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# Federal Sentences in the Eastern District of Washington, FY2016–2025
- URL: https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-district-eastern-district-of-washington/
- Published: 2026-11-03T06:11:34.000Z
- Updated: 2026-11-03T06:11:34.000Z
- Description: In the Eastern District of Washington, people convicted after a federal trial had a median prison term of 180 months, compared with 36 months after a guilty plea. The district sentenced 2,908 people in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, and 97% pleaded guilty. The overall median prison term was 36 months (3
- Author: Jocelyn C. Stewart
- Tags: Understanding Trends, Federal

[Trends](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/) › [Federal Prosecution Analysis](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal/) › Eastern District of Washington

**In brief:** In the Eastern District of Washington, people convicted after a federal trial had a median prison term of 180 months, compared with 36 months after a guilty plea. The district sentenced 2,908 people in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, and 97% pleaded guilty. The overall median prison term was 36 months (3 years), compared with 24 months for all 94 federal districts.

Updated November 3, 2026 · Sources: U.S. Sentencing Commission and Federal Judicial Center, fiscal years 2016–2025

This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 2,908 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](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal/) series, which builds on [Military Moves Toward Sentencing Guidelines to Mirror the Federal System](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/military-sentencing-guidelines-federal-system/). How the numbers were built: [How the Federal Comparison Data Was Built](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-data-methodology/).

## Sentences After Trial

81 people in this district were convicted after a trial. Of them, 78 were sent to prison, and their median term was 180 months.

The other 2,827 people pleaded guilty. Their median prison term was 36 months. The guilty plea rate of 97% matches the rate for all districts.

Trial cases and plea cases are different sets of cases with different charges. The medians do not show what sentence any single person would have received had the case gone the other way.

## How Many People Went to Prison?

A prison term was ordered for 2,725 people (94%). That share is higher than the 91% for all districts. Probation only, with no prison or other confinement, was ordered for 167 (6%).

A quarter of those sent to prison received 84 months or more. A quarter received 10 months or less. 12 people received a life sentence.

A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 1,105 people (38%).

## The District's Offense Mix

Drug trafficking accounted for 1,102 people (38%), with a median prison term of 60 months. Firearms accounted for 443 (15%) and immigration for 402 (14%).

Fraud, theft, and embezzlement cases numbered 272 (9%). Their median prison term was 6.5 months.

Sexual abuse cases (124 people) had a median of 180 months. Child pornography (images of child exploitation) cases (129 people) had a median of 60 months. Assault accounted for 90 people, with a median of 36 months.

| Offense type                 | People sentenced | Share of district | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
| ---------------------------- | ---------------- | ----------------- | ------------- | -------------- |
| Drug Trafficking             | 1,102            | 38%               | 60 months     | 98%            |
| Firearms                     | 443              | 15%               | 33 months     | 98%            |
| Immigration                  | 402              | 14%               | 4 months      | more than 99%  |
| Fraud/Theft/Embezzlement     | 272              | 9%                | 6.5 months    | 98%            |
| Child Pornography            | 129              | 4%                | 60 months     | 97%            |
| Sexual Abuse                 | 124              | 4%                | 180 months    | 90%            |
| Assault                      | 90               | 3%                | 36 months     | 92%            |
| Obscenity/Other Sex Offenses | 54               | 2%                | 18 months     | 100%           |

## Guideline Range Results

Guideline information was available for 2,903 people. Below-range sentences at the government's request were the largest group, at 1,268 (44%).

Within-range sentences were 1,022 (35%), lower than the 48% for all districts. Below-range sentences without a government request were 509 (18%).

Above-range sentences were 104, or 4%.

## Supervised Release and Other Terms

Supervised release after prison was ordered for 2,673 people (92%). The median term was 36 months, and 93 people (3%) received supervised release for life.

Restitution was ordered for 570 people (20%), and a fine for 72 (2%). Written plea agreements covered 96% of guilty pleas, and 4% were straight pleas with no agreement.

In criminal history, 40% were in category I, the lowest, and 13% were in category VI, the highest. Court-martial records have no criminal history field.

## Counts and Terms by Fiscal Year

The district sentenced 1,348 people in fiscal years 2016 to 2019 and 1,560 in fiscal years 2020 to 2025\. The yearly median prison term was 24.5 months in 2016 and 57 months in 2025\. The table shows each year from 2016 to 2025.

| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
| ----------- | ---------------- | ------------- | -------------- |
| 2016        | 305              | 24.5 months   | 95%            |
| 2017        | 338              | 36 months     | 98%            |
| 2018        | 345              | 30 months     | 97%            |
| 2019        | 360              | 30 months     | 99%            |
| 2020        | 238              | 24 months     | 98%            |
| 2021        | 199              | 36 months     | 97%            |
| 2022        | 213              | 41.5 months   | 98%            |
| 2023        | 289              | 40 months     | 98%            |
| 2024        | 286              | 46 months     | 95%            |
| 2025        | 335              | 57 months     | 96%            |

## Fairchild AFB and Limits of the Data

Fairchild AFB is in this district and appears in this site's court-martial data. Courts-martial are tried in military courts, not in this federal district court.

The Sentencing Commission data includes only people who were convicted and sentenced. It does not include acquittals or dismissals, and its prison terms are the terms imposed rather than time served.

### How We Counted

Everyone sentenced in federal court in the Eastern District of Washington (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Washington East") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 (2,908). 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](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/military-sentencing-guidelines-federal-system/) (the background article)
- [Federal Prosecution Analysis](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal/) (all federal posts)
- [How the Federal Comparison Data Was Built](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-data-methodology/) (sources and method)
- [Drug Use: Courts-Martial at Fairchild AFB vs. Federal Court in the Eastern District of Washington](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-drug-use-fairchild-afb-vs-eastern-district-of-washington/) (installation comparison)
- [How Often Federal Judges Sentence Outside the Guideline Range](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-sentences-outside-guideline-range/)
- [Mandatory Minimums: How Many Federal Sentences Are Set by Congress](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-mandatory-minimum-sentences/)
- [U.S. Sentencing Commission, Individual Offender Datafiles](https://www.ussc.gov/research/datafiles/commission-datafiles?ref=bodiesburied.com) (source)
- [Federal Judicial Center, Integrated Database (criminal defendants)](https://www.fjc.gov/research/idb?ref=bodiesburied.com) (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](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/?ref=bodiesburied.com). This analysis is for education and information only. It is not legal advice, and every case is different.