Federal Commercialized Vice Sentences in the Middle District of Florida, FY2016–2025
Only 21% of the 19 people sentenced for commercialized vice offenses in the Middle District of Florida had sentences within the guideline range, and 42% were below the range at the government's request. 9 people (47%) received a prison term, with a median of 27 months (2.2 years). All 19 pleaded gui
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Trends › Federal Prosecution Analysis › Federal Sentences in the Middle District of Florida, FY2016– › Commercialized Vice: Middle District of Florida
In brief: Only 21% of the 19 people sentenced for commercialized vice offenses in the Middle District of Florida had sentences within the guideline range, and 42% were below the range at the government's request. 9 people (47%) received a prison term, with a median of 27 months (2.2 years). All 19 pleaded guilty.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 19 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.
Sentences Against the Guideline Range
The guideline range is the range calculated from the U.S. Sentencing Commission's rules for each case. 21% of the sentences (4 people) were within the range. 42% (8 people) were below the range at the government's request, and 21% (4 people) were below it without a government request. 16% (3 people) were above the range.
Across all 94 districts, 42% of sentences in this offense type were within the range. For all offenses in the Middle District of Florida, the figure was 47%. No mandatory minimum applied to any of the 19 people.
Prison Terms and Probation
9 of the 19 people (47%) received a prison term, and 7 (37%) received probation only, with no prison or other confinement. Across all 94 districts, 70% of people in this offense type were sent to prison.
The median prison term was 27 months (2.2 years). A quarter received 66 months or more, and a quarter received 12 months or less. The median across all 94 districts was 18 months, and for all offenses in this district it was 57 months.
The gap between the lower and upper ends is wide, and the median describes only 9 people.
Which Offenses Were in the Group
"Commercialized Vice" is the Commission's offense type for this group. The most common primary guideline was §2E3.1 (Gambling Offenses), with 12 people. Next was §2G1.1 (Promoting a Commercial Sex Act or Prohibited Sexual Conduct with an Individual Other than a Minor), with 7 people.
Together, these cases made up less than 1% of the 13,145 people sentenced in the district across fiscal years 2016 to 2025.
Guilty Pleas
Every person in this group pleaded guilty (19 of 19), and no one was convicted after a trial. The plea rate for the offense type was 97% in all 94 districts, and 95% for all offenses in this district.
Written plea agreements covered 84% of the guilty pleas. Straight pleas, with no agreement, made up 11%.
Supervised Release, Fines, and Criminal History
Supervised release followed prison for 9 people (47%), and the median term was 36 months. Fines went to 4 people (21%), and restitution to 2 people (11%).
On criminal history, 58% were in the lowest category (Category I) and 0% were in the highest (VI). Military records on this site have no equivalent measure.
When the Cases Were Sentenced
Most of these cases fall early in the period. The district had 16 people in this offense type in fiscal years 2016 to 2019 and 3 people in fiscal years 2020 to 2025. Fiscal year 2018 had 9 people, which is the most of any year.
The table has no rows for fiscal years 2021 through 2024. The records cannot show what accounts for the smaller count in later years. Fiscal years run from October 1 to September 30.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 5 | 0 months | 5 of 5 |
| 2017 | 1 | 66 months | 1 of 1 |
| 2018 | 9 | 24 months | 9 of 9 |
| 2019 | 1 | n/a | 1 of 1 |
| 2020 | 2 | 16.5 months | 2 of 2 |
| 2025 | 1 | 84 months | 1 of 1 |
What the Records Cannot Show
Only people who were convicted and sentenced are in the data. Acquittals and dismissals do not appear. Terms are those imposed by the court, not time served.
The records list Jacksonville, MacDill AFB, and Mayport as installations in this district. Military trials take place in courts-martial, which are separate from the federal court counted here.
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the Middle District of Florida (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Florida Mid") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Commercialized Vice" (19). 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 Middle District of Florida, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the Middle District of Florida, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the Middle District of Florida, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the Middle District of Florida, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Firearms Sentences in the Middle District of Florida, 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.