Federal Sentences in the District of Connecticut, FY2016–2025
Drug trafficking made up 49% of the 3,174 federal sentences in the District of Connecticut in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. The district's median prison term was 36 months, compared with 24 months for all 94 federal districts. Sentences below the guideline range without a government request were the mo
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In brief: Drug trafficking made up 49% of the 3,174 federal sentences in the District of Connecticut in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. The district's median prison term was 36 months, compared with 24 months for all 94 federal districts. Sentences below the guideline range without a government request were the most common result, at 42%.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 3,174 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.
Drug Trafficking Was the Largest Offense Type
The Sentencing Commission placed 1,549 Connecticut sentences in the drug trafficking category. That is 49% of the district's total. The median prison term for those cases was 40 months.
Firearms and fraud cases were about the same size: 439 people (14%) for firearms and 436 (14%) for fraud, theft, or embezzlement. Robbery accounted for 117 people (4%), tax offenses for 105 (3%), and immigration for 84 (3%).
Murder cases numbered 66. Their median prison term was 228.5 months, and 73% of those people pleaded guilty, the lowest guilty plea share in the table.
| Offense type | People sentenced | Share of district | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Drug Trafficking | 1,549 | 49% | 40 months | 98% |
| Firearms | 439 | 14% | 37 months | 98% |
| Fraud/Theft/Embezzlement | 436 | 14% | 21 months | 94% |
| Robbery | 117 | 4% | 77.5 months | 98% |
| Tax | 105 | 3% | 10 months | 98% |
| Immigration | 84 | 3% | 12 months | 96% |
| Sexual Abuse | 75 | 2% | 168 months | 96% |
| Murder | 66 | 2% | 228.5 months | 73% |
Position Against the Guideline Range
For the 3,172 people with guideline information, 1,332 (42%) were sentenced below the range without a government request. A judge can impose such a sentence on grounds the court finds, and the data does not list those grounds.
Within-range sentences numbered 936, or 30%, lower than the 48% for all districts. 833 sentences (26%) were below the range at the government's request. 71 (2%) were above the range.
Prison Terms and Probation
Of the 3,174 people sentenced, 2,832 (89%) received a prison term. The all-district share was 91%. Probation only was imposed on 243 people (8%).
The median prison term was 36 months, or 3 years. A quarter received 68 months or more. A quarter received 13.3 months or less. 9 people received a life sentence.
A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 954 people (30%). That is a minimum fixed by statute.
Written Plea Agreements in Almost Every Plea
3,061 of the 3,174 people (96%) pleaded guilty, against 97% for all districts. 113 were convicted after a trial.
Of the guilty pleas, 98% had a written plea agreement. Straight pleas with no agreement made up 1%.
The median prison term after a guilty plea was 36 months. After a trial, the median was 90 months, based on 111 people convicted at trial and sent to prison. The records do not show whether the trial and plea groups faced similar charges.
Supervised Release, Fines, and Restitution
Supervised release was ordered for 2,751 people (87%), and the median term was 36 months. 16 people, less than 1%, received it for life.
Fines were ordered for 248 people (8%) and restitution for 722 (23%). In criminal history, 45% were in category I and 12% were in category VI.
Counts and Medians by Year
Connecticut sentenced 1,320 people in fiscal years 2016 to 2019 and 1,854 in fiscal years 2020 to 2025. Fiscal year 2025 had the highest yearly median prison term in the table, 48 months, from 260 people sentenced.
A single year's median is one measure from one group. It does not show a trend by itself.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 304 | 36 months | 98% |
| 2017 | 345 | 36 months | 98% |
| 2018 | 322 | 36 months | 97% |
| 2019 | 349 | 30 months | 97% |
| 2020 | 353 | 34 months | 95% |
| 2021 | 302 | 33 months | 98% |
| 2022 | 335 | 38 months | 97% |
| 2023 | 355 | 39 months | 96% |
| 2024 | 249 | 36 months | 93% |
| 2025 | 260 | 48 months | 95% |
What Is Not Counted
The data includes only people convicted and sentenced. People acquitted, and people whose cases were dismissed, are not in it. Prison terms reflect the sentence imposed rather than time served.
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the District of Connecticut (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Connecticut") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 (3,174). 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)
- How Often Federal Judges Sentence Outside the Guideline Range
- Mandatory Minimums: How Many Federal Sentences Are Set by Congress
- 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.