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# Federal Sentences in the Western District of Texas, FY2016–2025
- URL: https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-district-western-district-of-texas/
- Published: 2026-11-03T06:11:19.000Z
- Updated: 2026-11-03T06:11:19.000Z
- Description: In the Western District of Texas, 77% of sentences in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 were within the federal guideline range, compared with 48% for all 94 districts. The district sentenced 76,480 people in those years, and 72% were immigration cases. The median prison term was 10 months, against 24 month
- Author: Jocelyn C. Stewart
- Tags: Understanding Trends, Federal

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

**In brief:** In the Western District of Texas, 77% of sentences in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 were within the federal guideline range, compared with 48% for all 94 districts. The district sentenced 76,480 people in those years, and 72% were immigration cases. The median prison term was 10 months, against 24 months nationally.

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 76,480 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 Within the Guideline Range

Every federal sentence is measured against a guideline range: an advisory span of months set by the Sentencing Guidelines from the offense and the person's prior record. Of the 75,775 sentences with this information, 58,037 (77%) were within the range.

Sentences outside the range were less common here than across the federal courts. 5,273 (7%) were below the range at the government's request. 8,361 (11%) were below the range with no government request. 4,104 (5%) were above the range.

## Straight Pleas Without an Agreement

Guilty pleas accounted for 75,969 of the 76,480 people sentenced, or more than 99%. Across all districts the rate was 97%. Only 511 people were convicted after a trial.

Most of these guilty pleas were entered with no written agreement. 73% were straight pleas, and 27% had a written plea agreement with the government.

People who pleaded guilty had a median prison term of 10 months. People convicted after a trial had a median of 63 months, based on 482 who were sent to prison. The trial group is small and may involve different charges, so the comparison does not isolate the effect of a trial.

## Which Offenses Were Sentenced Here?

Immigration cases totaled 55,237 (72%). Drug Trafficking followed with 11,373 (15%). Firearms (2,655), Fraud/Theft/Embezzlement (1,850), and the Commission's Other category (1,824) were each 3% or less. Administration of Justice cases numbered 488.

Immigration cases had a median prison term of 7.3 months in this district, and drug trafficking cases had a median of 51 months. The Other and National Defense groups each show a median of 0.1 months in the table.

| Offense type              | People sentenced | Share of district | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
| ------------------------- | ---------------- | ----------------- | ------------- | -------------- |
| Immigration               | 55,237           | 72%               | 7.3 months    | more than 99%  |
| Drug Trafficking          | 11,373           | 15%               | 51 months     | 99%            |
| Firearms                  | 2,655            | 3%                | 37 months     | 98%            |
| Fraud/Theft/Embezzlement  | 1,850            | 2%                | 6 months      | 98%            |
| Other                     | 1,824            | 2%                | 0.1 months    | more than 99%  |
| Administration of Justice | 488              | less than 1%      | 12 months     | 98%            |
| National Defense          | 462              | less than 1%      | 0.1 months    | more than 99%  |
| Money Laundering          | 421              | less than 1%      | 30 months     | 95%            |

## Length of Prison Terms and Other Penalties

69,792 people (91%) received a prison term, the same share as all districts. 6,055 (8%) received probation only, with no prison or other confinement.

Among people sent to prison, a quarter received 24 months or more and a quarter received 4.1 months or less. 50 people received a life sentence. A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 7,147 (9%). These are terms imposed by the court, not time served.

Supervised release after prison was ordered for 59,230 people (77%). The median supervision term was 36 months, and 112 (less than 1%) were ordered to serve it for life. Fines were imposed on 6,708 (9%), and restitution on 1,580 (2%).

In criminal history, 56% were in category I, the lowest, and 3% in category VI, the highest. Court-martial records have no criminal history field.

## Military Installations in the District

Fort Bliss, Fort Hood, Joint Base San Antonio-Fort Sam Houston, and Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland are in this district and appear in this site's court-martial data. Courts-martial are tried in military courts, not in this federal district court. The 76,480 people in this post were sentenced in civilian federal court.

## Year-by-Year Counts

30,696 people were sentenced in fiscal years 2016 to 2019, and 45,784 in fiscal years 2020 to 2025, a period with more years in it. The yearly count was 10,416 in 2025, the highest in the table.

The yearly median prison term moved between 6 months in 2020 and 18 months in 2021\. The records do not explain these changes.

| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
| ----------- | ---------------- | ------------- | -------------- |
| 2016        | 6,228            | 12 months     | more than 99%  |
| 2017        | 6,612            | 12 months     | more than 99%  |
| 2018        | 8,087            | 8 months      | more than 99%  |
| 2019        | 9,769            | 6.1 months    | more than 99%  |
| 2020        | 8,492            | 6 months      | more than 99%  |
| 2021        | 5,243            | 18 months     | more than 99%  |
| 2022        | 6,059            | 14 months     | 99%            |
| 2023        | 7,539            | 14 months     | more than 99%  |
| 2024        | 8,035            | 12 months     | more than 99%  |
| 2025        | 10,416           | 7.5 months    | more than 99%  |

## What the Data Leaves Out

These counts include only people who were convicted and sentenced. Acquittals and dismissals do not appear. Federal figures are by fiscal year, which begins October 1, and the data cannot describe any single case.

### How We Counted

Everyone sentenced in federal court in the Western District of Texas (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Texas West") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 (76,480). 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)
- [Child Pornography: Courts-Martial at Fort Hood vs. Federal Court in the Western District of Texas](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-child-pornography-fort-hood-vs-western-district-of-texas/) (installation comparison)
- [Child Sexual Abuse and Enticement: Courts-Martial at Fort Hood vs. Federal Court in the Western District of Texas](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-child-sex-offenses-fort-hood-vs-western-district-of-texas/) (installation comparison)
- [Drug Use: Courts-Martial at Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland vs. Federal Court in the Western District of Texas](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-drug-use-joint-base-san-antonio-lackland-vs-western-district-of-texas/) (installation comparison)
- [Drug Distribution: Courts-Martial at Fort Bliss vs. Federal Court in the Western District of Texas](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-drug-distribution-fort-bliss-vs-western-district-of-texas/) (installation comparison)
- [Theft and Fraud: Courts-Martial at Fort Hood vs. Federal Court in the Western District of Texas](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-theft-fraud-fort-hood-vs-western-district-of-texas/) (installation comparison)
- [Obstruction of Justice: Courts-Martial at Fort Bliss vs. Federal Court in the Western District of Texas](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-obstruction-fort-bliss-vs-western-district-of-texas/) (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.