Federal Environmental Offense Sentences in the District of North Dakota, FY2016–2025
In the District of North Dakota, 10 of the 12 people sentenced for environmental offenses (83%) received probation only. Across all 94 districts, 28% of people sentenced for environmental offenses were sent to prison, compared with 17% here. The 12 sentences were from fiscal years 2017 to 2023.
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In brief: In the District of North Dakota, 10 of the 12 people sentenced for environmental offenses (83%) received probation only. Across all 94 districts, 28% of people sentenced for environmental offenses were sent to prison, compared with 17% here. The 12 sentences were from fiscal years 2017 to 2023.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 12 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 Was the Usual Sentence
10 of the 12 people (83%) received probation only, with no prison or other confinement. The other 2 (17%) received a prison term, and the median prison term among them was 0 months.
Across all 94 federal districts, 28% of the 1,638 people sentenced for environmental offenses were sent to prison, and the median prison term was 5 months. Sentences in this district were lower on both measures.
Fines Instead of Prison
A fine was ordered for 9 people (75%), and restitution for 4 (33%). Supervised release after prison was ordered for 2 people (17%), with a median term of 36 months.
The sheet does not give the size of any fine.
What the Environmental Category Includes
"Environmental" is the U.S. Sentencing Commission's offense type. The primary guidelines named in these cases were §2Q2.1 (Offenses Involving Fish, Wildlife, and Plants) with 8 people, and §2Q1.2 (Mishandling of Hazardous or Toxic Substances or Pesticides) with 2 people.
Wildlife offenses made up most of the group. The other cases involved hazardous or toxic substances or pesticides.
Pleas and Guideline Ranges
All 12 people (100%) pleaded guilty, and none was convicted after a trial. Every plea had a written plea agreement. Nationwide, 98% of environmental cases ended in a guilty plea.
Of the 11 people with the information recorded, 82% (9) were sentenced within the guideline range. 9% (1) were below the range at the government's request, and 9% (1) were below the range without a government request. None was above it. Nationwide, 50% of environmental sentences were within the range, and for all offenses in this district it was 34%.
A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 0 of the 12 people with that information recorded (0%).
A Different Mix From the District's Other Cases
Environmental cases were less than 1% of the 3,337 people sentenced in the district across these years. For all offenses in the district, the median prison term was 36 months and guilty pleas were 97%.
All 12 people were in the lowest criminal history category (category I). Court-martial records have no criminal history field.
Small Yearly Counts
4 people were sentenced in fiscal years 2016 to 2019, and 8 in fiscal years 2020 to 2025. The table lists 1 to 3 people in each year from 2017 to 2023, and some years have none. A median prison term is shown for only 1 year, because most years had no one sent to prison.
The fiscal year runs from October through September.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | 1 | n/a | 1 of 1 |
| 2018 | 3 | 0 months | 3 of 3 |
| 2020 | 1 | n/a | 1 of 1 |
| 2021 | 3 | n/a | 3 of 3 |
| 2022 | 3 | n/a | 3 of 3 |
| 2023 | 1 | n/a | 1 of 1 |
Limits of the Data
The Commission counts only people who were convicted and sentenced, so dismissed cases and acquittals are not included. The data does not show the species, the substances, or the harm involved. Grand Forks AFB and Minot AFB are in the district, but courts-martial are tried in military courts, not in this federal court.
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the District of North Dakota (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "North Dakota") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Environmental" (12). 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 North Dakota, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the District of North Dakota, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the District of North Dakota, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Firearms Sentences in the District of North Dakota, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Assault Sentences in the District of North Dakota, 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.