Federal Assault Sentences in the Northern District of Illinois, FY2016–2025
In the Northern District of Illinois, 59 people were sentenced for assault offenses in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. Of them, 58 (98%) received a prison term, with a median of 111 months (9.2 years). The median across all 94 districts was 42 months. For all offenses in this district, it was also 42 mon
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Trends › Federal Prosecution Analysis › Federal Sentences in the Northern District of Illinois, FY20 › Assault: Northern District of Illinois
In brief: In the Northern District of Illinois, 59 people were sentenced for assault offenses in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. Of them, 58 (98%) received a prison term, with a median of 111 months (9.2 years). The median across all 94 districts was 42 months. For all offenses in this district, it was also 42 months.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 59 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.
Above-Range Sentences in Assault Cases
Above the guideline range were 10 of the 59 sentences (17%). Within the range were 25 (42%).
Below the range without a request from the government were 17 (29%), and below it at the government's request were 7 (12%).
In all districts, 48% of assault sentences were within the range. For all offenses in this district, the share was 29%.
Prison Terms
Among the 58 people sent to prison, the median term was 111 months (9.2 years). A quarter received 216 months or more, and a quarter received 84.2 months or less.
The all-district median for assault was 42 months, and the median for all offenses in this district was also 42 months. This district's assault median is higher than both.
One person (2%) received probation only. In all districts, 90% of people sentenced for assault were sent to prison.
Guilty Pleas and Trial Convictions
Of the 59 people, 50 (85%) pleaded guilty, and 9 were convicted after a trial. In all districts, 93% pleaded guilty. For all offenses in this district, the figure was 93%.
The median prison term after a guilty plea was 105 months. After a trial it was 240 months, based on 9 people convicted at trial and sent to prison.
Among the guilty pleas, 90% had a written plea agreement, and 10% were straight pleas.
Assault Guidelines
"Assault" is the U.S. Sentencing Commission's offense type. The most common primary guideline was §2A2.1 (Assault with Intent to Commit Murder), used for 31 people.
Next was §2A2.2 (Aggravated Assault), used for 26. One person was sentenced under §2X3.1 (Accessory After the Fact). These cases were less than 1% of the 6,211 people sentenced in the district.
Mandatory Minimums, Supervised Release, and Criminal History
A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 16 of the 59 people (27%). Supervised release was ordered for 50 people (85%), with a median term of 36 months.
No fine was ordered (0%), and restitution was ordered for 11 people (19%). In criminal history, 19% were in the lowest category (Category I), and 17% were in the highest (Category VI).
Yearly Counts
Fiscal years 2016 to 2019 have 13 people, and fiscal years 2020 to 2025 have 46 people. The table lists no cases for fiscal year 2018. The largest years are 2022 and 2023, with 12 people each.
Yearly medians range from 96 months in fiscal year 2021 to 222 months in fiscal year 2017. With 2 to 12 people a year, the table does not show a trend. The fiscal year runs from October 1 through the end of September.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 4 | 205 months | 1 of 4 |
| 2017 | 2 | 222 months | 1 of 2 |
| 2019 | 7 | 170 months | 7 of 7 |
| 2020 | 2 | 142.5 months | 1 of 2 |
| 2021 | 10 | 96 months | 100% |
| 2022 | 12 | 106.5 months | 100% |
| 2023 | 12 | 107 months | 75% |
| 2024 | 6 | 159.5 months | 6 of 6 |
| 2025 | 4 | 171.5 months | 3 of 4 |
Installation Note and Data Limits
Great Lakes, Illinois, is a military installation in this district. Courts-martial are tried in military courts, not in this federal court.
The data covers only convicted and sentenced people, with no acquittals or dismissals, and no facts about any assault. Prison terms are those imposed, not time served.
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the Northern District of Illinois (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Illinois North") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Assault" (59). 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 Illinois, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the Northern District of Illinois, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the Northern District of Illinois, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Firearms Sentences in the Northern District of Illinois, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Robbery Sentences in the Northern District of Illinois, 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.