Federal Commercialized Vice Sentences in the Eastern District of Wisconsin, FY2016–2025
The Eastern District of Wisconsin sentenced 10 people for commercialized vice offenses in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. 9 (90%) received a prison term, with a median of 14 months, compared with 18 months across all 94 federal districts. All 10 pleaded guilty.
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Trends › Federal Prosecution Analysis › Federal Sentences in the Eastern District of Wisconsin, FY20 › Commercialized Vice: Eastern District of Wisconsin
In brief: The Eastern District of Wisconsin sentenced 10 people for commercialized vice offenses in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. 9 (90%) received a prison term, with a median of 14 months, compared with 18 months across all 94 federal districts. All 10 pleaded guilty.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 10 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.
How Many Received Prison
In this district, 9 of 10 people (90%) in this offense type received a prison term, and 0 received probation only. Across all 94 districts, 70% were sent to prison, so the share here was higher.
Among those sent to prison, the median prison term was 14 months. A quarter received 24 months or more, and a quarter received 12 months or less. The all-districts median was 18 months, which is higher than the median here. All offenses in this district together had a median of 48 months.
The data reports the terms the court imposed, not time served.
Gambling and Sex-Related Guidelines
"Commercialized Vice" is the U.S. Sentencing Commission's offense type. The most common primary guideline was §2G1.1 (Promoting a Commercial Sex Act or Prohibited Sexual Conduct with an Individual Other than a Minor), with 7 people. The other primary guideline was §2E3.1 (Gambling Offenses), with 3.
These cases were less than 1% of the 2,907 people sentenced in the district. The sheet does not report separate sentences for the 2 guidelines.
Sentences Compared With the Guideline Range
Within the guideline range were 20% of the sentences (2 people). Below the range at the government's request were 30% (3), and below the range without a government request were 40% (4). Above the range was 10% (1).
Across all districts, 42% of sentences in this offense type were within the range. The district's figure for all offenses was 17%. None of the 10 people had a mandatory minimum (0%).
All Cases Ended in Guilty Pleas
All 10 people (100%) pleaded guilty, and each plea had a written plea agreement. Nobody was convicted after a trial. Across all districts, 97% of people in this offense type pleaded guilty.
The Commission's data counts only people who were convicted and sentenced. A case that ended in acquittal or dismissal is not in it.
Supervised Release, Restitution, and Criminal History
Supervised release was ordered for 9 people (90%), with a median term of 24 months. No fine was ordered (0), and restitution was ordered for 1 person (10%).
The federal data records criminal history. Of these people, 30% were in category I, the lowest, and 0% were in category VI, the highest. Court-martial records have no criminal history field.
Counts by Fiscal Year
The district sentenced 5 people in fiscal years 2016 to 2019 and 5 in fiscal years 2020 to 2025. A fiscal year starts on October 1.
The table lists 2016 with 5 people, 2021 with 3, and 2023 with 2. The records do not explain the missing years. Counts this small do not show a trend.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 5 | 26 months | 5 of 5 |
| 2021 | 3 | 14 months | 3 of 3 |
| 2023 | 2 | 13.5 months | 2 of 2 |
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the Eastern District of Wisconsin (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Wisconsin East") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Commercialized Vice" (10). 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 Eastern District of Wisconsin, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the Eastern District of Wisconsin, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Firearms Sentences in the Eastern District of Wisconsin, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Robbery Sentences in the Eastern District of Wisconsin, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the Eastern District of Wisconsin, 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.