Federal Assault Sentences in the Western District of Oklahoma, FY2016–2025
In the Western District of Oklahoma, 109 people were sentenced for assault offenses in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. 83% received a prison term, and the median prison term was 60 months, compared with 42 months for assault across all 94 districts.
· Understanding Trends in Military Practice · 6 min read
Trends › Federal Prosecution Analysis › Federal Sentences in the Western District of Oklahoma, FY201 › Assault: Western District of Oklahoma
In brief: In the Western District of Oklahoma, 109 people were sentenced for assault offenses in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. 83% received a prison term, and the median prison term was 60 months, compared with 42 months for assault across all 94 districts.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 109 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.
Assault Sentences Were Within the Guideline Range More Often Than Not
62% of the 109 assault sentences (68 people) were within the guideline range. That is higher than the 48% for assault in all districts and the 50% for all offenses in this district.
Another 14% (15 people) were above the range. 17% (19 people) were below the range without a government request, and 6% (7 people) were below it at the government's request.
The records do not show the reasons behind any single sentence.
Who Went to Prison and for How Long
90 of the 109 people (83%) received a prison term. 19 (17%) received probation only, with no prison or other confinement.
Among those sent to prison, the median prison term was 60 months (5 years). A quarter received 113.2 months or more, and a quarter received 33.8 months or less. The range between those figures is wide.
Across all districts, the median for assault was 42 months, and 90% were sent to prison. The median in this district was higher than that, and also higher than the 46 months for all offenses in the Western District of Oklahoma.
Which Guidelines Applied
The offense type "Assault" is the U.S. Sentencing Commission's category, not a single statute. The most common primary guidelines were §2A2.2 (Aggravated Assault) with 63 people, §2A2.1 (Assault with Intent to Commit Murder) with 19, and §2A2.3 (Assault) with 11.
Assault cases were 2% of the 4,661 people sentenced in the district over the period.
Pleas, Trials, and Plea Agreements
102 of 109 people (94%) pleaded guilty, and 7 were convicted after a trial. The median prison term was 57 months after a guilty plea and 120 months after a trial. The trial figure is based on 6 people sent to prison, so it is a small group.
57% of the guilty pleas came with a written plea agreement, while 37% had none.
Criminal History, Supervised Release, and Other Orders
25% of the people were in the lowest criminal history category I, and 23% were in the highest (VI). Court-martial records have no criminal history field.
A mandatory minimum applied to 3 of the 92 people with that information recorded (3%). 86 people (79%) were ordered to serve supervised release, with a median term of 36 months. A fine was ordered for 13 (12%), and restitution for 14 (13%).
Year-by-Year Counts
26 people were sentenced in fiscal years 2016 to 2019, and 83 in fiscal years 2020 to 2025. The table shows each fiscal year, from 3 people in 2016 to 23 in 2023.
Yearly medians move between 36 months and 132 months, but each year has few people, so the table does not show a reliable trend.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 3 | 95.5 months | 3 of 3 |
| 2017 | 5 | 73.5 months | 5 of 5 |
| 2018 | 6 | 120 months | 5 of 6 |
| 2019 | 12 | 60 months | 100% |
| 2020 | 13 | 57 months | 92% |
| 2021 | 7 | 46 months | 7 of 7 |
| 2022 | 12 | 36 months | 92% |
| 2023 | 23 | 42 months | 96% |
| 2024 | 17 | 51 months | 82% |
| 2025 | 11 | 132 months | 100% |
Limits of This Comparison
A person who was acquitted or whose case was dismissed does not appear here. The records begin at sentencing.
The figures report terms imposed. The records do not say how long anyone stayed in prison.
The district contains Altus AFB, Fort Sill, and Tinker AFB. Their courts-martial are handled in the military system, and this page does not connect any installation to the federal cases above.
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the Western District of Oklahoma (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Oklahoma West") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Assault" (109). 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 Oklahoma, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the Western District of Oklahoma, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Firearms Sentences in the Western District of Oklahoma, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the Western District of Oklahoma, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the Western 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.