Federal Commercialized Vice Sentences in the District of Massachusetts, FY2016–2025
Commercialized vice cases in the District of Massachusetts ended with a median prison term of 7.5 months for the 10 people sent to prison, out of 13 sentenced in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. The median in all 94 districts was 18 months. The 13-person group is small, so each person changes the percenta
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Trends › Federal Prosecution Analysis › Federal Sentences in the District of Massachusetts, FY2016–2 › Commercialized Vice: District of Massachusetts
In brief: Commercialized vice cases in the District of Massachusetts ended with a median prison term of 7.5 months for the 10 people sent to prison, out of 13 sentenced in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. The median in all 94 districts was 18 months. The 13-person group is small, so each person changes the percentages a great deal.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 13 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.
Short Terms Compared With the National Figure
The median of 7.5 months is lower than the 18 months for this offense type in all districts, where 992 people were sentenced and 70% went to prison. In this district, 10 of 13 (77%) went to prison.
The spread within the district was wide. The longest quarter of terms started at 13.4 months, and the shortest quarter ended at 0.2 months. One person (8%) received probation only. The median for every offense type in this district was 30 months.
Gambling and Sex Offense Guidelines
"Commercialized Vice" is a label the Sentencing Commission uses to group cases. In this district, 7 were sentenced under §2E3.1 (Gambling Offenses), and 6 under §2G1.1 (Promoting a Commercial Sex Act or Prohibited Sexual Conduct with an Individual Other than a Minor).
Together they are less than 1% of the 4,847 people sentenced in the district.
Everyone Pleaded Guilty
No one in this group went to trial. All 13 pleaded guilty, compared with 97% in all districts.
A written plea agreement was part of 54% of the pleas, and 46% were straight pleas. Because no one went to trial, the records give no way to compare plea and trial sentences here.
Matching the Recommended Range
The Sentencing Guidelines recommend a range for each case. Sentences were inside it for 5 people (38%). A lower sentence followed a government request for 2 people (15%), and 6 (46%) received a lower sentence with no such request. Nobody was above the range.
In all districts, 42% were inside the range, and in this district across all offenses, 29% were. None of the 13 had a mandatory minimum.
Supervision, Fines, and Restitution
Supervised release followed prison for 9 people (69%), with a median term of 36 months. Fines were ordered for 4 people (31%) and restitution for 2 (15%).
In terms of criminal history, 62% were in the lowest category and none was in the highest. The court-martial system keeps no criminal history field, so the systems cannot be compared on this measure.
Years With 1 to 3 People
The district sentenced 7 people in fiscal years 2016 to 2019 and 6 in fiscal years 2020 to 2025. Each fiscal year starts on October 1.
Medians are 0.2 months in 2016, 12 months in 2019, and 9 months in 2025. The 2022 median is n/a. With 1 to 3 people per year, the table lists separate years rather than a pattern.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 2 | 0.2 months | 2 of 2 |
| 2017 | 2 | 9 months | 2 of 2 |
| 2019 | 3 | 12 months | 3 of 3 |
| 2021 | 1 | 13.8 months | 1 of 1 |
| 2022 | 1 | n/a | 1 of 1 |
| 2024 | 1 | 0 months | 1 of 1 |
| 2025 | 3 | 9 months | 3 of 3 |
What These Numbers Leave Out
Acquitted people and dismissed cases are not in the Commission's sentencing data. Prison terms are sentences as imposed, not time served. The records also do not say what happened in any one case.
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the District of Massachusetts (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Massachusetts") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Commercialized Vice" (13). 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.
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 District of Massachusetts, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the District of Massachusetts, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the District of Massachusetts, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the District of Massachusetts, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Firearms Sentences in the District of Massachusetts, 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.