Federal Assault Sentences in the Western District of Kentucky, FY2016–2025
The Western District of Kentucky sentenced 30 people for assault offenses between fiscal years 2016 and 2025. 15 (50%) received a prison term and 14 (47%) received probation only. The median prison term was 37 months, lower than the 42 months for this offense type in all 94 districts together.
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Trends › Federal Prosecution Analysis › Federal Sentences in the Western District of Kentucky, FY201 › Assault: Western District of Kentucky
In brief: The Western District of Kentucky sentenced 30 people for assault offenses between fiscal years 2016 and 2025. 15 (50%) received a prison term and 14 (47%) received probation only. The median prison term was 37 months, lower than the 42 months for this offense type in all 94 districts together.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 30 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 and Probation Were Close to Even
The Commission's offense type "Assault" covers 30 people in this district. That is less than 1% of the 3,229 people sentenced here for all offenses.
In all districts together, 7,573 people were sentenced for assault, and 90% were sent to prison. In this district, the share was 50%.
A Wide Spread of Prison Terms
Among the 15 people sent to prison, the median prison term was 37 months, or 3.1 years. A quarter received 84 months or more, and a quarter received 10 months or less. The gap between the 84-month and 10-month figures is large.
A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 2 of the 28 people with that information recorded (7%). The terms are those imposed, not time served.
Yearly Counts Are Very Small
The district sentenced 17 people in fiscal years 2016 to 2019 and 13 in fiscal years 2020 to 2025. No year in the table has more than 8 people, and fiscal years 2022 and 2025 have no entries.
Yearly medians run from 1 month to 216 months. Each is based on 2 to 8 people, so they cannot show a trend. A fiscal year runs from October 1 through the end of September.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 4 | 18 months | 4 of 4 |
| 2017 | 2 | 84 months | 2 of 2 |
| 2018 | 3 | 1 months | 3 of 3 |
| 2019 | 8 | 9.1 months | 7 of 8 |
| 2020 | 3 | 66 months | 3 of 3 |
| 2021 | 3 | 216 months | 3 of 3 |
| 2023 | 3 | 102 months | 3 of 3 |
| 2024 | 4 | 63 months | 4 of 4 |
Which Assault Guidelines Applied
The most common primary guideline was §2A2.2 (Aggravated Assault), with 9 people. Next was §2A2.1 (Assault with Intent to Commit Murder), with 5. One person was sentenced under §2A2.3 (Assault).
This post lists only the most common guidelines.
Pleas
Of the 30 people, 29 (97%) pleaded guilty and 1 was convicted after a trial. Across all offenses in the district, 97% pleaded guilty, and for assault in all districts, 93% did.
Among guilty pleas, 83% had a written plea agreement and 14% were straight pleas with no agreement. The records give no median for the one trial.
Guideline Range, Release, and Fines
Within the range were 18 sentences (60%). Below the range at the government's request were 8 (27%), and below it without such a request were 4 (13%). None was above the range. For assault in all districts, 48% were within the range, and for all offenses in this district, 37%.
Supervised release was ordered for 13 people (43%), with a median term of 36 months. A fine was ordered for 18 people (60%) and restitution for 2 (7%). On criminal history, 57% were in the lowest category and 13% in the highest. Court-martial records have no criminal history field.
What the Records Cannot Show
Fort Knox, Kentucky is in the district and appears in this site's court-martial data. Courts-martial are tried in military courts, not in this federal court. The federal data covers only people convicted and sentenced and does not describe the injuries or circumstances in any case.
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the Western District of Kentucky (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Kentucky West") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Assault" (30). 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 Western District of Kentucky, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the Western District of Kentucky, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Firearms Sentences in the Western District of Kentucky, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the Western District of Kentucky, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the Western District of Kentucky, 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.