Federal Environmental Offense Sentences in the District of Kansas, FY2016–2025
Of the 24 people sentenced for environmental offenses in the District of Kansas in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, 20 (83%) received probation only, and 3 (13%) received a prison term. Across all 94 federal districts, 28% of people sentenced in this offense type were sent to prison. A fine was ordered fo
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Trends › Federal Prosecution Analysis › Federal Sentences in the District of Kansas, FY2016–2025 › Environmental Offense: District of Kansas
In brief: Of the 24 people sentenced for environmental offenses in the District of Kansas in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, 20 (83%) received probation only, and 3 (13%) received a prison term. Across all 94 federal districts, 28% of people sentenced in this offense type were sent to prison. A fine was ordered for 17 people (71%).
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 24 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.
Probation Only Was the Usual Sentence
The U.S. Sentencing Commission recorded 24 people sentenced in the District of Kansas under its "Environmental" offense type. Probation only, with no prison or other confinement, was the sentence for 20 (83%). A prison term went to 3 (13%).
For all districts together, 1,638 people were sentenced in this offense type, and 28% were sent to prison. Prison was less common in Kansas than in the country as a whole.
These cases were less than 1% of the 4,217 people sentenced in the district in fiscal years 2016 to 2025.
Fines and Restitution
A fine was ordered for 17 people (71%), and restitution for 9 (38%). Supervised release after prison was ordered for 3 (13%), with a median term of 12 months.
These orders appear more often than prison in this group, which matches the large share of probation-only sentences.
The Prison Sentences
Among the 3 people sent to prison, the median prison term was 18 months. A quarter received 18.5 months or more, and a quarter received 10.5 months or less.
The median for all districts in this offense type was 5 months, so the Kansas median was higher. The median for all offenses in the District of Kansas was 46 months. With only 3 prison sentences, the Kansas median could change a great deal with one more case.
A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 0 of the 21 people with that information recorded (0%).
Pleas and Trials
A total of 22 people (92%) pleaded guilty, and 2 were convicted after a trial. The median prison term after a guilty plea was 18.5 months. After a trial it was 3 months, based on 1 person convicted at trial and sent to prison.
Among the guilty pleas, 82% had a written plea agreement and 14% were straight pleas. Nationally, 98% of people in this offense type pleaded guilty, and for all offenses in the district the figure was 97%.
What Guidelines Cover Environmental Cases?
Environmental is the Commission's category, assigned from the primary guideline in each case. The most common in this district was §2Q2.1 (Offenses Involving Fish, Wildlife, and Plants), with 8 cases.
Next were §2Q1.2 (Mishandling of Hazardous or Toxic Substances or Pesticides) with 6, §2Q1.3 (Mishandling of Other Environmental Pollutants) with 1, and §2Q1.4 (Tampering or Attempted Tampering with a Public Water System) with 1.
The Guideline Range and Criminal History
Of the 19 people with this information, 9 (47%) were sentenced within the guideline range. A sentence below the range at the government's request went to 7 (37%), and 3 (16%) were below the range without a government request. None was above the range (0%).
The national rate within the range was 50%. For all offenses in the district it was 42%. On criminal history, 84% were in the lowest category, category I, and 0% were in the highest, category VI. Court-martial records have no criminal history field.
Yearly Counts and Limits
There were 12 people in fiscal years 2016 to 2019 and 12 in fiscal years 2020 to 2025. Yearly counts in the table are 1 to 5 people, and most years show no median.
The data counts only people who were convicted and sentenced, so acquittals and dismissals are not included. The records do not show what substance or species was involved. Fort Leavenworth, Fort Riley, and McConnell AFB are in the district. Courts-martial are tried in military courts, not in this federal court.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 1 | n/a | 1 of 1 |
| 2017 | 5 | 19 months | 5 of 5 |
| 2018 | 2 | 18 months | 2 of 2 |
| 2019 | 4 | n/a | 3 of 4 |
| 2020 | 1 | 3 months | 0 of 1 |
| 2021 | 2 | n/a | 2 of 2 |
| 2022 | 5 | n/a | 5 of 5 |
| 2023 | 1 | n/a | 1 of 1 |
| 2024 | 2 | n/a | 2 of 2 |
| 2025 | 1 | n/a | 1 of 1 |
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the District of Kansas (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Kansas") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Environmental" (24). 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 District of Kansas, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the District of Kansas, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Firearms Sentences in the District of Kansas, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the District of Kansas, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the District of Kansas, 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.