Federal Child Pornography Sentences in the Southern District of Indiana, FY2016–2025
All 227 people sentenced for child pornography (images of child exploitation) offenses in the Southern District of Indiana in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 received a prison term. The median prison term was 120 months (10 years). For all 94 federal districts, the median in this offense type was 90 month
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In brief: All 227 people sentenced for child pornography (images of child exploitation) offenses in the Southern District of Indiana in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 received a prison term. The median prison term was 120 months (10 years). For all 94 federal districts, the median in this offense type was 90 months.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 227 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 Terms for Child Pornography Offenses
The U.S. Sentencing Commission labels this offense type "Child Pornography." Cases involve images of child exploitation. In the Southern District of Indiana, 227 of 227 people (100%) were sent to prison, and none received probation only.
The median prison term was 120 months. A quarter received 180 months or more, and a quarter received 72 months or less. 1 person received a life sentence. The median for all 94 districts was 90 months, which is lower than the median in this district.
Mandatory Minimums and the Guideline Range
A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 181 of the 227 people (80%). A mandatory minimum is a term set by statute.
Against the advisory guideline range, 40% of sentences (90 people) were within the range. 24% (55 people) were below the range at the government's request, and 33% (76 people) were below it without a government request. 3% (6 people) were above the range.
For all 94 districts, 32% of sentences in this offense type were within the range. For all offenses in this district, it was 43%.
Almost Every Case Ended in a Guilty Plea
224 of 227 people (99%) pleaded guilty, and 3 were convicted after a trial. The median prison term was 120 months after a guilty plea and 120 months after a trial. The trial figure rests on only 3 people.
Among those who pleaded guilty, 95% had a written plea agreement and 5% were straight pleas with no agreement.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 20 | 97.5 months | 100% |
| 2017 | 32 | 127.5 months | 97% |
| 2018 | 21 | 108 months | 95% |
| 2019 | 25 | 99 months | 100% |
| 2020 | 29 | 97 months | 100% |
| 2021 | 17 | 144 months | 100% |
| 2022 | 31 | 144 months | 100% |
| 2023 | 32 | 151 months | 97% |
| 2024 | 13 | 120 months | 100% |
| 2025 | 7 | 151 months | 7 of 7 |
Which Guideline Applied?
The primary guideline was §2G2.2 (Trafficking in Material Involving the Sexual Exploitation of a Minor) for 226 of the 227 people. The other person was sentenced under §2X3.1 (Accessory After the Fact). The guideline title describes the material as sexual exploitation of a minor, and the records do not show which statute was charged in each case.
Supervised Release After Prison
All 227 people (100%) were ordered to serve supervised release after prison. The median term was 120 months, and 50 people (22%) received supervised release for life.
A fine was ordered for 58 people (26%), and restitution for 113 (50%).
Criminal History and Caseload
63% of the people were in the lowest criminal history category, category I, and 1% were in the highest, category VI. Court-martial records have no criminal history field.
These cases were 5% of the 4,205 people sentenced in this district in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. The median prison term for all offenses in the district was 70 months. 98 people were sentenced in fiscal years 2016 to 2019, and 129 in fiscal years 2020 to 2025.
Yearly counts range from 7 to 32 people. The latest year, fiscal year 2025, has only 7 people, so its median of 151 months is not a trend.
What the Records Cannot Show
The data counts only people who were convicted and sentenced. Acquittals and dismissals are not in it. Prison terms are the terms imposed, not time served. The records do not show the number of images or the facts of any case.
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the Southern District of Indiana (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Indiana South") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Child Pornography" (227). 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 Southern District of Indiana, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the Southern District of Indiana, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Firearms Sentences in the Southern District of Indiana, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the Southern District of Indiana, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Robbery Sentences in the Southern District of Indiana, 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.