Federal Assault Sentences in the Northern District of Oklahoma, FY2016–2025
The Northern District of Oklahoma sentenced 281 people for assault offenses in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, and 271 of them were sentenced in fiscal years 2020 to 2025. The median prison term was 36 months (3 years), compared with 42 months for all 94 federal districts.
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Trends › Federal Prosecution Analysis › Federal Sentences in the Northern District of Oklahoma, FY20 › Assault: Northern District of Oklahoma
In brief: The Northern District of Oklahoma sentenced 281 people for assault offenses in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, and 271 of them were sentenced in fiscal years 2020 to 2025. The median prison term was 36 months (3 years), compared with 42 months for all 94 federal districts.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 281 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.
Nearly All Cases Fall in Recent Years
The group has 10 people in fiscal years 2016 to 2019 and 271 in fiscal years 2020 to 2025. The yearly table shows 2 people in 2016, 34 in 2021, and 81 in 2022. Some years have only 2 to 6 people, so earlier medians such as 382 months in 2019 are not reliable guides.
A fiscal year starts on October 1. The table has no rows for 2017. The records do not show why the counts rose, and the data cannot say whether more cases were brought or only recorded differently.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 2 | 49 months | 2 of 2 |
| 2018 | 2 | 173 months | 2 of 2 |
| 2019 | 6 | 382 months | 5 of 6 |
| 2020 | 2 | 18 months | 2 of 2 |
| 2021 | 34 | 36 months | 100% |
| 2022 | 81 | 33 months | 93% |
| 2023 | 51 | 28.5 months | 92% |
| 2024 | 67 | 43 months | 97% |
| 2025 | 36 | 36 months | 97% |
Prison Terms Compared With Other Groups
Prison terms went to 249 of the 281 people (89%), and 25 (9%) received probation only. The median was 36 months. A quarter received 60 months or more, and a quarter received 20 months or less.
The all-district group has 7,573 people, with 90% sent to prison and a median of 42 months. For all offense types in this district, the median was 37 months. Assault cases were 8% of the 3,400 people sentenced in the district.
Sentences Against the Guideline Range
The guideline range was recorded for 278 people. A total of 42% (117) were within it. Below the range at the government's request were 33% (92), and below it without a request were 13% (35). Above it were 12% (34).
Nationally the within-range share was 48%, and across this district's offense types it was 45%.
Guilty Pleas and Trials
A total of 267 people (95%) pleaded guilty, and 14 were convicted after a trial. After a guilty plea the median prison term was 36 months. After a trial it was 94.5 months, based on 14 people.
Written plea agreements covered 93% of the guilty pleas, and 7% were straight pleas. A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 14 of the 272 people with that information (5%).
What Assault Covers Here
"Assault" is the U.S. Sentencing Commission's offense type. The primary guideline was §2A2.2 (Aggravated Assault) for 232 people, §2A2.3 (Assault) for 30, §2A2.1 (Assault with Intent to Commit Murder) for 14, and §2X3.1 (Accessory After the Fact) for 1.
The data does not show the facts of any case or the setting in which it occurred.
Supervised Release, Restitution, and Criminal History
Courts ordered supervised release for 252 people (90%), with a median term of 36 months. A fine was ordered for 7 (2%), and restitution for 35 (12%).
In criminal history, 37% were in the lowest category I and 12% in the highest category VI. Court-martial records have no criminal history field, so the post reports federal numbers on their own. The figures include only people convicted and sentenced, and terms are those imposed.
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the Northern District of Oklahoma (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Oklahoma North") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Assault" (281). 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 Oklahoma, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the Northern District of Oklahoma, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Firearms Sentences in the Northern District of Oklahoma, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the Northern District of Oklahoma, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the Northern District of Oklahoma, 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.