Federal Assault Sentences in the Northern District of Georgia, FY2016–2025
50 people were sentenced for assault offenses in the Northern District of Georgia in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. 42 (84%) received a prison term, and the median prison term was 105.7 months (8.8 years), compared with 42 months for this offense type across all 94 districts. 8 (16%) received probation
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Trends › Federal Prosecution Analysis › Federal Sentences in the Northern District of Georgia, FY201 › Assault: Northern District of Georgia
In brief: 50 people were sentenced for assault offenses in the Northern District of Georgia in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. 42 (84%) received a prison term, and the median prison term was 105.7 months (8.8 years), compared with 42 months for this offense type across all 94 districts. 8 (16%) received probation only.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 50 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 High Median With a Wide Range
Among the 42 people sent to prison, the median prison term was 105.7 months. A quarter received 209.5 months or more, and a quarter received 64.2 months or less. The gap between those figures shows that terms varied widely.
The all-district median for assault was 42 months. The median for all offenses in the Northern District of Georgia was 41 months. The assault median here was higher than both.
Across all districts, 90% of people in this offense type were sent to prison. In this district, 84% were.
Which Guidelines Applied?
"Assault" is the U.S. Sentencing Commission's offense type. The most common primary guideline was §2A2.2, Aggravated Assault, with 23 people. Next was §2A2.1, Assault with Intent to Commit Murder, with 15.
§2A2.3, Assault, had 4 people, and §2X3.1, Accessory After the Fact, had 1. These cases were less than 1% of the 5,362 people sentenced in the district in fiscal years 2016 to 2025.
13 people were sentenced in fiscal years 2016 to 2019, and 37 in fiscal years 2020 to 2025.
Pleas and Trials
46 of the 50 people (92%) pleaded guilty, and 4 were convicted after a trial. Across all districts, 93% pleaded guilty. For all offenses in this district, the figure was 96%.
The median prison term after a guilty plea was 105.7 months. After a trial it was 156.5 months, based on 4 people.
Among the guilty pleas, 78% had a written plea agreement and 20% were straight pleas. A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 12 of the 47 people with that information recorded (26%).
Where Sentences Fell Against the Range
46 people had a guideline range recorded. 43% (20) were sentenced within the range. 37% (17) were below it at the government's request, and 15% (7) were below it without a government request. 4% (2) were above it.
Across all districts, 48% of sentences for this offense type were within the range. The share within the range was lower here, and higher than the 32% for all offenses in this district.
Supervised Release, Fines, and Criminal History
39 people (78%) were ordered to serve supervised release after prison, with a median term of 36 months. A fine was ordered for 1 person (2%), and restitution for 9 (18%).
26% were in the lowest criminal history category, category I, and 24% were in the highest, category VI. Court-martial records have no criminal history field.
Yearly Counts Are Very Small
Most fiscal years had 3 to 8 people, and fiscal year 2022 had 13. The median prison term was 240 months in fiscal year 2019, 179.5 months in fiscal year 2022, and 42 months in fiscal year 2025.
Fiscal year 2016 had 1 person and no median is shown. Counts this small do not show a trend.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 1 | n/a | 1 of 1 |
| 2017 | 3 | 73.5 months | 3 of 3 |
| 2018 | 5 | 189 months | 3 of 5 |
| 2019 | 4 | 240 months | 3 of 4 |
| 2020 | 3 | 72 months | 3 of 3 |
| 2021 | 4 | 86 months | 4 of 4 |
| 2022 | 13 | 179.5 months | 100% |
| 2023 | 6 | 154.2 months | 6 of 6 |
| 2024 | 8 | 77 months | 7 of 8 |
| 2025 | 3 | 42 months | 3 of 3 |
What the Records Cannot Show
Only people who were convicted and sentenced are counted. Acquittals and dismissals are not in the data. Prison terms are those imposed, not time served.
The sheet does not describe the injuries, weapons, or victims in any case, so the records cannot explain the range of prison terms.
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the Northern District of Georgia (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Georgia North") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Assault" (50). 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 Georgia, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the Northern District of Georgia, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the Northern District of Georgia, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the Northern District of Georgia, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Firearms Sentences in the Northern District of Georgia, 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.