Federal Assault Sentences in the Northern District of Florida, FY2016–2025
32 people were sentenced for assault offenses in the Northern District of Florida in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. 27 (84%) received a prison term with a median of 48 months, and 5 (16%) received probation only. The national median for this offense type was 42 months.
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Trends › Federal Prosecution Analysis › Federal Sentences in the Northern District of Florida, FY201 › Assault: Northern District of Florida
In brief: 32 people were sentenced for assault offenses in the Northern District of Florida in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. 27 (84%) received a prison term with a median of 48 months, and 5 (16%) received probation only. The national median for this offense type was 42 months.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 32 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 for Assault Cases
The U.S. Sentencing Commission counted 32 people in the "Assault" offense type for this district. Assault cases were 1% of the 2,768 people sentenced in the district over these years.
27 of the 32 (84%) received a prison term. The median prison term was 48 months, or 4 years. A quarter received 88 months or more, and a quarter received 18 months or less.
For all 94 districts, this offense type had 7,573 people, 90% of whom were sent to prison, with a median of 42 months. The median here is higher than the national median and the same as the 48 months for all offenses in the district.
Which Assault Guidelines Applied
The Commission's offense type groups several guidelines. The most common primary guideline here was §2A2.2 (Aggravated Assault), with 20 people.
§2A2.3 (Assault) had 4 people, and §2A2.1 (Assault with Intent to Commit Murder) had 3. The records do not describe the facts of any case.
Pleas and Trials
31 of 32 people (97%) pleaded guilty, and 1 was convicted after a trial. The national rate was 93%, and the rate for all offenses in the district was 93%.
The median prison term was 47 months after a guilty plea. For the 1 person convicted at trial and sent to prison, it was 92 months. One person cannot show a pattern.
Among guilty pleas, 74% had a written plea agreement and 23% were straight pleas with no agreement.
Sentences Compared With the Guideline Range
The sentence was within the guideline range for 65% of the 31 people with that information (20). It was below the range at the government's request for 3% (1) and below the range without a government request for 23% (7). 10% (3) were above the range.
Across all 94 districts, 48% of sentences were within the range. In the district for all offenses, 44% were. Assault sentences here were within the range more often than either figure. The count above the range is 3 people.
A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 1 of the 28 people with that information recorded (4%).
Supervised Release, Fines, and Restitution
24 people (75%) were ordered to serve supervised release after prison, with a median term of 36 months. A fine was ordered for 3 (9%), and restitution for 9 (28%).
35% were in the lowest criminal history category, and 16% were in the highest. Court-martial records have no criminal history field.
Yearly Counts
Fiscal years 2016 to 2019 had 10 people, and fiscal years 2020 to 2025 had 22. No year had more than 6 people. Medians in the table run from 12 months in 2024, which is 1 person, to 135 months in 2017.
At these counts, the table shows individual cases more than a pattern.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 3 | 58 months | 2 of 3 |
| 2017 | 3 | 135 months | 3 of 3 |
| 2018 | 2 | 61.5 months | 2 of 2 |
| 2019 | 2 | 48 months | 2 of 2 |
| 2020 | 4 | 44 months | 4 of 4 |
| 2021 | 6 | 36 months | 6 of 6 |
| 2022 | 2 | 78 months | 2 of 2 |
| 2023 | 3 | 57 months | 3 of 3 |
| 2024 | 1 | 12 months | 1 of 1 |
| 2025 | 6 | 24 months | 6 of 6 |
Military Installations and Limits
The district includes Eglin AFB, Hurlburt Field, Pensacola, and Tyndall AFB, which appear in this site's court-martial data. Courts-martial are tried in military courts, not in this federal district court.
The federal data excludes anyone who was acquitted or whose case was dismissed, and prison terms are those imposed, not time served.
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the Northern District of Florida (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Florida North") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Assault" (32). 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 Florida, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the Northern District of Florida, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Firearms Sentences in the Northern District of Florida, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the Northern District of Florida, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the Northern District of Florida, 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.