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# Federal Child Pornography Sentences in the Northern District of Iowa, FY2016–2025
- URL: https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-child-pornography-sentences-northern-district-of-iowa/
- Published: 2026-11-04T11:06:17.000Z
- Updated: 2026-11-04T11:06:17.000Z
- Description: All 105 people sentenced for child pornography (images of child exploitation) in the Northern District of Iowa in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 received a prison term. The median was 120 months (10 years), compared with 90 months for all 94 federal districts. Only 34% were sentenced within the guideline
- Author: Jocelyn C. Stewart
- Tags: Understanding Trends, Federal

[Trends](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/) › [Federal Prosecution Analysis](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal/) › [Federal Sentences in the Northern District of Iowa, FY2016–2](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-district-northern-district-of-iowa/) › Child Pornography: Northern District of Iowa

**In brief:** All 105 people sentenced for child pornography (images of child exploitation) in the Northern District of Iowa in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 received a prison term. The median was 120 months (10 years), compared with 90 months for all 94 federal districts. Only 34% were sentenced within the guideline range.

Updated November 4, 2026 · Sources: U.S. Sentencing Commission and Federal Judicial Center, fiscal years 2016–2025

This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 105 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](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal/) series, which builds on [Military Moves Toward Sentencing Guidelines to Mirror the Federal System](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/military-sentencing-guidelines-federal-system/). How the numbers were built: [How the Federal Comparison Data Was Built](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-data-methodology/).

## Prison Terms for All 105 People

Every person in the group, 105 of 105 (100%), received a prison term, and none received probation only. The median prison term was 120 months. A quarter received 151 months or more, and a quarter received 72 months or less.

In all districts, 13,674 people were sentenced for child pornography offenses, 99% were sent to prison, and the median was 90 months. The Iowa median is higher than that figure. For all offense types in the Northern District of Iowa, the median was 60 months. Prison terms are the terms imposed, not time served.

## How Sentences Related to the Guideline Range

The guideline range was recorded for all 105 people. A total of 34% (36) were within the range. Another 8% (8) were below the range at the government's request, and 53% (56) were below it without a government request. 5% (5) were above the range.

Across all districts, 32% of these sentences were within the range, and for all offenses in this district the figure was 53%. The share below the range without a government request, 53%, is the largest group here. The records do not show the reasons recorded for those sentences.

## Mandatory Minimums

A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 61 of the 105 people (58%). A mandatory minimum is a floor set by statute for certain offenses.

The data here is organized by guideline, not by statute. Every person in the group had §2G2.2 (Trafficking in Material Involving the Sexual Exploitation of a Minor) as the primary guideline.

## Pleas and Trials

A total of 103 people (98%) pleaded guilty, and 2 were convicted after a trial. The median prison term was 120 months after a guilty plea and 216 months after a trial. The trial figure rests on only 2 people.

Among guilty pleas, 94% had a written plea agreement, and 6% were straight pleas with no agreement.

## A Small Number of People Each Year

The group has 28 people in fiscal years 2016 to 2019 and 77 in fiscal years 2020 to 2025\. Yearly counts are small, from 4 to 20 people, so the yearly medians in the table should not be read as trends. A fiscal year runs from October 1 through the end of September.

The median was 75 months in 2019 with 4 people, and 130.5 months in 2024 with 8 people. The records do not show why the yearly figures differ.

| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
| ----------- | ---------------- | ------------- | -------------- |
| 2016        | 11               | 121 months    | 100%           |
| 2017        | 7                | 121 months    | 7 of 7         |
| 2018        | 6                | 180 months    | 6 of 6         |
| 2019        | 4                | 75 months     | 4 of 4         |
| 2020        | 13               | 78 months     | 100%           |
| 2021        | 14               | 114 months    | 100%           |
| 2022        | 10               | 103.5 months  | 100%           |
| 2023        | 12               | 114 months    | 92%            |
| 2024        | 8                | 130.5 months  | 7 of 8         |
| 2025        | 20               | 120 months    | 100%           |

## Supervised Release, Restitution, and Criminal History

Supervised release after prison was ordered for all 105 people (100%), with a median term of 60 months. 1 person (less than 1%) received supervised release for life. A fine was ordered for 7 (7%), and restitution for 57 (54%).

In criminal history, 65% were in the lowest category I and less than 1% were in the highest category VI. Court-martial records have no criminal history field, so this post reports federal numbers on their own.

## What the Records Cannot Show

These cases were 3% of the 3,479 people sentenced in the district over the period. The data counts only people who were convicted and sentenced. It does not show the number of images or the facts of any case, and it cannot explain differences between sentences.

### How We Counted

Everyone sentenced in federal court in the Northern District of Iowa (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Iowa North") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Child Pornography" (105). 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](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/military-sentencing-guidelines-federal-system/) (the background article)
- [Federal Prosecution Analysis](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal/) (all federal posts)
- [How the Federal Comparison Data Was Built](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-data-methodology/) (sources and method)
- [Federal Sentences in the Northern District of Iowa, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-district-northern-district-of-iowa/) (overview)
- [Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the Northern District of Iowa, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-drug-trafficking-sentences-northern-district-of-iowa/) (same district, other offense type)
- [Federal Firearms Sentences in the Northern District of Iowa, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-firearms-sentences-northern-district-of-iowa/) (same district, other offense type)
- [Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the Northern District of Iowa, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-immigration-sentences-northern-district-of-iowa/) (same district, other offense type)
- [Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the Northern District of Iowa, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-fraud-theft-embezzlement-sentences-northern-district-of-iowa/) (same district, other offense type)
- [U.S. Sentencing Commission, Individual Offender Datafiles](https://www.ussc.gov/research/datafiles/commission-datafiles?ref=bodiesburied.com) (source)
- [Federal Judicial Center, Integrated Database (criminal defendants)](https://www.fjc.gov/research/idb?ref=bodiesburied.com) (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](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/?ref=bodiesburied.com). This analysis is for education and information only. It is not legal advice, and every case is different.