 42 months for assault cases in all 94 federal districts. Only 26% of the sentences were within the guideline range, compared with 4
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Trends › Federal Prosecution Analysis › Federal Sentences in the Northern District of California, FY › Assault: Northern District of California
In brief: In the Northern District of California, 82 people were sentenced for assault offenses in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. The median prison term was 104 months, compared with 42 months for assault cases in all 94 federal districts. Only 26% of the sentences were within the guideline range, compared with 48% nationally.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 82 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.
How Long Were Assault Prison Terms in This District?
Of the 82 people sentenced, 70 (85%) received a prison term. Another 10 (12%) received probation only, with no prison or other confinement.
Among those sent to prison, the median prison term was 104 months (8.7 years). A quarter received 175 months or more, and a quarter received 36 months or less.
In all 94 federal districts together, 7,573 people were sentenced for assault. In that group, 90% were sent to prison and the median prison term was 42 months. The prison term in this district was therefore longer at the median, and the share sent to prison was lower.
What Counts as an Assault Case Here
"Assault" is the U.S. Sentencing Commission's own offense category. It is a label the Commission assigns to each case, and it is not a single federal statute.
The most common primary guideline in these cases was §2A2.1 (Assault with Intent to Commit Murder), with 54 people. Next were §2A2.2 (Aggravated Assault), with 13, and §2A2.3 (Assault), with 11.
Because 54 of the 82 cases fall under the first guideline, the median prison term reflects mostly one kind of charge. It does not describe a minor assault.
Where Sentences Fell Against the Guideline Range
The guideline range is the sentencing range calculated under the federal guidelines. Of the 81 people with this information, 26% (21) were sentenced within the range.
A sentence below the range at the government's request was the most common result: 58% (47). Another 16% (13) were below the range without a government request. No one was sentenced above the range.
For all offenses in this district, 24% of sentences were within the range. For assault cases in all districts, the figure was 48%.
Guilty Pleas, Trials, and Mandatory Minimums
Of the 82 people, 71 (87%) pleaded guilty and 11 were convicted after a trial. Among guilty pleas, 93% had a written plea agreement and 7% were straight pleas with no agreement.
The median prison term after a guilty plea was 88 months. After a trial it was 175 months, based on 11 people convicted at trial and sent to prison.
The records report these as separate groups of cases. The records cannot show whether the trial cases involved different facts from the plea cases.
A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 15 of the 81 people with that information recorded (19%).
Supervised Release, Fines, and Restitution
After prison, 64 people (78%) were ordered to serve supervised release. The median term was 60 months.
A fine was ordered for 2 people (2%). Restitution was ordered for 16 (20%).
In criminal history, 19% were in the lowest category, category I, and 19% were in the highest, category VI. Court-martial records have no criminal history field, so that measure has no military counterpart.
Year-by-Year Counts Are Small
Fiscal years run from October 1 to September 30. In fiscal years 2016 to 2019, 23 people were sentenced for assault in this district. In fiscal years 2020 to 2025, the number was 59.
Assault cases were 2% of the 4,531 people sentenced in the district in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. The district's median prison term for all offenses was 30 months, and its guilty plea rate was 95%.
Single-year counts range from 2 to 12 people. The median in the table swings from 18 months in 2019 to 396 months in 2017, and those figures reflect very few cases. They are not a trend.
These numbers cover only people who were convicted and sentenced. Acquittals and dismissals are not included, and the prison terms are the terms imposed, not time served.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 7 | 108 months | 7 of 7 |
| 2017 | 9 | 396 months | 8 of 9 |
| 2018 | 5 | 216 months | 4 of 5 |
| 2019 | 2 | 18 months | 2 of 2 |
| 2020 | 11 | 84 months | 91% |
| 2021 | 10 | 108 months | 100% |
| 2022 | 10 | 78 months | 80% |
| 2023 | 12 | 122.1 months | 83% |
| 2024 | 5 | 46.3 months | 5 of 5 |
| 2025 | 11 | 120 months | 64% |
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the Northern District of California (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "California North") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Assault" (82). 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 Northern District of California, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the Northern District of California, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Firearms Sentences in the Northern District of California, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the Northern District of California, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the Northern District of California, 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.